There are a number of factors that can influence the number on the scale, which have nothing to do with actual fat gain or loss. — dpa
Many might feel astonished or frustrated when their body weight appears to shift from morning to night, up to over a kilogramme at a time.
That daily variation is a regular part of life and should not be read as a sign of genuine fat gain or fat loss.
In fact, the majority of short-term weight changes have nothing to do with body fat at all.
Your weight changes throughout the day because the body keeps losing and gaining non-fat weight like food, water, waste and glycogen (sugars that act as energy reserves).
This understanding of the scale allows you to more accurately interpret the numbers, which can lessen the stress or discouragement you may experience.
Eating and drinking
Every time you eat or drink, your body weight increases instantly – not because you’ve gained any body fat, but because mass has now physically entered your body.
For example: With a 500ml bottle of water weighing nearly 0.5kg, a full meal comprising both food and water may weigh between 0.5kg and 1.5kg, depending on the quantity of food eaten.
Even small snacks can add significantly to your weight.
This extra weight remains until the digestion process is completed and the waste is eliminated.
During digestion, nutrients are absorbed by the body for use, and excess fluid and waste are excreted through urine, stool, sweat and breathing.
So the scale represents what’s within your body at the moment, not what’s been stored as fat.
Water retention
Water is an ever-changing resource.
Your body is constantly altering how much water it retains, depending on your diet, hormones, activity and surrounding environment.
Factors that cause water weight changes include:
- Salt intake
Fluid balance needs salt.
High-sodium foods encourage the body to hold or retain water to maintain fluid balance.
A salty meal can result in bloating and a temporary weight gain the next day.
- Carbohydrates
Carbs are kept in glycogen form in the muscles and liver in the body.
One gramme of glycogen contains approximately three to four grammes of water.
Carbohydrate intake will increase water retention and reduce water release.
- Hormones
Hormonal changes, especially during the menstrual cycle for women, can influence fluid balance drastically.
Numerous women experience bloating and put on weight right before their period.
- Stress and poor sleep
High levels of stress hormones (notably cortisol) promote water retention and bloating in the abdomen.
- Heat and physical activity
Sweating in hot weather and during exercise can also cause fluid loss, which can lead to a temporary drop in scale weight.
Waste removal
Your weight decreases when your body gets rid of waste products.
Urination might lose you as much as 1kg of weight daily.
Bowel movements typically shed 200-500g of weight from your body.
Water is also lost when you sweat and breathe.
This is why people tend to weigh the least in the morning after they use the toilet, and before eating or drinking.
Glycogen storage
Short-term weight is significantly impacted by carbohydrate intake, primarily via glycogen storage.
When you eat more carbohydrates, your glycogen levels rise as excess carbohydrates are broken down into sugar in the form of glycogen for storage.
As 1g of glycogen typically binds with 3-4g of water, this also results in more water being stored, thus increasing your weight.
When you cut down on carbohydrates, your body releases glycogen to make up for the lower levels of sugar in the body.
This also results in the water bound to glycogen being released, thus, causing your weight to drop.
This is why low carbohydrate diets often result in quick initial weight loss, but this loss is largely due to water, not fat.
Exercise effects
In the short term, exercise removes body fluid, rather than body fat.
After exercise, your weight may decrease due to sweating, but also rise from the fluids you consume to rehydrate.
Sore muscles also retain water as a part of the healing process, which can cause a rise in your weight post-exercise.
All this is normal and short-term, and does not translate to permanent weight gain.
Hormonal influence
A number of hormones regulate fluid balance and metabolism. These include:
- Oestrogen and progesterone
For women, hormonal changes before menstruation often result in the retention of fluids.
This causes bloating and temporary increases on the scale of 1-3kg.
- Insulin
High-carbohydrate or sugar-heavy meals increase insulin, which results in the increase of sodium and water retention.
- Cortisol (stress hormone)
Chronic stress will lead to water retention, bloating and blood sugar spikes that lead to an increase in insulin, which adds to sodium and water retention.
- Aldosterone
This hormone maintains sodium and potassium levels in the body.
Elevated levels lead to fluid retention.
Analysing the scale properly
Your reading of the scale can vary based on the following:
- Time of day
- Clothing worn
- Food and drink consumption
- Hydration status.
Even tiny differences like weighing with your shoes on or with heavy clothing, can change readings in a major way.
Evening weight is generally greater than morning weight, because the body stores food, fluid and waste throughout the day.
To measure your weight more accurately:
- Weigh yourself daily at the same time
- Use the scale after using the restroom
- Weight yourself before consuming any food or drink
- Wear minimal clothing during weighing
- Always use the same scale in a consistent location.
Other ways you can track your weight loss progress are:
- Utilising weekly averages
- Assessing waist and hip measurements
- Capturing monthly photographs
- Observing energy levels and how your clothes fit.
Fat loss vs water loss
A gradual reduction in body fat is typically slower than the rapid loss of water weight.
While fat loss results in a leaner and more toned physique, water loss leads to a flatter or deflated appearance.
Unlike fat loss, which tends to remain stable, water loss can rebound quickly after it occurs.
The impact of diet on fat loss is indirect, whereas it has a direct influence on water weight.
Changes in weight due to fat loss are generally small and steady over time, while fluctuations from water loss can be sudden and substantial.
People often experience a plateau at some point during their weight-loss journey.
This occurs when internal progress continues, but the scale doesn’t reflect it.
Common reasons include:
- Water retention masking fat loss
- Muscle inflammation from exercise (which causes water retention)
- Digestive weight due to fibre changes.
- Metabolic adaptation.
How to overcome plateaus:
- Improve sleep
- Increase protein intake
- Reduce excess sodium
- Track weekly averages
- Change how hard you work out
- Avoid excessive calorie restriction.
Look to the long term
Your body is not a machine that evolves in a straight line.
It undergoes daily changes influenced by factors such as food intake, hydration levels, digestion, hormones and physical activity.
These day-to-day fluctuations are not caused by fat gain.
Real fat change occurs over a period of time.
For example, about 0.5kg of fat constitutes about 3,500 calories.
No way can you gain or lose fat in significant amounts overnight!
The number displayed on the scale represents more than just fat; it signifies the ongoing processes within your body.
Understanding this perspective shifts the scale from being a source of anxiety to becoming an invaluable resource.
Datuk Dr Nor Ashikin Mokhtar is a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist, and a functional medicine practitioner. For further information, email starhealth@thestar.com.my. The information provided is for educational and communication purposes only, and it should not be construed as personal medical advice. Information published in this article is not intended to replace, supplant or augment a consultation with a health professional regarding the reader’s own medical care. The Star does not give any warranty on accuracy, completeness, functionality, usefulness or other assurances as to the content appearing in this column. The Star disclaims all responsibility for any losses, damage to property or personal injury suffered directly or indirectly from reliance on such information.
