So I know this is negligible but I wanted to vent anyway. So I weigh myself today to discover a 1lb gain, which I'm writing off to my period starting next week because I know for a fact I haven't eaten enough to cause me to gain weight. But still, I look forward to that loss every week, and I've been having losses every week, so this is kind of like "hmph!".

I guess that just means I'm due for a whoosh!

Yes, it can be annoying, but that's our lot! I only really lose weight two weeks of the month - the one after my period and the week after ovulation. During ovulation and menses the best I can hope for is no scale movement or a slight bounce upward, but it has been in the neighborhood of 3-4 pounds, before! Then it just goes away and often takes a friend or two with it, when the surge of hormones is over

This is something I'm looking forward to experiencing, though I expect that sounds mad to everyone else! Until very recently I was on hormonal birth control, so I've not really seen any variations based on the time of the month. It'll be interesting keeping track of the data and seeing what pattern emerges. (And then I can join everyone else in complaining about it! )

I usually go up a bit then down and then don't lose for a week regardless of what I'm doing and then get a bit of a whooooosh. It's frustrating but I think I'm getting more used to it now. I guess it doesn't help that at that time we feel crappy anyway so feeling bloated and not losing isn't very helpful!

I don't see my scale jump up from TOM but it WILL jump if I eat carbs because that triggers my liver to store glycogen and my body to store water. I know I crave more carbs at TOM, and that may be what triggers temporary weight gain when we give in.

Maybe in some women, but on completely a completely clean, completely consistent diet with absolutely no sugar, starch, and not more than 20 net carbs daily (and limited calories, too, a 250-500 deficit per day), I still see the aforementioned holding or gains. At any point we have a gray area of about 2-4 pounds of water weight we can fluctuate with absolutely no fat or lean mass changes - it is strictly fluid. That is what shows up at TOM

Hello girls - fellow period-pund loader here! I can fluctuate up on the right week of the cycle by about 4lbs.

Two things factor in period weight gain/plateauing. First, we retain water when we're preparing to menstruate. That's why many women suffer from heavy, painful breasts when the time is near. Secondly, hormones play a massive (and underestimated) role in weight loss and gain. Estrogen in excess in your body can cause it to retain fat rather than burn it, which testosterone has the opposite effect. That's the reason so many teenage boys are like rakes, no matter what they seem to eat. They're flooding with testosterone as they reach full sexual maturity.

That's my two pence. As for getting through it.. drink plenty of water, eat nutritious meals and just ride it out. As long as the scale is trending downwards, it's nothing to worry about!

It's so frustrating, but I've come to accept this and it doesn't bother me anymore. I avoid weighing myself when TOM is approaching, just because I don't need the extra "hmpf", like you said. Still, I can see it in the way my clothes fit that I'm gaining. Oh well, being a woman has its perks as well, one must admit.

The weird thing is I'm on birth control as well, but about the only period symptom I don't really get is cramps, which I find weird. My weight has always randomly shot up right before my period, and then it goes away during/right after. I want to have a random 7lb whoosh like I did a couple months ago!