16 lb lost?

Ok everyone! I haven't had REAL food since last Friday.  I stepped on the scale Friday and weighed 335.  Today I weight 319.  Is it possible to lose that much weight in almost a week's time???  I know some of it has to be water weight, but how much of it is from losing water??

Can't say for sure but definitely a good chunk of it is water weight/weight dropped from your glycogen decreasing.

That must be exciting to see, and maybe a bit scary. WOW  is all I can really say. When did you have surgery?

The following explanation is courtesy of Diana Cox.

Our bodies use glycogen for short term energy storage. Glycogen is not very soluble, but it is stored in our muscles for quick energy -- one pound of glycogen requires 4 lbs of water to keep it soluble, and the average glycogen storage capacity is about 2 lbs. So, when you are not getting in enough food, your body turns first to stored glycogen, which is easy to break down for energy. And when you use up 2 lbs of glycogen, you also lose 8 lbs of water that was used to store it -- voila -- the "easy" 10 lbs that most people lose in the first week of a diet.

As you stay in caloric deficit, however, your body starts to realize that this is not a short term problem. You start mobilizing fat from your adipose tissue and burning fat for energy. But your body also realizes that fat can't be used for short bursts of energy -- like, to outrun a sabertooth tiger. So, it starts converting some of the fat into glycogen, and rebuilding the glycogen stores. And as it puts back the 2 lbs of glycogen into the muscle, 8 lbs of water has to be stored with it to keep it soluble. So, even though you might still be LOSING energy content to your body, your weight will not go down or you might even GAIN for a while as you retain water to dissolve the glycogen that is being reformed and stored.

 It's possible... especially when you are on liquids and up in the 300s. But don't be disappointed or think it's your fault IF you bounce back. That's just your body adjusting... not anything to do with your efforts. It's natural. Congrats to you!!!! :) :) 

Hi patriceo!

We have very similar starting weights! I had my surgery on March 29th and was 338 pounds.  Today I am 317 pounds!!  I don't care if it's water or some fluke of the moon.  I just like seeing the number go down, that's all!  I know that numbers will change along this journey, that's to be expected.  As they tell us all the time here "its not a sprint, it's a marathon"! 

I haven't had any real food either yet, unless you count nuked 3 ounces ricotta cheese with a spoon of marinara sauce on top!! 

Good luck in your journey!!!

Donna