weight loss on rest/cheat day?

[saera05]

I've noticed a pattern with my weight loss, where I will exercise for several days and not lose anything (and maybe even see the number on the scale go up a wee bit), and then when I take my rest day, all of a sudden 2 lbs will drop off. I've also noticed similar things with regards to restricting my calories, and then having a cheat day -- that's inevitably the day the weight will drop off.

I was just curious if anyone else has experienced anything similar? Any ideas why? I've been curious as to why it happens that way.

 

[mooniestar]

Yes, I have experienced this quite a few times. After working out consistently for a few days, I'll give myself a free day and rest/eat what I want. Of course, I don't go overboard. But after that free day, I'll wake up in the morning to weigh myself and find that I've lost more weight than on the days I was exercising. It's because your body has had time to recover and 'right' itself. Muscle fibers are repaired and you tend to lose water weight too, along with a bunch of other stuff.

I think this can explain why a few people can reach a plateau in their weight loss, because they won't give themselves a day for their body to recover. I like to think of it as a kind of jump start to your system.

Like for instance, I've had a week like this:
Sunday: 130
Monday: 129.6
Tues: 129.2
Wed: 129
Thurs: Off (129.6)
Friday:127.8 and etc...

I'm sure Kara will come by and explain it much better than I could, I'm no professional. This is just what I've heard and experienced myself.

 

[summer123]

Your body has time to recover when yu rest. It can't recover to the same extent if your working out every day.

An example of this is with muscles. As you exercise, you make lots of little micro tears within your muscles. When you rest, these repair and in repairing become stronger- they grow. Growing takes calories and energy, you help to create a calorie deficit this way. But if you don't rest, your body cannot recover to the same extent- it recoverd but not as much as it could do so your not creating the same calorie deficit.

However, having said that, there are also other factors to consider. Your not likely to lose 2lbs of fat overnight, but you are likely to lose 2lbs of water over night. Resting requires you to not use your muscles. When you exercise, your blody pumps water through your muscles. It does this for many reasons but onee being to aid the muscles to rid themselves of the lactic acid that exercise creates. You can see this in guys who "pump iron" at the gym and walk away looking "ripped". Its simply water (or a significant amount of it is). This is completely natural but the result ios, your body is holding on to more fluid. When you have a rest day, your body is not pumping water through your muscles and so they are not as plumped up. This water goes through you and your weight drops as a result. Its not fat loss, its not muscle loss, its water loss!

I'd also wonder if your change of diet and 'cheat foods' are having some inpact, if your not eating as many veggies and fruit and eating smaller amounts of "bad" food which maybe gram for gram, weigh less (even if they are more calorie dense- eg the comparison between a 120gram apple and a 40gram chocolate bar) this means less bulk inside of you and so less weight as a result.

And a final thing to consider is weather your excreting more during your rest days! Rest can mean the body can digest things at a better rate, if your on the go all the time, your digestion can sometimes be disturbed and you can feel a bit bulked up. Sometimes when you rest you can find that your body can actually digest what has been sitting in the colon and .....your weight goes down as a result!

Its important to take rest days. Not just for the reason described above but also for your mental health- you take a break, come back a fresh and your better then you were before! It can really help to boost your training.

Don't think that the cheat days will be having any impact on your weight loss unless you are consuming fewer calories then you would on a non-cheat day.

 

[Andy2]

Your body has time to recover when yu rest. It can't recover to the same extent if your working out every day.

An example of this is with muscles. As you exercise, you make lots of little micro tears within your muscles. When you rest, these repair and in repairing become stronger- they grow. Growing takes calories and energy, you help to create a calorie deficit this way. But if you don't rest, your body cannot recover to the same extent- it recoverd but not as much as it could do so your not creating the same calorie deficit.

However, having said that, there are also other factors to consider. Your not likely to lose 2lbs of fat overnight, but you are likely to lose 2lbs of water over night. Resting requires you to not use your muscles. When you exercise, your blody pumps water through your muscles. It does this for many reasons but onee being to aid the muscles to rid themselves of the lactic acid that exercise creates. You can see this in guys who "pump iron" at the gym and walk away looking "ripped". Its simply water (or a significant amount of it is). This is completely natural but the result ios, your body is holding on to more fluid. When you have a rest day, your body is not pumping water through your muscles and so they are not as plumped up. This water goes through you and your weight drops as a result. Its not fat loss, its not muscle loss, its water loss!

Could not have said it any better.

Your whoosh is likely water that you retained from lifting that is finally exiting.