Wait...what about water weight?

Ahh yes, water weight. I've been thinking a lot about that lately. I lost 10 lbs in 10 days with the Dr. Oz 2 Week Rapid Weight Loss plan (Not called "Kick Start to Weight Loss" as I had thought...oops), and someone uttered that oft repeated phrase, "Well, you know that's mostly water weight." That someone happened to my brother who was pre-med before he became a high school science teacher. My question back to him was, "Yeah, but do I have TEN POUNDS of water in my body to lose??" He said, "Probably!" Well crap.

I decided I had to look into it. I found, through my friend Google, a web page that seemed to explain the whole concept of water weight. You can read it here. Basically, it says that people who go on a very low carb diet, such as the one I am on, the majority of that first bunch of weight is water. It is all very scientific with words like 'glycogen' which is apparently stored in your liver. Glycogen is also known for attaching itself to water molecules, "it turns out that each gram of glycogen is bound to four grams of water.This means that when your liver and muscles are charged up with glycogen you gain four times the weight of that glycogen in water." What? FOUR TIMES!??! That's just evil.  Of course that means that as soon as you eat carbs again, you replace that glycogen and its accompanying water. Thus, you gain weight rapidly.

I always knew any weight quick to come off or quick to come back wasn't real weight. I would often go up a couple pounds after a heavy meal or a birthday celebration, but over the next few days of normal, healthy eating it would go away again.

That being said, water weight isn't the only weight I've lost on this plan. I know that some of it is real fat loss. I did go a little crazy over my birthday weekend and ate off plan with carbs and fat and sugar galore, and I did gain a few pounds back. Make that 2. So, I think that it's safe to say that I've lost some real weight here! Yayyy!

That also inspires me to try to incorporate some complex carbs in my diet after my 2 weeks are up, to see if it triggers any of the old hunger signals. Oh yes! The article explained that too!

That's because when you cut out your carbs you eliminate the blood sugar swings that cause hunger in most people. The cravings you used to get when dieting may fade out in as little as two weeks. When you stop eating in response to those nasty hunger cravings, you will find it much easier to eat a whole lot less than you used to. It is the drop in calorie intake that follows this drop in hunger that that results in the very real and often dramatic weight loss so many long-term low carbers report.

Well smack my ass and call me Betty, that's exactly what's happening to me! This diet is specifically tailored to cut cravings because it cuts carbs and processed sugar! Aha! I get you know Dr. Oz. 

Well, I did get this before, but it's just explained way better in the article. So, there ya go. I'll stay low carb for now, and try to incorporate some of the better, slowwwwww burn carbs later. Like sweet potatoes (those are the bomb yo) and whole grains. I really want to try this refrigerator oatmeal I've been hearing about. Looks seriously yummy.

I gotta say, I seriously love not feeling hungry all the time. It's like a whole new world, where I think maybe I can just forget about food for a while. Like make it so it's not a thing in my life. A constant, insistent thing. Here's to trying, anyway. ;-)