Know the Difference Between Water Weight and Plateau

Losing weight has always been a tricky and tedious venture. It drives you crazy when you see no significant change in the reading on the weighing machine. You tend to grow skeptical about the diet plans, exercises and lifestyle changes that come along the way. People eventually get tired and turn back to their unhealthy and easy lifestyle in which they earlier found comfort. Today, we will take you one step closer to your body and the weight loss changes that you have come across or will face in the near future. Understanding and accepting your body is the most crucial factor that needs to be addressed when you are willing to lose weight.

Water Weight
You must have heard of this term somewhere or the other. Water weight is a buzz word that has been stuck to weight loss. Water weight is responsible for causing fluctuations in your weight. The main difference between fat weight and water weight is that fat weight shows after a period of time. When you consume excess calories and fatty foods, you tend to gain weight which shows up after a few weeks. Contrary to this, if you see a sudden increase in your weight overnight or during the day, it is ideally water weight. This is pretty normal as your body has the tendency to retain water due to several factors.

The weight that is shown on the weighing scale constituents of everything that your body is made up of. When your body weight quickly and significantly drops, chances are that you are losing water weight. On the other hand, if you are slowly losing weight with the help of dieting and exercising, you are losing fat.

When you initially start losing weight, you cut your calorie intake and the body now gets the energy from glycogen (a carbohydrate found in the liver and muscles). As glycogen is burned, it starts releasing water which results in loss of weight which is mostly water. This is because glycogen is partly made of water.

The frequent fluctuations shown due to water weight can often be discouraging and frustrating. Therefore, it is important to focus on the overall pattern. If you are sticking to a healthy routine and your weight is slowly going down, that is a good sign.

Weight Loss Plateau
Stuck and stalled weight is known as a plateau. This phenomenon is extremely common. When you start losing weight, you see a significant weight drop in the course of several weeks. But after some time, you notice that your weight is stuck and hit a weight loss plateau even while you are following a diet plan and exercising regularly. This is often very frustrating for people who are diligently working on losing weight.

When a person hits a weight loss plateau, their body will not lose any weight. This can be caused due to changes in metabolism. Along with losing weight, you tend to lose some muscles. Muscles are responsible for burning up calories. Your metabolism goes down as you start losing more and more weight, burning lower calories than it did before. When the calories you burn equal the calories you consume, your body hits a plateau.

After sticking to the same dietary and workout regimen, your body reaches a point where it stops losing weight. You can still try out some methods that can help you overcome a weight loss plateau. Lowering the intake of carbohydrates is one of the most traditional ways to lose weight. You can try to increase the intensity or frequency of your workout. Eating more fiber will improve your digestion and bowel movement.

Footnote
Practicing healthy ways to achieve your goal weight is the right way to approach a healthy and fit body. Eating the right food and exercising regularly can assist you in achieving your desired goal.