I've been at it for about 7 weeks now, and have found that so far my weight loss is not linear. I have week-long to 10 day periods with no loss, followed by a 3 or 4 pound loss in the next week. I'm wondering if these types of patterns stay consistent for the duration of weight loss, or do they change over time?

What's been your pattern of weight loss (not counting the first couple of weeks of rapid weight loss)?

Great job noticing your patterns! I often encourage people to be aware of this.

My pattern is similar to yours. I typically lose in a 2-3 pound "whoosh" over a couple of days. The whoosh is followed by a bounce back up of a pound or two. Then, I fluctuate up or down a pound or so - essentially holding steady for 7-14 days. Then the pattern repeats.

I would say the pattern has held true for the entire duration of my 2+ years of weight loss, at least during the times when I was conscientiously on plan.

I think most women would find a pattern if they pay attention, but it's different from person to person and then, your body can throw you a loop too.

My pattern is to gain for TTOM (That time of the Month) hold it for 4-5 days and then WHOOSH for a few days, getting to my previous low or close to it. Then I hold steady or slowly gain for a few days followed by a bigger gain right before ovulation (usually a 4-5 pound swing) and then I hold that weight for 4-5 day and then for about 10 days of the month, after ovulation until a day before TTOM) I have a big whoosh. Typically on this journey, all my weight loss for the month happens in that 10 days of the month and it can be a 6-13 pound drop in that time (getting less and less as I get closer to my ideal weight and can't create as big of a deficit).

It used to frustrate me, but now that I understand it, I'm OK. I am actually LOSING the entire month, it just doesn't reflect on the scale until all those hormones stop messing with me. So, it doesn't pay to eat a bit more or go off plan during TTOM or or while I'm gaining in ovulation weight - as that just takes away from the whoosh I'll see a week or so later. And yes, sometimes it is hard to stay focused when the scale isn't reflecting my efforts, but KNOWING why the scale is stalled helps a bit with that frustration.

"I am actually LOSING the entire month, it just doesn't reflect on the scale until all those hormones stop messing with me. So, it doesn't pay to eat a bit more or go off plan during TTOM"
This ^^^

I've found daily weighting to be way too stressful, horribly inaccurate and overall not very helpful even for guys. I personally don't weight myself more than once a week if that.

Just out of curiosity, how often do ya'll weight yourselves?


Y'all?

I weigh every day BUT I don't take it seriously until Friday, once a week my official weigh in day.

I usually see a slight increase on the scale, I then lose inches and after the lost inches a few days later I'm usualy down a couple of pounds. I usually stay around here, give or take a couple of pounds and then I'll weigh really low, gain a few more, lose inches then whoosh. That's been my pattern so far.

I weigh daily and I have a similar pattern. I'll stay the same for several days or perhaps even weeks and then lose weight suddenly (like a pound a day for a couple of days). Before these "whooshes" I'll lose inches, so I can usually predict when they're coming.

When my TOM hits, I usually gain a pound or two that can stick around for a couple of days before disappearing suddenly. Some months I don't gain anything from it.

My pattern tends to be up and down from the day to day (I weigh every morning), but overall "down" by the end of the week. Then every 4 to 5 weeks I'll see a small temporary weekly gain.

And repeat.

I think finding patterns can be useful and fun. It's especially helpful for those of us who have a normal gain week. So that when we follow our plans perfectly, and if we still see a gain on the scale we can simply note:

"Oh! This is normal. It has nothing to do with what I've eaten. I'll just continue on healthfully as usual, and that gain will be gone next week."

My pattern seems to be fairly consistent (I've been at this almost 1.5 years but I wasn't paying as much attention in the beginning). Basically, I fluctuate from the day TOM starts until I ovulate. After that I lose for about a week or so and then the whole things starts over again. I love my losing week because every day or two I see a lower number on the scale.

ETA: Another daily weigher here. It really has helped me to know my body's fluctuations even beyond hormonal reasons. I lift and swim and normally the day afterwards I'll see a 1-2lbs gain. I know now to expect that and it doesn't bother me. I also know when I'm losing like crazy and those are real loses (not just because I didn't drink enough water or something) so I never feel guilty counting a 1lb loss even if it's the day before TOM and I won't see that number on a the scale again for a couple of weeks.

Some of the worst advice given to me in the past was that daily weighing = bad. Certainly, that can be the case for some but for me it reminds me every morning why I'm doing this and helps me also remember how far I've come. That's something I never want to forget.

I am a daily weigher, and my pattern for several months was pretty consistent, incremental losses throughout the month, plus a small gain or stall at the start of TOM and then a whoosh near the end.

When I started taking birth control pills following a gyn-related surgery this summer my pattern changed, and it's been pretty frustrating since. My pills weren't started in sync with my cycle and I must not be getting quite enough hormones to force that sync, and so retained water has been wreaking havoc with my weight. I think things are finally beginning to settle down, though; the scale has finally started behaving again just within the last week.

Of course though I'll be starting my first IVF cycle within a month, and then my weight is really going to go bananas from the hormones.


Edit:
I completely agree. I've read on multiple occasions here that daily weighing is a "bad habit" that people need to "break", and I just couldn't disagree more. It's not for everyone certainly, but daily weighing has been one of my most useful tools during this weight loss effort.

Good luck!!!!!!!!!!!

I've also done the pills not in-sync with my cycle (also due to doctor's order). Not fun and it did mess me up for awhile. I never really thought about it but it was over the summer when my weight loss was slower... since then it's picked up a lot. Hm....

I also weigh daily and it is an invaluable tool for me. My scale does pounds, water %, body fat%. Some days I don't love what it tells me, but overall I have learned a lot about myself, how things trends, and how things can fluctuate.

I am also in continuous birth control + other hormones to try and keep my fibroids under control. It is a totally hormonal mess. Usually I can tell what is hormonal by how I am bloating and where my emotions are. Other than that - I don't get the usual information.

I weigh daily because it gives me a better idea of my pattern. If I weighed weekly, I would see something like this: (this is an actual month):

April 1: 226.4
April 8: 223.2
April 15: 221.4
April 22: 219.8
May 1: 218.8

In that particular month I would see a nice steady decline and I wouldn't notice my stalls, its' true, but I also wouldn't pick up on why some parts of the month the weight seems to come off faster than others when I eat the same and workout the same throughout. By weighing daily, I get used to the ups and downs. I realize the role sodium and hormones play in daily weight and so on. But that's me... I am too impatient to wait for a weekly weigh in too!

I definitely have a pattern that is anything but linear. I weigh everyday and I've noticed my body will hit a new low, then bounce up a few pounds. Then I will spend the next several days/week gaining and losing the same 1-2 pounds, then 'whoosh' - I'll drop 4 or 5 pounds in a couple of days time, hit a new low and then start the pattern all over again.

I've been tracking my weight loss and it seems y pattern is to hold the week before and after TOM, then I'll whoosh, then I lose 1-2 the week after that.

I've only noticed this pattern for the last two months, the first two months it was very erratic, so I don't count those in the pattern, lol.

Boy I am soooo glad that my body is not the only one that goes through this type of weight loss cycle.
I am a daily weigher and after being at this for 8 plus months, I should be used to the cycle, but alas, there are times that I still get frustrated.