I was told today that it takes 10-14 days to gain weight from a binge. Is this true? For instance, if a person binges for a couple of days, the weight they might gain from that binge wouldn't show up for almost two weeks. Basically, this person is saying that someone who binges may actually lose weight the week following the binge but would more than likely gain a pound or more about 2 weeks after the binge.

Has anyone ever heard of this? Just wondering if this is true, what's the reasoning behind it since it only takes the body about 6 hours to fully digest food, and the digested food that isn't absorbed by the body, is expelled within 33 hours.

Thanks for your replies. I'm confused with this statement. I've searched the net for an answer but can't find anything.

A friend of mine who had experience in binging would see a gain within a couple of days.

I find it very difficult to believe it takes 10 to 14 days after experiencing it much sooner...I mean my friend experiencing it sooner.

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261/226/215?
Started Atkins on 6/12/03

I don't know what the scientific answer to that question is. Personally, I have noticed in the past it took about a week for the scale to catch up with my cheating, although I would never consider any of my cheats binges.

hmmmmm, well 10-14 days do seem kinda unreal, but im not an expert here, i couldnt begin to help you. i would love to know the answer tho.

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Started LC 1-10-04

302/199/160, 103lbs down, 39 to go, simply remarkable.

Restart- 8-19-07
242/226/160


405 points to date ( HOLIDAY CHALLENGE )

It usually shows up for me in a day or two. I've been lc since 2000.

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~ 9 year veteran low carber still working on getting it right!

~size 10 working on a bit of regain to get back in my 6's!

~I left the 18's back in the year 2000 and vow never too see them ever again!!!

It only takes 3 days for your body to convert excess to fat--no way it would take two weeks. Unused glucose is stored as fat in 72 hours! unless theya re talking a two week binge!

LOL

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Lori

232/190/130
My other journal http://www.lowcarbeating.com/bb/showthread.php?t=1130

Lol @ RKC!

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I wish I was that lucky! Have you ever heard of instant gratification? Well think of it in reverse. That's what I get! That scale soars up the very next day. But of course, YMMV.

I think my true weight is about 24 hours behind....if I cheat, I may still see a loss on the scale the following morning. Then, if I stay on plan the next day after the cheat, I may see the cheat "show up" on the scale the NEXT morning, although I stayed on plan. But, like taxgirl said, YMMV.

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I don't know if my past cheats (times like Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc) would be considered "binges" but I show my weight gain immediately.


It then might take me 10-14 days to drop that weight depending on how bad the binge was.

I'm still working off my gain from Easter Vacation (one week of bad eating at the In-Laws(dang pizza!)) (total 10 lbs gain..and have only dropped off 4lbs).

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:silly:
Wolfman
207/178/175
Top Weight: 220 (Oct 2000)
Lowest Weight: 178 (Oct 2003/Dec 2006)

I'm not an expert either, but my weight gains show up anywhere from 24-48 hours.

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In the cookies of life, we are the chocolate chips.

I have no scientific data to offer, but I do believe there is a delay factor involved with weight gain AND weight loss; that it takes some time for our bodies to make a meaningful response to dietary changes. Nearly everyone has experienced the rapid ups & downs associated with the body's water content, and many of us have had "whooshes", where it seems we've lost weight overnight. But I think lasting, "real" weight gains and losses take some time to actualize.

I liken it to the way plants react to their environment....for example, most plants will appear to be doing fine for weeks before the effects of too much water or insufficient light will show up. A one-time overwatering isn't probably isn't going to do any harm, but having the roots too wet too long or too often will take its toll. It can be tricky diagnosing the problem, because by the time the effects show up, you've got the watering just right...yet the plant continues to deteriorate. Or the way you can practice a piano piece or dance step or a speech til you're blue in the face, but it's not till you take a break from it that it finally seems to gel. It's not the break itself that caused the improvement - it was indeed the practice, it just took some time to sink in.

I think it's the same way with our bodies, in that there is some lag time between the cause and effect. Ever notice how frequently people who are rejoicing one week for having "gotten away with" off-plan eating (because the scale was the same or down the next day), are back the next week complaining of a "stall" or gain? I'm not saying that having a piece of bread one week makes you gain weight the next week. What I'm saying is that people often think they are unaffected by things like bars and lc pasta and ice cream and candy, only to find that they are having trouble "all the sudden" after eating this way for weeks with seemingly no negative results. In my opinion, it's that delay factor at work - these things were indeed causing problems, it just took a while for the effects to manifest.

Similarly, it takes some time for the positive effects of exercise to become apparent - walking or lifting weights will definitely make a difference, but probably not the next day. Our muscles may feel pumped up the next day, or our posture improved, but if we don't keep up the exercise, they will quickly revert to their original state. I think it's the same with what we eat - there may be some superficial difference right away, but it takes time for any significant change to occur. That's why people can take off those 5 or 6 "vacation pounds" as quickly as they put them on, but then slow right back down when they get back to where they're delving into "real" weight.

Or so it seems to me....

Sky
Atkins since 8/02
196/144/under 150