7 lbs in one workout??

[FinishOrElse]

Hey all,
As my profile states, I'm 5'10ish and usually around 143 lbs or so. Every time I swim Its a givin I'm going to lose 2 lbs. Its consistant. I eat well after every workout, and drink a lot of water (not enough I know), and I go back up to the weight I was before the workout. Today I lost 7 lbs while swimming... I weighed in right before and right after. 148 before, and 141 aferwards. Its a counterbalance scale or whatever those are called that you would see in the doctors office, so its not like a digital reading looked like an 8 but was really a 3 or something like that.

2 months ago I was 130. I put on the weight fast by eating 5-6 meals a day along with intensive exercise. My waist size has stayed the same through all of this, and although I'm not ripped lets just say the muscles are none the worse for the wear.

Any thoughts on why on earth I would lose 7 lbs in one morning doing 1000yds worth of 50yd intervals? Does anybody know if its healthy? Not healthy? A sign my body is off the deep end? And btw other than being really worn out, I feel fine. I biked 5 miles to get home after that.

Regards,
Joe

[vladnedelea]

don't worry , it's mostly all water weight as you may call it . Some wrestlers even cut 10 pounds during one practice by wearing MANY layers of clothes + rubber clothes. What they are doing is really unhealthy but the fact that you lost 7 pounds in a session is ok. dont worry about it

[wrestler144]

I agree with you on this. There was a kid on my team who cut 16 pounds for weigh in. I've lost 10 last season but haven't done it since because of the unhealthiness.

[snow85]

that advice is ABSOLUTELY incorrect. 7#s is a LOT of weight for you to be losing in one swimming work out, especially one so short. you shouldn't have lost any weight swimming only 1000 yards, and you're correct to be concerned.

joe, there could be a few different things going on. i'm going to use 5lbs for the examples.

first of all, it's normal for your weight to fluctuate from the beginning to the end of a workout, however, if you LOSE more than 5lbs, in an "average" workout, (and by average, i mean that you're not endurance sport training or anything like that), chances are good that it's water weight. if you don't put at least 4 pounds of that back on, by drinking water or a sports drink, by your next scheduled workout, DO NOT WORK OUT. for medical reasons, you need to be within one lb of your pre-workout weigh-in before you work out again.

generally, you should drink 32oz (or 20-40), of fluid for every 60minutes that you do cardio. post-workout, it's 20oz for every lb lost. what are you eating, what are you drinking?

your body could be trying to level out, but it really doesn't matter because 4.7% of your body weight is a lot to lose.

for us, 5lbs is normal, but anything over that meant that no matter how much we gained, we weren't going to be participating in the next practice. if it was really hot, 100-125+ degrees with 98% humidity (which is the texas summer), we were forced to hydrate every 15 minutes. humidity like that adds additional problems because your body can't cool itself by sweating.


i'm almost guessing that because you feel so worn out, that you're not adequately hydrating (at all), and that you might not be getting enough sodium in your diet. here's a secret:

when you're losing weight due to dehydration, performance actually decreases. fluid intake, (proper fluids, not coke, red bull, tea, etc), are crucial to performance.

it's good that you're weighing in and out, but now you've got to apply that and manage your weight/health. the weight you lose in ounces, (5lbs = 80 ounces), is the minimal amount that you should consume before, during, and after your workout. so, if you're swimming for one hour, you could feasibly drink 32 ounces, and would probably be okay. however, for you personally, go ahead and drink two more bottles. replace all the fluid you've lost and see if that helps. make sure at least one of those is a drink, like gatorade, that contains sodium. make sure that during your workout, whatever you ingest is not more that 8% carbohydrate. this can cause digestion problems, among other things, and can inhibit absorption of the electrolytes that you need.

you'll hear that "you get all the nutrients you need through your diet and don't need to drink sports drinks or take vitamins." that's not true for an athlete.

drink 32oz 2-3 hours before your workout.
then, 10 min before you workout, drink another 10oz
if you don't stop to drink during the workout, drink the remainder post-workout.

example: you lose 5lbs during your 60 min workout.
your total replacement should be 80 ounces.

