I must be the king of weight fluctuations. I've gained 10 lbs. in three days. And I've been on a low-calorie diet with lots of exercise. How is that possible?

Let my explain the circumstances first. Last Monday I did a three-day fast (for both physical and spiritual reasons). Only water. I figured I'd lose some weight - I went from 194.5 to 185.5! I lost nine pounds in three days! So I went off my fast and started eating my 1600 cal./day again. I also bike and workout some. Here's the progress upward the day after I started eating again: 185.5>186.5>190.5>194>195.5. This is in sequential days, one after the other. I know it has to be water weight, but I'm not eating any differently now than I was before on my diet, and I actually weigh more now after eating nothing for three days than I did before!

Something is making me retain water, and I have no idea what it is.

Huh, I wonder if your body is holding on since it wasn't fed in a bit. Wait it out, stay on course, and green tea does wonders for me at times like this. I have weird fluctuations too at times...

I had a stomach thing on Friday and didn't eat much and my body's been all over the place since then too, if that's any consolation at all.

Best of luck!

Its possible your body is retaining a little bit of something every time you eat because you fasted for 3 days and it pushed you into "starvation mode." I would give it a few more days for your body to level out and you should release the excess water.

http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/...tion-mode.html

I'm holding water; I just don't know why.

Thanks for that link, Tricon. It's the most lucidly explained debunk of Starvation Mode I've ever read.

Freelance

I'm one of those people who doesn't believe the "starvation mode".

To OP: 10 lb in 3 days is absolutely water weight.
1. On or nearing your period? We all know that TOM can cause bloaty-ness, aka weight gain.
2. Exercising can cause your muscles to retain fluid. This is "exercise" weight, or what many people say "muscle weighs more than fat!" (which no, it doesn't... a pound of muscle and a pound of fat is still ________. (answer: a pound!)
3. Sodium. aka The Devil! - sodium is the main reason why we gain/lose weight seemingly overnight.

While none of us like to see an increase on the scale, keeping that whole water-weight thing in mind can help us not get too crazy over it.

You are only 1 pound different. You didn't lose 9 pounds of fat in 3 days and you didn't gain 10 pounds of fat in 3 days. You just screwed around with water weight and probably lost some lean muscle.

Well, I don't think it's TOM - especially since I'm male.

I have worked out at the gym twice in the last three days. Maybe that has something to do with it. I'm not taking in any more or less salt than I normally do, so I don't that that's the cause. But I do concur that it's water. Why so much so fast is puzzling.

LOL!

Well. You wanna lose fat, not water. So start eating boy.