mesasone

I've either experienced a massive weight gain, or the scale at work was lying to me and has been set right. I last posted about my weight on the 27th of July, coming in at 293, down from 342 June 11th and who knows what before that. I finally got back on the scale before leaving work tonight, and was dismayed to see it read 330 lbs! I also weighted myself at my parents on Saturday, and came up with 325. I had some stuff in my pocket tonight, so we'll call it 325 to ease the pain. However, I was really expecting to be down to 280 or so...

This is really disappointing. The scale at work is a pretty nice medical/training scale... SECA 882, and I had considered it be accurate, however given the amount of the "gain" I would suspect there was perhaps a (now corrected) calibration error (even though I always let it self-calibrate before stepping on), because assuming I put on 30 pounds, then I would have had to eaten a 105,00 calorie surplus in the last month - around 3000 extra per day, which I don't count calories but my total intake should be less than that.

The other possibility is that I have put on muscle mass, which I believe is true to some extent. I have noticed my commute time has dropped substantially, down to about 11 minutes door to door, compared to 16-17 minutes prior. I was also incredibly hungry last week, and would find myself with hungry pains again with in two to three hours of eating. So there must be something going on with my body, but I can't think of anything that would explain such a weight gain.

In any case, I feel completely thwarted right now. I have either put on a ton of weight or completely lost my frame of reference for tracking my weight. I am going to start weighing myself twice weekly instead of roughly once a month so I can keep better track of this, because right now I am really confused and a bit concerned. However, at the end of the day you can only do one thing - and that is keep on keeping on. Fortunately, weight loss is a most excellent benefit from my cycling, but not my primary reason for riding, which is the enjoyment of it.

txvintage

I don't weigh my self very often. I try and follow the process and let results take care of themselves. That being said, I recently had a similar experience. I went to the Doc with a major virus type thing and weighed in at 242 3 weeks ago. I weighed myself last Friday at work on a calibrated scale and weighed 254, ugh. I reweighed last night and was 250. I logged some mileage over the 3 day weekend.

I can only figure that a significant portion of the 242 weight was the result of water weight loss. My previous weigh in prior to my Dr visit was 248, and I thought I was still falling. I do know I have lost inches. The way the clothes are fitting is way different, especially riding shorts! I think the muscle gain theory may apply here as well.

So, like you, the best thing is to just keep on going. It is a bit of a bummer to hit a plateau, which is where I seem to be, but I'm still going to focus on just exercise and eating more sensibly.

I do wish I worked in the daylight though. I sometimes wonder what the lack of quality sleep and often eating way to close to when I go to sleep in the mornings does to thwart some progress.

sstorkel

I weigh myself once a week, at home, on a scale I control. In my experience, even the best scale at a gym, work, or Doctor's office may have unreliable calibration from one visit to the next... I also worry more about my body fat percentage than my weight.

Jerry in So IL

How does your clothes fit? Are they the same tight feeling when you was at 345? Or are they looser around the waist? You might want to judge your fittness and weight loss that way.

I always "gained" weight the first month of an exercise program. Also did when I started biking. But although I'm down only 20 pounds, I'm into a size smaller in shirts and pants. So the scale doesn't show you these kind of gains.

Good luck and keep pedaling.
Jerry

Rosie8

Most of those shows that contrast before and after weight loss use inches lost as well as weight loss. I'd measure waist, chest, thighs, etc., then remeasure in a month. Losing inches off your waist is the best indicator of a healthier you.

MX_2_Spandex

Watch your sodium intake. My weight can fluctuate 8-10 pounds just by the amount of sodium that I have had in the previous 4/5 days. Mix that with not riding and it can make a huge difference.

I use my wedding ring as my sodium over load sign. I have had it resized 3x in the last year due to weight loss. If I find it getting snug it means either I am on sodium overload or gaining weight. Once I see that I kick myself in the butt to ride more and drink more water.

I find if I use my clothes as a guide I dont notice it as quickly if I do start gaining weight slowly.

Neil_B

How sedentary were you prior to exercising? It might be a combination of an inaccurate scale, muscle gain, and water loss.

Still, you have a lot to be proud of, not least of which is your good attitude about the setback.

damnable

It's normally recommended that you only weight yourself using one scale. That way even if it's not calibrated exactly it still will tell you trends in weight change, which is what you are really after.

As to how accurate scales absolutely need to be well...to give you an idea, when they weigh you are hospitals to determine how much drugs to give you to put you to sleep, they only use your average household scales (at least in my experience).

Bigboxeraf

TX: Working in the daylight will be better for you in the long run. Your ciadian rhythem is all messed up. I know I used to work an 8 to 4:30 shift. Theese guys can lead you to some studies regarding night shift work.

Richard_Rides

Maybe it needs new batteries.

StephenH

The clothes fit should tell the tale.

Wogster

What may be a possibility is that the scale in question is affected by battery voltage, and that it reads light when the battery is too old, someone probably forgot to replace it when they should have, and now that it has been replaced, it's reading correctly again....... Your best bet, is to obtain a decent quality digital scale, and do your weighing at home. When you get up, go to the bathroom, eliminate anything you can, then, while naked, weigh yourself, before you eat anything. Weigh yourself at the same time, on the same day of the week, the key to weight is consistency. Otherwise the variables will lead to a lot of frustration, as your down 3 lbs, up 3 lbs, up 6 lbs, down 4

B Piddy

We all feel your pain mesaone, many of us have gone up and down the scale a bit. Unlike many folks, it's good to see you have such a great attitude about your situation...never give that up. Cycling, or any physical activity, along with diet will pay off...feel free to chime in with what you have found. Keep your eyes on the prize brother...

mesasone

I quickly hopped back on the scale back on the scale before heading home, and it now says 300.00 on the dot. Still a bit of a gain, but certainly more acceptable than the 30+. I would dismiss last night results as a fluke if it weren't for getting another reading, on another scale, Saturday that also put me at 325. I'm not really sure what's going on here.

I suppose getting a scale of my own would be in order, but I am just as happy using a decent scale at work as opposed to a cheap one at home, as long as I don't get funky or otherwise inaccurate results. Meh.

I will take another reading tomorrow and ask the head nurse if she knows of any changes/maintenance done to the scale (batteries, etc).

txvintage

I chuckle at how some of the grizzled 3 rd shift vets say how they adjusted to this schedule. I've been doing it for almost 4 years and still don't have a "routine". Some days it's right to bed, some days it's early afternoon before I get there. The worst thing is the interrupted sleep. Being awakened 2-4 times during sleep really bites.

I can think of a lot of medical reasons to not work deep nights, the lack of quality sleep is but one of them. It is one that contributes to many others though.

bdinger

SECA scales, unfortunately, tend to have some issues with calibration. I used to work for a company that sold them, and only know this because my bike used to share a room with the returns area .

I'd recommend getting a good scale for yourself. I personally use a "doctor-grade" Health-O-Meter, and it rocks.