Weight loss while home in bed with a cold?

I am of the school that believes in daily weighing. (For those engaged in or thinking about such a route, I totally recommend www.physicsdiet.com - link below - which allows one to chart the trend of one's weight. I got the tip here on the PT lounge and want to pass it along.)

Well, a weird thing has happened in the past 5 days. I've been sick - nothing horrible, just a bad cold that has kept me home and in bed. The number on my scale has been dropping by almost a pound each day. I'm eating normally (albeit a little less as I'm not going to the gym) and spending a ton of time sleeping. I'm on my fifth day of this thing and I just don't know what to make of it.

The most positive spin I can put on this turn of events is that maybe weight loss related to my regular heavy exercise schedule (I've run 2 half-marathons in the last 5 weeks and been doing a lot of weight lifting and regular cardio) is finally settling in. The worst spin is that my muscles have disintegrated into mush in less than a week.

Has anyone had such an experience? Any thoughts?

Link

Mon. Sep 18, 8:07am

I really find I lose weight when I'm sick. I tend to not eat as much and even though I'm not excercising I think my body is doing a lot of work to fight off the infection... My advice wait and see.

Monday, September 18, 2006, 8:46 AM

Could be water weight also.

Monday, September 18, 2006, 8:50 AM

I agree that it could be water weight/dehydration.

Monday, September 18, 2006, 10:51 AM

If you are running a fever and not eating much, you will lose weight. A calorie is a unit of heat, after all!

Also, as has been pointed out in earlier threads, as your muscles start to recover from a heavy lifting workout (or a half-marathon) they temporarily bulk up with water and glycogen. Eventually that will go away, and you will be lighter.

Monday, September 18, 2006, 10:57 AM

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