Why Are The Scales Going Up

Why Are The Scales Going Up? 

Do you ever jump on the scales excited to reap the rewards of all the hard work you are putting in towards your weight loss journey, only to get disheartened with what you see on the scales. It’s understandable that you may be feeling frustrated and confused with this situation, and you can’t comprehend why situations like this are occurring.

This is defiantly a confusing experience that so many weight loss individuals go through daily. But to put your minds at ease daily weight fluctuations are NORMAL. On average an individual’s weight can fluctuate up to 2-3kg per day. These fluctuations are influenced by what you eat, drink, exercise, and even sleep like. 

We are going to dive into some of the most common reasons to why this might be happening, so it’s important to not get disheartened, remember you are in control of your own journey, so use the information below to your advantage to help promote a smoother and stress-free weight loss journey. 

So, What Causes Weight Fluctuations?

Common Factors of Scale Fluctuations: 

Lack of sleep

A poor night’s sleep can deeply influence what the scales might show you that following morning. We must understand sleep is a very powerful tool when it comes to weight loss. A lack of sleep is a highly stressful situation on the body. If our bodies are not well rested it can cause the realise of certain survival mechanisms that help the body cope internally with the stress placed on the body due to a lack of sleep.

One of these main responses being increased levels in the hormone cortisol. A lack of sleep can directly cause this hormone to be released in high doses. Cortisol prompts the body to store more fat and be more inclined to use other soft tissue, such as muscle, as energy, meaning sleep-deprived individuals can lose more muscle and gain more fat than do those who are well rested. Cortisol also causes higher water retention throughout the body to help assist with the excess stress placed on the body due to reduced sleep. So, it’s no secret on why poor sleeping habits can directly impact an increase on the scales each morning. 

Increased sodium intake 

Foods or meals high in salt cause the body to retain higher amounts of water or fluid than usual. This can be due to several reasons, firstly when sodium is ingested it is gets absorbed within the GI tract and along with the absorption process it brings along water, and secondly sodium is a major mineral in several fluid components within the body like plasma, (the fluid component of blood).  When we eat too much salt the body retains this extra intake of sodium which then increases the amount of fluid production throughout the body. This excess fluid production can also cause the body to excrete and produce less urine meaning there is larger than normal amounts of fluid floating throughout the body. On average approximately 1.5 litres of excess fluid can be retained within the body which can be the equivalent of 1.5kg of body weight   when too much salt is consumed. So, it can be no surprise to why the scales may increase when larger amounts of sodium are consumed daily.

Increased carb intake

A lot like sodium, carbohydrates, or glucose (the refined form of carbs), cause the body to hold higher amounts of fluid/water throughout the body. This is due to the way the body stores glucose/ glycogen (carbohydrates). For every 1 gram of carbohydrate stored in the body (as glycogen) there is approximately 2-3 grams of water retained that goes along with it. The reason why carbohydrates cause higher fluid retention is because the molecules of glycogen contain water and therefore the more glycogen your store the more water you retain in the process. This can be referred to as “water weight”. The release of glycogen can also be deposited to the muscle cells. This is a process that aids in Fuelling and recovering damaged muscle cells due to immense exercise. 

Now being that the muscle cell is made up of about 70% of water, this means larger deposits of glycogen can cause your muscle cells to hold onto larger amounts of water throughout this process, this regularly occurs after an intense workout. So, it can come as no surprise if you are eating larger amounts of carbohydrates then you’ve allowed for, the chances being number on the scales can increase due to all these processes. 

Increased Inflammation caused by food sensitives.

Quite often many individuals experience adverse reactions when it comes to consuming certain types of food. These reactions can be classified as food allergies or sensitivities. Sometimes these reactions can be quite severe, individuals with food allergies generally seem to wear these reactions worse opposed to individuals who experience food sensitives. Although both can have completely visible or noticeable effects, internally they can have very similar effects. 

