The FastDay Forum

I had lost a marvelous 1.7kg in about 10 days, I could barely believe it. I only had 3kg to lose in total so I was over half way there!
Then, I went away for the weekend (3 day bank holiday weekend) and stayed at a hotel. I wasn't even THAT naughty at all. One banana pancake for breakfast, a salad for lunch and about half of the kids' chips, no sweet drinks (OK, maybe one cold chocolate over the whole weekend), no ice cream, no alcohol.
WHY do I put on weight so easily? I am now officially heavier than when I started this diet!
It seems to laugh in the face of all my efforts. I feel so depressed and angry. I only have a small amount to lose but I really want to lose it, as it make me very unhappy.

Needless to say I am fasting today, with angry determination, but I am so sad to see that, like on any other diet, a huge amount of effort can be wiped out in one weekend or one holiday

Im no expert but if I were you I would wait till you've done another couple of fast days then weigh yourself, I'm thinking you will re-lose it, there is no way you could of gained that much weight with what you ate.
I know for a fact that if I change my routine, vacation,short break naughty weekend of eating my weight tends to tempoarily increase I think it's water retention, funny things happen to your body when your away for me while away even my bathroom breaks go weird!

Hang in there let keep us posted how you get along!
PMJ

I agree with PML. Give it a week and a couple of fasts.

Good luck!

I know, I'm just terribly impatient!
I think I should stop weighing myself so often, especially when I come back from a holiday... Do you guys weigh yourselves once a week?
It's almost a compulsion for me, I weigh myself every morning and my mood is dramatically altered by the result. I'm just worried that if I do it once a week and I have put on weight, I'll have a complete meltdown!

Don't forget that us women can lose or gain kilos of weight from water retention etc as part of our menstrual cycle, too! Fluctuations of several kilos between days is quite normal.

Try not to get too obsessed with the numbers on the scale. I know it's easy to get taken in by the scales, and what they show, but really, our bodies are terribly complicated things. It's not easy to know just from that one number whether we've lost weight, or whether we've got PMS, or whether there's just more food in our guts than usual, or whatever. Lots of things can cause such an increase. It doesn't mean the 5:2 regime isn't working for you

I think I should stop weighing myself so often, especially when I come back from a holiday... Do you guys weigh yourselves once a week?

My feeling is that if the number of the scales is affecting you so badly, and ruining your days, it would be better to only weigh yourself once a week. Or use body measurements (waist, hips, neck etc) instead of the scales. Maybe try putting the scales away in a closet for most of the week, and only bring them out one day a week.

I will try! It is so hard for me, not weighing myself is harder than dieting, isn't that crazy? It's almost like a form of OCD. I blame Pierre Dukan, who recommends weighing yourself daily and even several times a day during his diet, it started me off!

scales are evil, put them away and go every fortnight or month. Measurements and clothes fitting better are much better indicators... We all want to LOOK good and FEEL good right?? Who cares what we WEIGH like??

Yes, it is a problem. I struggle with daily weigh-ins too, and I know I ought not to! So I feel your pain! The only thing that's worked for me is actually physically putting the scales away in a closet.

My counsellor suggests slowly breaking the habit by weighing every other day, and then every third day, and gradually lengthening the period. Maybe that could work for you?

My sports physician agrees that measurements (waist, hips etc) are a more accurate gauge of weight loss in any case. I agree with bigfellonomore!

I weigh every day, but I only "count" my Friday weigh-ins. (which reminds me, I forgot to log my Friday stuff here.) A daily weight can be discouraging for some folks, but for me it is a sort of gauge that I use just to watch that water-retention stuff. But what everyone else said here is correct - travel can completely off-set your body's rhythm in many ways. Extra carbohydrates and salt in hotel/eating-out food can cause a great deal of water retention. Disruption in your eating pattern can disrupt your bowel pattern which can retain "weight" in that way without really being additional fat stores on your body at all.

If you find yourself being profoundly affected by the scale/mood/etc., then you should definitely consider not weighing yourself so often. I've been 5:2 since March 19th, and while the weight loss is slowing down for me, I'm thrilled to find that my formerly "favorite" pair of slacks are now so loose I can't wear them without a belt. Sometimes numbers and body composition don't add up.

Hang in there fellow Aussie - mine goes up and down some weeks but it is coming off even if it is slowly. I love my 2 fast days a week and I measure myself as well as weigh myself ! This is the first ' diet' I have been able to stick to but I do find if I overdo it on the other days that I have to be careful and sometimes I do a 3rd fast day ! I like the health benefits of it as well as the weight loss ! I have been doing it now for 8 weeks and this morning weighed 2.8 kg less - I am happy with that as I had lost about 8 kgs last year over a 12 month period but was all over the place with dieting !

Thanks everyone, I will hang in there
I think I should also weigh myself after the second fast of the week instead of torturing myself with post-party or post-holiday weigh-ins. I will try the gradual withdrawal of the scales, it seems like a good idea!

Oooh, I'm an Aussie too! LOL

I agree, Blackbess ... I weigh daily but don't pay too much attention, I like the 'gathering data' aspect of it (my scientific mind at work, LOL). I log my daily measurements on MyFitnessPal, just to keep records. I don't log my daily fluctuations here, only once a week for that.

It really is very much a "some down - some up - down a bit more - up a bit-down more" zigzag path. As long as the overall trend is downwards, you're doing just fine

Another thing to consider is that maybe some of the food you ate had more salt than you would use at home. This is highly likely if you were eating out. Too much salt equals water retention, so that may have been partly to blame.
I don't weigh after a fast day. I figure that might give me a lower number than is the 'real' number. If you had previously weighed after a fast day and had some water retention and ate a bit more than usual, all these little things can add up.

Do you guys weigh yourselves once a week?
It's almost a compulsion for me, I weigh myself every morning and my mood is dramatically altered by the result. I'm just worried that if I do it once a week and I have put on weight, I'll have a complete meltdown!

I weigh myself only once a week on the scales in the health clinic at work. Always the morning after a fast day.

Everyone here recommends apps to show you the trend in your weight if you are going to weigh daily.