Water Loss and your Scale

When you first embark on a diet, especially a more stringent one, you will probably lose a lot of weight initially. Some of that weight is actually water.

The explanation sounds complicated, but basically when you are low in calories, your body releases stored glycogen to make energy so that you can live. When stored glycogen is converted to glucose during this phase, it releases three parts water for every one part glucose. While you're using the glucose for energy, you release the extra water in your urine.

Each cup of water that you urinate equals about a half pound of weight so if you're peeing 2 cups of water, your scale will say you've lost 1 pound.

While beginning an initial diet it's really important to drink more water to make up for this extra water loss. Yes, your scale will go back up, but it's water weight not fat, and the extra water will also help clear you system of waste products that are stuck in your body because there's no liquid to get rid of them!