Here’s a fun fact that no one tells you when you first start trying to lose weight: strenuous exercise makes your body retain water.  If you were planning on sweating it out, think again.  A lot of people say, “Don’t get discouraged; you’re going to slow down as you lose fat, because the muscle you gain weighs more.” Well, that’s true, but it’s not the cause of that sudden jump in weight when you’ve been eating carefully and pushing yourself at the gym. Nope, that’s water weight, folks.
When you push yourself, you can damage muscle fibers, and your body’s way of protecting and healing damaged tissue is to surround it with fluid. What ends up happening, after a big workout, is you’ll step on the scale the next morning expecting to see a big payoff and instead see a major gain. It can be devastating! You think “If I’ve been working this hard and getting nowhere, how much harder can I possibly push myself?” Don’t give up! Just get some rest. Let your muscles have a chance to heal, and in a couple days you’ll start losing that water like crazy. You’ll think “I really don’t remember drinking that much. I can’t believe how many times I’ve been to the bathroom today.” Just remember to drink plenty of water while your body flushes itself out. Out with the old and in with the new until you’re back to normal.