Thursday, February 12, 2015

Weigh-In and Salty Thoughts

Feeling pretty good about my weigh-in today.  I lost .9 pounds. Anything less than a pound always seems like a bit of a disappointment to me considering how much I have to lose and how impatient I can be.  Truth be told, I am grateful to be heading in the right direction. The crazy gaining frenzy after the miscarriage freaked me out and made me even more sad. I was afraid I was going to gain everything back that I had worked so hard to lose last year. Talk about rubbing salt into a wound. I am still well over my October low, but I think I have, at least, conquered the uncontrolled gaining.

Much of that credit goes to my husband. My husband is back on track. And when he is on track there is NO messing around. He does his exercise and tracks his calories. This week it paid off big for him - he lost 7 pounds. I am super proud of him and thankful that his success rubs off on me too. I am benefiting from  not eating out or having snacks in the house. Of course, that is in addition to how loving and supportive he is of me :) 

I also give credit to my accountability group. One thing I have learned though, if I truly want my accountability to have an impact I have to be open and honest. I confess, there have been days when I am struggling and purposely don't tell them because I want to do what I want to do. I know that if I say "hey I need help with the sweets today" they will have a surprising influence that keeps me out of the candy jar (from hundreds of miles away!)  I love that I can go on our Facebook page in the morning and say "today I am going to do x" and later that day I will be checked in on. And if I tell them I am going to do or not do something I am so much more likely to succeed than if I just told myself.

The day before weigh-ins I am usually a little anxious about what I eat and do. I tell myself to just do it like every other day and it will all work out in the end. For the most part I do that, but after reading Mary's post on Runs to Get Waisted, I spent some time thinking about sodium yesterday.

I have heard people talk about limiting sodium or flushing with it out of their system with water (especially around weigh-in time.) I am curious about how much sodium really makes a difference to water retention. For example, I ate a Lean Cuisine (don't judge) with 660mg sodium (28% RDA). Would you expect something like that to affect a weigh-in?  Obviously, I wouldn't go to a Chinese buffet the night before weighing-in (I mean, I would never go, ever), but if you are within the RDA of sodium would you expect to see an affect?

Then say you did have too much salt, does drinking a tank of water really flush it out?  How long does it take all the extra water you drank to exit your body?


Yes, I know it is all about the downward trend in weight loss and obsessing about weigh-ins isn't my point. I am just curious because so many people allude to it and it makes me wonder how in tune with my body I really am.

I can say for certain when I am eating better and getting some exercise I definitely feel better and that is a win in itself.




6 comments:

  1. It's tough to say "I need help" or "I'm having a weak moment", especially since we're all not strangers, but strangers. ;) But we've got your back and care about you! I like that our group is laid back and non-judgemental. Everyone is doing their thing, just in different ways that works for them, and I like that! I've definitely been struggling lately with a bit of depressing and am stress snacking. The sodium thing is interesting, I personally find it does affect me and makes me hold on to water more often. I notice a difference in my waist/hips if I don't watch it. My main concern is my blood pressure, and too sodium definitely causes it to spike. On the flip side, when I start marathon training I'll have to make sure that I'm getting enough sodium since the body needs it. Sweating out too much and not replacing it can be harmful. I guess what I'm trying to say is that the body is really freaking weird and I don't really know. And I would never judge you for 660 mg of sodium! It's one of the hardest macros for me to adhere to.

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    1. I don't think I have an issue with sodium, but I don't honestly track it so perhaps it is something to take a look at. Just like calories we tend to underestimate the truth and get a rude awakening when we start tracking.

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  2. Sodium definitely has a huge impact. As long as I am not eating tons of processed/prepared foods, I am generally good on sodium. We went out to Mexican last night though and I am wondering if that has anything to do with my lower loss today. Stupid bodies. And stupid men. Seven freaking pounds???

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    1. Eating out is the pit of sodium despair! I don't use much salt when I cook and never add it at the table. I am a little envious but he definitely worked hard so I can't be too envious.

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  3. I for sure think sodium has an effect on my weight gain. I tend to stay away from overly processed stuff anyway, but if I am having it, I like to keep it away from weigh-in days. Long run days for me are Sundays so I tend to get a little more sodium in around then to keep me from losing it all with sweat which is why I don't weigh-on on Monday.
    I love our group! Like Mary said, I love how eveyrthing does their own thing and is there if needed. We always have Desiree's hand!
    Congrats on the loss. Glad your husband is back on track. Don't let his big number make your smaller number seem like any less than it is!

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    1. I am going to ponder the sodium thing a bit more and watch how my body reacts. Bottom line a little sodium induced bloat is not my problem on weigh-in day :)

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