Water makes up 60% of your body weight, and it's one of the first things you lose. Weight decreases as a change in muscle, fat and water. Fat mass doesn't change quickly, but you can lose as much as five pounds of water in a day.
Exactly how much water weight you can expect to shed depends on a lot of factors, including your body size and composition. “I know people who were obese and lost 10 pounds in two days” on a diet, Clayton says. He notes that the average person can expect to lose one to three pounds in about two days.
Aim for 64 ounces a day (it's a good goal for all of us, even if specific needs vary) and of course, skip the soda.
This is possible, but you'll mainly be shedding off water weight (a short-term approach) and not fat (a long-term and more sustainable strategy). Remember, losing 5 pounds weekly is not customarily recommended week after week.
The length of time that it takes to lose water weight depends on how much water you're retaining, the cause of the water weight gain, and the action taken to lose it. If you have one high-sodium meal and then return to normal, healthy dietary habits, you'll likely return to your normal weight in 1-2 days.
It's caused by fluid buildup in body tissues. Sitting for a long time during the workday or on plane flights, hormone changes during pregnancy, and even standing for too long can all cause this to happen.
If you push on your skin with your finger or thumb and your skin remains depressed, you're probably experiencing water retention. Fat cells are more springy, so the skin will bounce back. Do you feel bloated after eating?
Reduce carbohydrate intake
When we eat carbs, the energy that we do not use right away is stored as glycogen molecules. Each gram (g) of glycogen comes with 3 g of water attached. Cutting down on carbs is a quick way to use up the glycogen stores, which means that the water weight will also be reduced.
For example, going on a low carb diet, or cutting your carbs way back, triggers the loss of glycogen and the water stored with it, and if extreme, can also be dehydrating. Just two cups (16 oz) of water weigh one pound, so shedding fluid fast can result in weighing a lot less on the scale.
How Much Water Weight Can You Lose? You can lose up to 20 pounds of water weight in one week after modifying your diet and starting an exercise routine.
Fat mass doesn't change overnight, but you can lose as much as five pounds of water in a day. Average 24-hour urine loss ranges from 800–2,000 milliliters of fluid or about 1.8–4.4 pounds because water is heavy. It sounds drastic but as you lose water, you're also replenishing it through food and drink.
You don't drink enough water
“If you are even slightly dehydrated, your body will hold onto water versus shed it,” Palinski-Wade says. “Adequate hydration can help to promote water weight loss.” Murphy says this is almost like an “insurance policy” to protect against dangerous levels of dehydration.
Fluid retention
People with heart failure, kidney disease, liver disease, or those taking certain medications may experience this type of weight gain. You should always report rapid or significant weight gain and fluid retention to your doctor, even if no other symptoms are present.
Most people will retain 8 to 15 pounds of excess fluid before they see leg and belly swelling. However, symptoms such as coughing and shortness of breath, loose stools, nausea and feeling full when without eating much may develop at the 5-to-7 pound mark" says Dr. Lewis.
If you press on your skin and an indentation stays there for a couple of seconds, that's a sign you have water weight. One way to check if you're retaining water is to press on swollen skin. If there's an indention that stays for a little while, that's a sign that you could be retaining water.
To lose 10 pounds in 3 days would mean decreasing your calorie intake by 35,000 calories in just 3 days! The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends a slow and steady weight loss of no more than 1/2 to 1 pound a week. Otherwise you are losing muscle and water, as well as weakening your bones.
Drinking enough water is essential for our overall health, but it can also help us to lose belly fat. So, make sure to drink 8-10 glasses of water each day and watch your belly fat melt away!
Before meals
Drinking a glass of water just before eating a meal is a great strategy if you're trying to lose weight. Doing so can not only help enhance feelings of fullness but also decrease your intake during that meal.