Many people are sensitive to their weight if it is far from the invented ideal. The catch is that there is no formula for ideal weight: scientists have not come to a consensus on how much a healthy person should weigh. There are too many variables: height, age, gender, racial and anatomical features.
The number of kilograms is a relative value and consists of several parameters: bone mass, muscle mass and fat. Their ratio is much more important - our health depends on it.
Read this article about what parameters to focus on and how to objectively assess your body weight.
Weighing process
It is important to carry out the weighing process according to the rules. The flooring on which your scale is located must be hard. The scales should always be in the same place. You need to step on the scale with both feet. Doctors recommend weighing yourself without clothes or shoes, only in your underwear. If these rules are not followed, weight indicators will constantly change. The most accurate measurements are provided by electronic scales. Mechanical devices require precise adjustment.
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Daily weight fluctuations: what is normal
In a recent interview about weight loss, an endocrinologist said that a daily weight change of 4 kg is typical for most people, but this figure can fluctuate up to 9 kg depending on body size. What is the reason for this gap and hesitation?
Factors influencing weight gain or loss
Sodium
High salt content in the diet can lead to fluid retention in the body. Its excess adds extra pounds. Some people are very sensitive to sodium, so their body retains more water, while others do the opposite.
Many people don't overuse salt shakers during meals, but sodium can hide in the most unexpected places. Cold cuts, frozen meals, and savory sauces typically have high levels of it. Canned soup is another common cause. Many varieties of low-calorie soup are high in sodium, and even homemade soups can be high in salt. A person trying to reduce food portions notices an increase in readings on the scale when replacing food consumed with low-calorie soup, but this is nothing more than fluid retention in the body.
Carbohydrates
For those who eat bread, pasta, rice, and other starchy carbohydrates, weight gain may be related to the amount of carbohydrates consumed. For every gram of carbohydrates, the body stores three grams of water to maintain an energy source. For this reason, when eating foods very high in carbohydrates, body weight increases due to the amount of water, and not due to increased fat content. Additionally, many refined carbohydrate foods are high in sodium. For example, spaghetti and meatballs with cheese can cause water retention due to carbohydrates and high salt content.
Product weight
Eating undoubtedly entails a slight increase in body weight as the body undergoes a metabolic process. Food consumed can weigh several grams at a time and reach several kilograms per day. Water contained in foods can also lead to weight gain. In addition, according to some experts, drinking two glasses of water in the form of drinks or liquid in foods adds 500 grams.
So what happens to all this weight? It doesn't automatically go into the hips. Calories in food are either used as energy to keep the body functioning or stored for later use. Waste is processed and excreted from the body in the form of urine and feces (defecation).
Excreta
Changes in indicators when weighing occur due to bowel movements. Researchers have found that the human body produces between 125 and 170 grams of feces per day. According to other sources, its average daily weight is approximately 106 grams per day. However, there are sources according to which up to 30 grams of feces are excreted from the body per day for every 12 kilograms of body weight. Bowel movements may change, but significant fluctuations in weight do not come from bowel movements alone. In fact, even after weight loss as a result of excretion of waste products, easily digestible substances that are in the process of processing still remain in the body. The normal physiological fecal transit time is 40 to 60 hours, and the optimal is 24 to 48 hours. This gap may increase if you consume large amounts of dietary fiber.
Exercises
Exercise promotes sweating, which leads to the removal of fluid from the body. Experts estimate that the average person loses about 700-1000 grams per hour of training, especially during intense cardiovascular activity. However, this figure may vary significantly depending on weather conditions and other factors. Loss of fluid from sweat does not lead to changes in weighing parameters. Why? The fluid that a person loses during exercise is restored again.
But other types of exercise can also influence daily changes. Lifting weights or any other form of strength exercise causes water retention in the muscles. Why is this happening? This type of training leads to the formation of small tears in them. Muscles store and expend water to replace losses. As these tears form and repair, the muscles become larger and stronger.
Medicines
Some medications can make you gain extra pounds. Some increase appetite, while others retain water in the body. According to research, certain types of medications can interfere with the body's absorption and storage of glucose, which leads to fat deposition in the midsection. A person who takes medications to treat conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, mood disorders, seizures, or migraines may experience weight gain of up to several kilograms per month. Some people gain several kilograms throughout the year, while others gain 4-9 kilograms or more in just a couple of months.
You should not stop taking a new medication after a sudden weight gain at the beginning of the course. Instead, you should talk to your doctor or pharmacist. Sometimes this is quite normal and expected, but in other cases it can be a sign of a disorder.
Menstruation
Most women notice some bloating from fluid retention just before and during their period. Studies have shown that the peak is the first day of the menstrual cycle, and it reaches its lowest limit in the middle of the follicular period (middle phase of the cycle), and then gradually increases over the eleven days before and after ovulation.
