Seek medical assistance immediately if you're experiencing shortness of breath, difficulty breathing or chest pain in addition to water retention. Unfortunately, there's no hard and fast rule when it comes to fluid retention. Factors that may cause one person to retain 5 pounds of water may not influence another person's weight at all.
However, there are some general trends that can cause water gain:. Sitting in one place for too long can cause mild edema, according to the Mayo Clinic. That's why some people tend to experience swelling in their fingers, legs or ankles after a long flight. Eating too much salty food can also cause some excess swelling or fluid retention. Foods like pretzels, salted nuts, pickles and processed pasta sauces are all high in sodium and can cause you to hold excess water.
The 9 Worst Foods for Bloating. Although it may sound counterintuitive, forgetting to drink water can also cause water weight gain, according to the U.
National Library of Medicine. Every part of your body needs water to function properly. So, when you start to lose more water than you take in, your body holds fluid to help prevent dehydration. Some medications may cause water weight gain, according to the Mayo Clinic. Blood pressure medications, anti-inflammatories, steroids and certain diabetes medications can all cause your body to hold extra fluid as a side effect. However, you should still continue to take your medications as instructed and consult your doctor for more info on potential side effects.
It's normal for women to experience some fluid retention before their menstrual cycle, explains the Mayo Clinic. Most women experience extra bloating about 1 to 2 days before their period. Usually this symptom subsides once your cycle begins or ends. Knowing the reason your body is holding fluid can help you minimize your water weight gain. Some potential strategies to cut down on this type of weight gain include:. Movement is one simple way to reduce swelling, especially in the legs and ankles, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Walking or any form of exercise can help your body pump excess fluid back up to the heart and out of your lower extremities. Just as water weight can be gained quickly, you can lose it quickly to. So get back on track and give your body time to flush it out, the damage may not be as bad as you think. However, the calorie equation is not a perfect science. The total amount of fat you could potentially gain in a day depends on many factors like your level of activity, metabolism, current body fat percentage, glycogen stores, the types of food you are consuming, and even your genetic make-up 4.
One study showed that a higher starting weight could result in more fat accumulation than lean mass, regardless of how quickly weight is gained 5. And one study looking at overfeeding in twins suggested genetic make-up can significantly impact total body fat percentage gain 6.
But only temporarily. Ever get the meat sweats? Thanks to the thermic effect of food, your body burns calories to physically digest what you consume. The types of foods you eat can determine how much this phenomenon occurs. Protein is the most thermogenic macro, followed by carbohydrates. Fat has little to no thermic effect 7.
Unfortunately, the increase in your metabolism is short-lived and you will likely return back to your baseline by the next day. In a study looking at the thermic effect of processed foods, participants burned twice as many calories digesting more whole foods compared to highly processed options 8. Some research implies your body can accommodate a lot more carbohydrates than fat. Compared to a study looking at a small increase of 40g of fat overfeeding on a normal diet, where just about all additional fat intake was stored as fatty tissue A couple of studies suggest there may be a difference between the type of fats and carbs consumed, with saturated fat and sugar promoting more fat storage than unsaturated fats and complex carbohydrates from whole foods Even more interestingly, overfeeding on protein may lead to increased lean mass instead of fat and less weight gain overall.
The average person can store up to grams of carbs in their muscles and grams in their liver, totaling 2, calories of carbs On the flip side, the body has an almost unlimited capacity for storing fat.
Just remember that health is way!!! Becoming stronger physically and mentally — and loving your body because of it — is far more important than whatever number ends up flashing on the scale.
Got all that? Now, if you want to lose just a few pounds, jumping on the scale every day can "give you a regular barometer and, over time, a trend line that you can use to reflect back on what you ate and what you weighed," according to Dr. And while daily weigh-ins might help some reach their goals, constantly stepping on the scale can encourage others to develop an obsession with numbers. Not only can this derail your progress but it can also take a serious toll on your mental health.
So if you find that you can't stop fixating on your number, it might be best to stop using the scale every day and, potentially, overall. You might also want to ditch daily check-ins if you're aiming to lose more weight than, say, a few pounds. Avoid unnecessary stress by checking in, say, once a week or every few weeks , and instead, concentrate on maintaining a healthy diet and moving your body on the regular, he says.
However often you do face the scale, be consistent. Petruzelli suggests weighing yourself naked first thing in the morning after using the bathroom and always using the same scale. Consider other methods of progress measurement, especially if your weight-loss goal is more than a few pounds since not all positive changes can be recorded by a scale. Regularly having your body composition checked can determine your body's exact fat, muscle, and water content, and the way your clothing fits can also be helpful, says Dr.
If your clothes fit or are too loose but the scale says you've gained weight, the gain is probably muscle, she explains. The bottom line: Weight fluctuation is normal, but if the scale rises 5 or more pounds for longer than a day or two, chances are it's more than simply water weight. Don't freak out — just pay attention to your body and, if still having trouble, call your doc. After all, consulting a professional is always a good idea.
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