The pictures above were taken just this morning, and you can see the difference when I’m poking our my hydrated stomach verses flexing my abdominals.  Water weight retention will always be a juggle, especially for us women due to our periods and hormones.  So, I figured it’s time I give a fitness update on my blog and also to hit on my on water weight issue.  I just finished up my 1st full week of my 4th round of my fitness program!

I gave my body a break from upper body workouts this week after an injury scare on my wrist last weekend.  The week and a half before that, I gave myself a diet and fasting break as instructed.  So now, I’m gearing to go and all reset for another productive round!

One things that I’ve struggled with myself and have had other readers ask me about is water weight gain.  Fun fact, 2 days before my transformation photo shoot was the first day I ever truly questioned if I was pregnant. (Calm down cause Grant and I are not trying to start a family) But seriously, my body was holding onto so much extra water weight from the increased water consumption, high proteins and double workouts in a day.  I started to stress, but trusted Lindsay’s process.  I weighed 6 pounds less 2 days later after I did a 30 hour fast before my shoot (I had only planned for 24 hours to cleanse and give my body a digestive break, but the shoot got started later than expectd and took longer than I had accounted for).  Grant and I named my big belly aka my water baby “Watermelondrea” haha.  She shows up from time to time, but I know I can’t do back to back 24 hour fasts to rid my water baby because that isn’t healthy.  I embrace when I’ve got a full water baby and at least know my body isn’t dehydrated which is a victory in itself because I used to never drink enough water!

So, I did a little research, consulted with Lindsay and paid attention to my own body to share my thoughts on water weight and retention below.

  1. Water is important for muscle growth.  Staying hydrated is so important for those of us who are actively working out, especially those that are strength training and lifting weights.  Maintainging/gaining muscle strength is important for muscle growth.  If you train while dehydrated, your strength and muscle size will decrease.  Dehydration causes your blood volume levels to drop which leads to dizziness and fatique.  Our bodies also need to maintain a good temperature by transferring the heat from our muscles to water, which causes the heated water to excrete through our skin as sweat.  When trying to gain muscle, our bodies also have to be digesting and absorbing macro nutrients and drinking enough water helps with the maintenance of a healthy digestive system.  Thus, the harder your lift and workout, it’s possible for your body to retain more water to help you build muscle.  This is another reason why people who start a new workout program may experience a few pounds of weight gain at the beginning.
  2. Water is a natural lubrication for our bodies.  Water provides cushioning and lubrication between muscles and joints.  Thus, drinking enough water is crucial is protecting our joints and eliminating joint pain.
  3. Reasons for water weight fluctuations can be due to the following:  hormones, eating salty foods, stress, traveling,  excessive caffeine intake, and even transitioning into warmer weather.  It’s not your imagination that your body swells during hot weather.  I know I personally have been carrying my full extra 5 pounds of water weight this entire week and I think it’s due to the fact that I traveled this past weekend, the Texas heat is kicking in and I’m about to start my period.  When “Watermelondrea” aka my water baby shows up, Grant and I just talk about her in good fun and know she won’t hang around for too long.  Experiencing increased water retention for weeks at a time could have a serious underlying cause that would require a doctor visit.
  4. We should be drinking at least half of our weight in ounces in water a day.  The times that I’m training extra hard or trying to get even more results, I’ll actually try to drink my full weight in ounces in water weight.
  5. My body can usually fluctuate 5 pounds a day based on water weight.  Don’t worry because your body can’t physically gain this much weight in fat that fast, so if you notice a super fast increase in body weight, it is more than likely water weight or retention.  A person typically only gains 1-2 pounds of muscle a month and it takes an additional 3,500 calories to gain a pound of fat.
  6. The type of food I eat also weighs a part in my water weight retention.  After my low carb days, I feel the lightest and slimmest, however when trying to build muscle and burn fat, my body NEEDS carbs for energy.  Past the amount of salt you’re eating, the amount of calories, the breakdown of macros, increased proteins and carbs and even drinking more alcohol than normal can cause our bodies to gain water weight.  I know I’m not going to be my lightest or leanest every single day of the week, therefore I’m far more worries with fueling my body to burn fat, grow muscle and stay healthy.
  7. Do not rely upon the scale for your results.  Lindsay has preached this over and over in our program, and I have learned it really is true.  I now go and weigh myself at Total Nutrition once a month to see a deeper reading into my weight.  It breaks down how much water weight I’m carrying, how much % body fat I have, how many pounds of muscle I have, and the break down in muscle mass of my left leg, right leg, trunk, core, left arm and right arm in comparison to other women my age and height.  For instance, if all the muscle numbers are equal to or over 100%, this means I have more muscle than the normal woman my age, weight and height.  My left leg is the lowest and my right arm is always the highest.  I have been well above 100% since I started measuring my weight at Total Nutrition.  The reading will also tell you how many pounds of fat you should lose, how many pounds of muscle you should gain and how many calories your body is burning each day to just survive.
  8. A healthy gut and consuming a daily probiotic can help to regulate excess weight.  For me, I choose greek yogurt and good ole prunes lol!  When e are constipated, our bodies take longer to digest and hold on to excess weight, but rest assured that the body isn’t actually absorbing extra calories for real weight gain just because it’s constipated.
  9. Be careful when trying to shed bloat that you do not dehydrate yourself.  I know I personally have felt bloated and heavier than normal this week due to many of the points I have already spoken about in this blog.  Even though I may want to find a way to shed that water weight before I put on a bathing suit for a Memorial Day party, it’s important to know that if you dehydrate your body IT WILL hold on longer and tighter to water when you finally do hydrate it. I would love to hear below in the comments or on my instagram post below just how you shed your excess water weight or bloat when it arrives. I would love to learn more healthy ways to rid a few pounds of water weight before putting on a bikini!  I’ve been doing apple cider vinegar shots with mother this week to help regular my own water retention, but can’t wait to hear from more of you.

I hae thoroughly enjoyed learning more about health and fitness through my own results.  Our newest round has multiple accountability groups and the women all have positive and infectious energy thus far.  I can’t wait to see everyone’s progressive results, as helping other’s reach their fitness goals is such a positive fulfillment I get to now experience.  I am proud to be the program ambassador! The next round starts the middle of July!

You can read more of my previous healthy lifestyle blog posts below:

My Healthy Grocery List

My Go-To Healthy Snack Options

I hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend.  Grant and I are finally not traveling and we are catching up on sleep, house work, workouts, bulldog cuddles and just relaxing time together which I’m so excited about!

xo,