We want to touch more on food sensitivities, as often this is where individuals don’t realise the reactions, they are having to certain food groups. Sometimes these reactions can barely be noticeable but some common symptoms to food sensitivities can include bloating, digestive discomfort, brain fog, headaches, stomach pain and many more. These reactions to food cause the immune system to trigger antibodies creating an inflammatory response throughout the body. 

For instance, low grade antibody responses such as IgG and IgA antibodies can lead to a low-grade inflammatory response. These inflammatory responses can cause higher fluid retentions to occur throughout the body meaning the body holds onto more weight due to these inflammatory responses. This means if you are consuming certain foods that cause adverse effects during consuming, it’s more likely than not the scales will be going up due to these responses. 

On a side note, be extra mindful on the reactions you may have to consuming certain food groups, bloating, flatulence & headaches can all be signs of the low-level inflammatory responses that cause higher fluid retention and an increase in scale weight temporarily. 

Weighing at different times of the day

This one may be obvious to some but weighing yourself in the morning vs weighing yourself at night can cause you to see totally different readings. It’s a no brainer than you will naturally be lighter in the morning compared to night. This is because you have just woken from a long period of fasting. Weighing yourself in the morning right upon wakening and after bathroom use will give you the most accurate daily reading for your weight.  Any scale readings beyond this point will be wildly inaccurate, this is due to the fact of food/water consumption, exercise/movement and many other variables. It can be no surprise the scale number you see in the morning compared to the scale number you see at night can be significantly higher. It is quite common for the average induvial to gain 1-2kg throughout the day, so never base your true scale weight over any period besides morning. 

Alcohol Consumption 

What most people don’t know is that all alcohol contains a make up of calories. There are 7 calories per 1g of alcohol. These calories have 0 nutritional benefits and are often referred to as “empty calories. It can be no secret that a day of binge drinking can lead to an excessive influx of calories being consumed. This can be severely detrimental to those individuals who are in calorie deficits trying to lose weight. We must remember all consumed calories must be accounted for; they count towards your daily calorie intake number.

Alcohol also interferes with your cells, too. It jumps to the front of the metabolic pathway when you consume it, meaning that your body will go to work processing it to use for energy before it gets to the food you eat. This could mean that your body doesn’t end up using the carbs and fat you ate previous, and just stores them as fat. This intake of alcohol can quite quickly steer you out of a calorie deficit and cause your metabolism to store larger amounts of fat within the process, this can easily cause a temporary increase to the number on the scales.

Exercise 

After a heavy workout, especially if you perform big, compound movements that recruit a lot of large muscles, you may notice a increase in the scales after it, at least temporarily. But this increase may indicate that you are exercising hard enough to see actual results. Very simply put, exercise (especially weight training) damages muscle tissue. Those microscopic tears that occur in your muscle cells after every workout heal through a process of natural inflammation. That involves some pooling of fluids around the muscle cells, it also leads to a build-up of white blood cells in the damaged muscle tissues, this inflammatory response and the build-up of fluid may show up as temporary weight gain after a workout.

Stress:

Stress can play a huge role when it comes to temporary weight gain. It should come to no surprise stress causes inflammation throughout the body. As touched upon earlier, when stressed the body realises a hormone called “cortisol”. Cortisol prompts the release of temporary energy, which means sometimes the body doesn’t have deposits for at that certain point and time. This can prompt the body to store more fat during these stressful times. Along with fluid retention caused by stress this can be another reason why you might see an increase in body weight. 

Females Only: 

Menstrual Cycle 

Period-related weight gain is caused by hormonal fluctuations. It may be the result of water retention, overeating, sugar cravings, and skipping workouts due to cramps. Period bloating and gastrointestinal issues might also create the sensation of weight gain. It is not uncommon for females to put on 1-4kg during this time. Leading up towards the menstrual cycle it is also not uncommon for females to begin to see an increase in the scales 1-2 weeks out from their expected cycle due to fluid retention and PMS symptoms. Supplementing 400-600mg of good quality magnesium can scientifically lower the amount of fluid retention and control severe weight fluctuations during the stages of PMS and men