It’s the strangest thing. I ate lots of sugary foods this past weekend and yesterday, I had a bigger than normal dinner. So this morning, at my daily weigh-in, I weighed a good 5 lbs more than I did on Saturday morning. I just shook my head and continued on with my morning routine. I know I didn’t eat THAT much more. The only explanation for it is that it has to be retained water.

After doing a  little reading, I learned something that astounded me:

It is true that excess salt in the diet can aggravate fluid retention, but sugar is more likely to cause the fluid retention in the first place. Sugar is a carbohydrate, and all carbohydrates, if consumed in excess can promote fluid retention. This is because sugar promotes your pancreas to release insulin. Source

Wow. So that makes SO much sense. I tend to retain fluids after drinking alcohol, eating sweets, or eating carbs. Now I understand why. It also makes me feel better. These gains are temporary, and my weight should stabilize and get back down to the new norm within the next few days.

Until then, I’ll be eating very carefully and avoiding any and all sugar or carbs. I know it’s not all about the scale, but when it’s out of whack, I tend to get a bit grumpy.