Not losing weight week of period - normal?

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4/9/11 12:17 A

Thanks for all of the comments, guys. Just a week to avoid the scale next month. Stupid hormones!!!

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4/8/11 11:35 P

I'll gain 5 pounds during the week of my period. It's just normal water retention.

I'm told drinking water helps, but I still have problems with it. :p

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4/8/11 10:15 P

It happens to me too.

As time goes on, you will see how your body reacts when you have your period, so you can think, "Oh yeah, there's that two-pound weight gain. It's just Princess Time, and I will stick with my program. It will be better next week or the week after."

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4/8/11 8:33 P

I gain up to 7 pounds, no joke. My husband was so supportive this month. He said, you know this isn't something you did, so don't overeat over it and make it become something you did.

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4/8/11 7:07 P

Oh, boo - well, I hope by next Friday I lost what I gained for my period, and a LITTLE bit more. I don't want the scale to read 158.8 again!

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4/8/11 6:39 P

I NEVER lose weight during TOM. I typically gain 2 pounds as soon as I get it. By the end of the week, I lose that, but never any more. I stay focused because I really want to see results the following week.

I think this is normal.

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4/8/11 4:46 P

Linda- starting next month at this time I won't - I'm just in an April weekly weight loss challenge, and to stay in it I had to step on the scale.

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4/8/11 4:41 P

I bloat up and gain so much the week of my period that I won't even get on the scales that week.

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4/8/11 4:33 P

Both of your comments helped a lot, and definitely made me feel better. You're right- I don't want to lose weight, I want to lose fat. Losing fat in the end WILL result in me losing weight, I know that. It's just frustrating. I really do want to be in a healthy weight range, a healthy BMI, and that does mean losing weight. But glad to hear that what I'm going through is normal. Thanks a lot, seriously.

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4/8/11 3:38 P

Yes, it's normal.

The thing is, your scale weight is influenced by more than just gaining or losing body fat. You can see a 3-7lb fluctuation on the scale due to stuff that has nothing to do with gaining or losing fat.

Examples:
intense exercise, especially strength training - this makes the scale go up due to water and blood shifting within the muscle. It's normal and it's not a fat gain.

constipation/irregular bowel movements - even your body waste has a weight because everything inside you is affected by gravity.

normal fluid and hormone shifts - your body has bioryhthms related to menstruation, sleep/wake cycles, etc. Your hormones and body fluids will shift in response to these rhythms, and that can make the scale go up. Not a fat gain.

Eating fiber, drinking water - because everything is affected by gravity, these two heavy elements will have great weight inside you as well. Fiber can also cause bloating. Not fat gain.

Too much stress/too little sleep – can make things stop because your body perceives crisis. When the body perceives crisis, it secretes more cortisol which tells the body not to burn fat, but to store it.

eating too much sodium, eating processed and packaged foods - causes water retention leading to a gain on the scale. Not fat.

Any change to diet or exercise program - makes the scale go up as your body tries to work out these changes. Not fat gain.
Thing is, people say they want to lose "weight" when really what they want is to lose fat. The scale is not the best way to measure that all of the time. You could cut your leg off and instantly lose 20 lbs of weight. But it's harder to lose body fat and body fat is what matters - not your scale weight. I won't tell you not to weigh yourself, but I will encourage you to keep measurements. Your measurements can and usually will reflect a loss even when the scale doesn't move, or if the scale goes up.

Hope this helps.

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4/8/11 3:35 P

Yes, it's perfectly normal. In many cases, women will gain weight ! But, don't worry. it's not a fat gain. it's nothing more than a temporary water weight gain that passes in a few days. You can thank your fluctuating hormones for it.

Do keep in mind that your "weight" is not a static number. You will see many ups and downs as you lose. That too is normal. Weight loss is not linear. there will be weeks you lose. Weeks you stay the same and weeks you gain. That too, is normal.

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4/8/11 3:26 P

Those of you who have been losing weight for a long time, I want to know if this is normal. This is the first period I've had since I started losing weight and in a week's time, I lost a whopping .2 pounds. I've been having PMS symptoms (bloating, fatigue etc) the past couple days and I have major cramps and the start of my period today, so is it normal for me to not lose any weight this week? I really hope it will be back to normal next Friday.. thoughts?