An in-depth, one-year study found that fluid retention is not associated with ovarian hormonal changes, and other data attribute fluctuations in estrogen and progesterone to overeating.
Thus, hormonal changes that cause weight gain may be absent, but the other factors listed above may cause periodic changes: increased or unbalanced nutrition, causing fluid retention. They are the ones who are more likely to influence the gain of kilograms from food and water consumption.
When attempting to lose weight during your period, it is important to consider and manage these factors. A few days of eating high-calorie, high-fat foods can undo weeks of dieting.
Alcohol consumption
Alcohol is a diuretic, so it is possible that immediate weight loss may occur when consumed. Researchers have found that alcohol can cause urine to leak within 20 minutes of consumption, thereby reducing urinary fluid and causing imbalance, but it can cause fluid retention from drinks and food consumed. Many people who use it also like to eat salty foods, which cause water retention. Ultimately, the weight may increase.
Taking medications
Many pills can cause rapid weight loss, and some, on the contrary, provoke intense weight gain (insulin, antidepressants, antihistamines, birth control and hormonal drugs, steroids and beta blockers). Always ask your doctor about the side effects of prescribed medications, even over-the-counter ones. It is important to remember that the reaction to various drugs is individual, it depends on the characteristics of the human body, therefore, in any situation, consultation with an experienced specialist is important.
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Lack of fluid in the body
The human body is approximately 55-70% water. Severe dehydration can cause various ailments, such as headaches, dry skin, problems with memory and thinking. You may also suddenly lose weight. It is necessary to replenish fluid loss throughout the day.
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Why there is no point in weighing yourself every day
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Doctors do not recommend weighing yourself every day for two reasons:
• During the day, weight can change several times in any direction. • These intermediate parameters will confuse and spoil the mood.
The best option is to measure parameters once a week. But keep in mind that body weight is influenced by many factors.
Body weight changes throughout the day
The numbers on the weight scale depend on the day of the cycle and the time of day. Nutritionist Alexandra Caspero claims: a person is capable of gaining up to 800-900 grams per hour without any particular reason (1).
Weight changes due to fluid intake and swelling
According to US Environmental Research Institute scientist John Castellani, drinking and sweating change a person's weight by 0.5% of their total body weight each day (2).
The water-salt balance depends on the time of year. In spring and summer, more of the hormone aldosterone enters the blood, which retains fluid. Therefore, swelling and weight gain are a normal reaction of the body to warm weather.
If a person does not drink enough water, the body retains fluid to provide vital functions.
Body weight changes with bowel movements
Peristalsis is an important factor in weighing. The frequency of bowel movements is individual and depends on when and what a person eats, how much water he drinks, whether he does it during or after meals, and how thoroughly he chews food.
Stress affects body weight
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Research has confirmed this relationship. 5,000 Australians participated in the 5-year experiment. The results of the experiment revealed that people quickly gained weight after severe stress and negative emotions (3).
Many people eat stress. This is especially dangerous if you are overweight. A person finds himself in a vicious circle: he eats a lot out of stress and at the same time worries about what he has eaten.
Another negative point: anxiety increases cortisol production. And he accumulates fat deposits in the abdominal area.
Weight changes when flying
Air travel affects body weight not only due to interruptions in biological rhythms, but also due to disruption of bacteria in the intestinal microflora.
The scientific journal Cell published the results of studies on mice. The rodents were placed in conditions similar to flight. The bacteria in their digestive system changed, causing the mice to gain weight (4). Scientists have identified similar changes in people: two participants in the experiment flew from the United States to Israel.
Body weight fluctuates with sudden changes in diet type
If a person limits himself to sweets and fatty foods, but decides to eat delicacies on a holiday, this is normal. And it’s even useful, because it will avoid breakdowns. However, such sudden changes provoke weight fluctuations.
American fitness trainer B.J. Ward is sure: food that is not included in the normal nutrition system provokes stagnation of water in the body. After weighing, the person receives a negative message: all efforts were in vain! However, the numbers on the weight scale depend on the amount of carbohydrates consumed: today - more, tomorrow - less.
Nutritionist Andy Bellati says high-sodium meals eaten the day before can retain up to 1.5 liters of fluid.
Diets affect weight
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The desired number on the scale can be achieved with the help of mono-diets and diet pills. The question is how this will affect health.
Nutritionist Andy Bellati claims that you can lose weight with a low-calorie diet and strict restrictions. But, firstly, strict diets provoke breakdowns. And, secondly, for the body any diet is stress. And it will store fat at every opportunity, instead of breaking it down.
8. A weight scale won't tell you what really matters.
A small number on the scale is not at all an indicator of health. Do not forget that the muscles have an impressive mass. Therefore, muscular people can weigh much more than overweight people.
Of two people with the same weight, one will be strong and slender, and the second will be flabby and plump. We see this difference, but the scale will never show it.