32oz before workout, plus 10 oz before workout = 42 oz.


pre-workout total = 42oz
total needed for duration of workout (60min) = 32 oz

42 + 32 = 74.

additional amt needed = 6 oz minimum.

if you didn't drink during the hour you worked out, your post-workout replacement = ~40oz.
pre-workout = 42
weight loss = 80oz
80-42 = 38

*make sure your post-workout fluids include gatorade, or another electrolyte/carbohydrate drink, and that your fluid replacement is completed as soon as possible, post-workout, without drinking so much so fast that you get sick.

(if you actually GAIN weight during a cardio workout, that's another (potentially serious) problem all its own.)

the pre-hydrated baseline weight is what you go by. that may fluctuate from day to day, (and will if you're losing weight), but not ever so much that you're violating the hydration guidelines above. you shouldn't be losing more than 2% of your body weight every workout.

NOTE: these are the standards, and they WORK, but you need to drink according to your needs. personally, i drink more than a gallon of water every day, more if i work out, but for many people, that would be considered hyperhydration. it can cause you to develop a condition called hyponatremia-- which, in this case, is an imbalance where your body has too much water and not enough sodium. this is very dangerous and potentially deadly. (there is also a hyponatremic condition where you are actually dehydrated and don't have enough sodium. like the hyperhydrated version, this is also very dangerous. think: iv's, hospital, hours to recover.) drink according to what your body needs. weighing in and out and replacing what you lose is a good way to help determine this need.

there are other things to be taken into consideration, but for now, try this and report back.

[snow85]

(from Rice University's website)

Fluid balance test

The goal is to see exactly how much dehydration you incur during your workout. Don't try anything new just yet. Make sure that you are in good physical condition or check with your doctor.



Empty your bladder and record your weight (nude or swim suit)
pre-exercise weight = ___________ lbs.(A)

Do your usual workout, and drink like your normally would.
Record the approximate volume of fluid consumed during exercise.
How much you drank = ___________ fluid ounces

Towel dry, empty your bladder and then record your weight (nude or swim suit)
post-exercise weight = ___________ lbs.(B)

Subtract your post-exercise weight from your pre-exercise weight to get the number of pounds you lost during exercise.
weight lost = _____lbs.(A) - ______lbs(B) = ________lbs.(C)

To find out how many fluid ounces of water you have lost, multiply pounds x 15.3
_____lbs(C) x 15.3 = ________ fluid ounces of water you lost during exercise

To find out what percentage of your weight you lost during exercise,
_____lbs. (C)

________________ X 100 = ________ % Body weight lost

_______lbs. (A)

The following table and graph relate % body weight loss to performance and symptoms.

Relating % loss of body weight to symptoms and performance in the heat

from Nutrition for Cyclists, Grandjean&Ruud, Clinics in Sports Med. Vol 13(1);235-246. Jan 1994

0% -- normal heat regulation and performance
1% -- thirst is stimulated, heat regulation during exercise is altered, performance begins to decline
2% -- further decrease in heat regulation, increased thirst, worsening performance
3% -- more of the same
4% -- exercise performance cut by 20 - 30%
5% -- headache, irritability, "spaced-out" feeling, fatigue
6% -- weakness, severe loss of thermoregulation
7% -- collapse is likely unless exercise is stopped

[FinishOrElse]

Hey thanks snow. I haven't had anything like that happen again, so I don't know what was going on. I'm off of running and swimming for a few days because of a wart on my little toe. Isn't it amazing how little things can create huge problems for workouts? I figure I'll probably have a few extra pounds to work with when I get back at it. When you're my weight to start with, you can afford to add a few pounds every now and then.

Regards,
Joe

[matt13]

well i think that you just burned a couple thousand cals and lost a few pounds i mean 3500 is equal to a pound so ya and i think it is healthy i wish i could do that well good luck

- matt13