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11lbs in 24h - What is it?

Hello everyone.
I weigh myself everyday. It’s just a habit I have. Same time everyday. I’m a bit overweight atm so I have quite a lot stored fatwise. However. Yesterday when I weight myself, again at the same time, I weighed 11lbs more than I did today at the same time of day. I had my husband stand on the scale to check if it was going crazy.

This has happened once or twice before. And I don’t understand it. What is it that I can lose that weigh so much? Water? Nothing has stood out today. I haven’t been sick, I am not sick. I haven’t peed more than usual. I’m thinking my feet might look a bit smaller, I’ve had some issues with them swelling lately. But they don’t weigh 5 pounds extra each!

Any thoughts..??
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Avatar universal
I weighed myself today on a different scale and my weight loss is accurate. I left blood tests today at the lab ordered by my doctor.

I did google though and people who do sports where weight determines certain things have methods of losing 12lbs in 24hours and it’s all water weight. So apparently it is possible to lose that much water but it’s not effortless.
Helpful - 0
2 Comments
What blood tests did you have done?  A serious weight loss such as you're describing would bring hyperthyroidism to mind... do you have any other symptoms of being hyperthyroid, such as diarrhea, tremors, mood swings, etc?
Yes or hypo I’ve had tons of symptoms and now this. As of today I have gained the weight back though. Doctors don’t want to test my thyroid further as my TSH and FT4 are within range. Because of how the medical system is and the lack of knowledge in the GP world about thyroid issues I can’t get any further to really confirm :( they won’t test for antibodies.
1756321 tn?1547095325
I had fluid issues myself. I remember weighing myself the night before and the next morning I was 10kg (22 lbs) heavier. I looked online and read if you are suddenly gaining more than 4 to 5 pounds (1.8 to 2.2 kg) of weight overnight this may be a sign of a serious condition. My reason was a 25 cm ovarian cyst and I was very ill prior to surgery. Couldn't wait to get that cyst out!  
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134578 tn?1693250592
You say it can "only" be water but it seems as likely that the scale is flukey. 11 pounds is hard to explain as water -- you would not have drunk even half of that in one day. Why not just buy another scale, and weigh yourself on both of them when you have a question about the results of the first one? At least then you will know that the number is true.
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Avatar universal
I can accept a 5lbs difference, that usually happens if I weigh myself at different times. I don’t really do anything with the information, it’s just a thing I do, I stand on the scale.

It’s not new, had it for a few years and it is a nice quality scale, not too fancy but not cheap. My husband did a weigh check and his weight was normal. I had a picture of my feet the way they look recently (I’ve had to go up almost 2 shoe sizes which is weird I didn’t even do that when I was pregnant) and they’re normally very swollen.

My feet have tingled and been sore since I posted this and I have added some weight as the fluid was put back on. I have however not gained the entire 11-12lbs which is odd.

I have noticed my shoes and clothes don’t fit as well and had to buy bigger but I thought I just gained fat weight. I have been surprised by the amount because my habits, while they’re in no way good, aren’t bad enough IMO for the weight gain I’ve had. One thing that has had me confused is despite my effort drinking water my urine doesn’t show that much trace of it. Makes sense if my body is just storing it all I guess..

I don’t think I can lose that much weight in fat overnight, only childbirth can cause that kind of weight loss in my opinion.. I’m thinking it can only be water..
Helpful - 0
649848 tn?1534633700
COMMUNITY LEADER
I, too, weigh myself every day, but if you're going to do that, you have to realize the weight fluctuates.   Mine can fluctuate by as much as 5-6 lbs over a 24 hr period, depending on whether I'm retaining fluid, constipated, eating more/less than usual, different things than usual, exercising more/less than usual, etc.

AnnieBrooke is right that weight can be different, depending on where you stand on the scale, too.  Most scales are most accurate if you stand directly in the middle, but we don't always hit the right spot - at least, I don't...

When weighing on a daily basis, it's best to average your gain/loss over the course of several days in order to make sure it's the most accurate, since weight can fluctuate so much in a short time.  

In addition, it's best to weigh first thing in the morning, after you've gone to the bathroom, but before you've had anything to eat/drink.  It's also best to weigh at the same time every day and in the same type of clothes (or lack of).  

I agree with AnnieBrooke - it sounds like your scale might have a glitch as an 11-pound drop in one day is quite severe, especially, if this happens periodically.  You didn't mention if your scale is digital or analog.  Some digital scales go whacko when the batteries start getting weak.
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
Annie is right -- scales aren't necessary and they can make some people obsessive and nervous.  They're just a tool, but as Annie says, you can tell by looking at yourself regularly if you're gaining a lot of weight or not or by how your clothes fit.  
134578 tn?1693250592
If you hadn't suddenly noticed that you could not get your clothes to fit (and I think you would have noticed it), I would suggest either something is wrong with the scale or you had a reading error when reading the scale yesterday. (Were you also suddenly up yesterday or is it just that you are suddenly down today?) How long have you had the scale? Was it expensive or cheap in the first place? Does it have little markers you can slide around the dial to mark where you were the previous day? Do you have another scale in the house?

I don't suggest weighing oneself every day, but if you are going to, get a top-quality scale. Some scales are so odd that you can stand in one place on them and weigh 5 lbs more than you do when you stand on another place on them.
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