Not All Body Scales Are Created Equally

MFD7576

So I currently co-own a Fitbit Aria scale. Love it, it moves the data around happily so I don't have to BUT in my long time of being fat I've noticed a few things.

Scales aren't all the same! and this bugs the daylights out of me.

My family has two scales (for some reason). The analog scale would tell me im 280 while the digital scale would tell me something in the range of 265 to 270 (depending on how fast I get on the scale). This was a while ago as my Aria 9 times out of 10 will get the range consistent. So my questions are;

What scale should I trust the most?
Should I stick to one and just track progress on that so the skewed numbers stay consistent?
What are other tips for a "good" scale, what to watch out for? (gimmicks even?)

Thanks for the help guys, hopefully you guys see my struggles lol

BigGuy47

MFD7576 wrote: »

What scale should I trust the most?
Should I stick to one and just track progress on that so the skewed numbers stay consistent?
What are other tips for a "good" scale, what to watch out for? (gimmicks even?)

Jumping on multiple scales and getting different results on each scale is madness. Just pick one and use it as your reference point.

I have a cheap Taylor scale, it suits my needs. I kinda want a WiFi scale (Aria or Withings) that will automatically log my weight.

Regarding gimmicks, body fat percentage isn't really useful due to inaccuracy. This is measured using bioelectric impendence which can vary depending on your hydration level.

PAV8888

What @BigGuy47 said.

What you do is also just as, if not more, important.

Weight yourself in the morning, after using the bathroom, before eating or drinking anything, wearing the same or no clothes. Make sure your scale's batteries are good, and your scale is located on an un-yielding floor surface. And you don't move it around.

Then record your weight through a trendline generating program to help you smooth out the inevitable water weight variations and deal with the inevitable week long (or longer) weight loss stalls you will encounter.

Suggested ones are www.weightgrapher.com, www.trendweight.com, Libra for Android, Happy Scale for iPhone.

A lot of scales exhibit fake consistency. You get on them and they show you the same weight again and again. This is not because they really are consistent, but because they just show you the same weight unless your weight changes "sufficiently".

You can detect that by holding a 4oz of water and getting on the scale again. Your weight should have increased by 0.25 to 0.3 of a lb (depending on whether you are using a plastic or glass measuring cup).

If you see no change, weigh yourself again without the water and again with MORE water. Most scales these days will usually not show any movement till you exceed a full cup of water (>0.5lbs)

When buying a scale you can also check if they have a single force sensor, 2 force sensors, or 4 force sensors. The fewer the sensors the more susceptible the scale is to how you position yourself on it.

Unfortunately dumbbells are not calibrated weights and may or may not be reflective of the weight that it stamped on them. If using them to check the accuracy of your scale I would weight myself + dumbbell vs the dumbbell by itself. Scales tend to be more inaccurate at the very bottom end and at their top end.

If I found a discrepancy I would try at least a couple of other dumbbells of the same size (and don't forget to "zero" the scale by weighing yourself without one in between attempts if yours is one of the "consistent" models)

Or... just weight yourself once a day and plug the number in one of the sites/apps I mentioned without worrying too much about all this... it will all work out after a few lbs ;-)

<the usefulness of body composition scales is... none. Accuracy is such that a 25% BodyFat person can be detected as anywhere from 15% to 35%. Your mirror is MUCH more accurate than that. http://www.builtlean.com/2012/09/24/body-fat-percentage-men-women/&gt;

BigGuy47

PAV8888 wrote: »

A lot of scales exhibit fake consistency. You get on them and they show you the same weight again and again. This is not because they really are consistent, but because they just show you the same weight unless your weight changes "sufficiently".

My scale does this and I hate it. I step off the scale and then put one foot on to reset the scale. Get back on with both feet. Rinse and repeat. It looks like I'm doing the hokey pokey dance. Quite silly and stupid.

Do the higher end scales, Aria + Withings, do this fake consistency thing?

seska422

Scales are just like watches.

If you have one watch, you know what time it is. If you have two watches, you don't know the current time because you are getting conflicting information.

Unknown

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velveteen7845

I took my scale to my doctor's office and compared their scale with mine. They were within a pound of each other and I'm happy with that.

Kalikel

As long as I can track my progress, I. Not all that concerned with the scale's accuracy. If you want to test it, buy a weight that you're sure is accurate and then weigh it on the scale.

If you work in a place that has an accurate scale, weigh something there and then take it home and compare.

MFD7576

PAV8888 wrote: »

What @BigGuy47 said.

What you do is also just as, if not more, important.

Weight yourself in the morning, after using the bathroom, before eating or drinking anything, wearing the same or no clothes. Make sure your scale's batteries are good, and your scale is located on an un-yielding floor surface. And you don't move it around.

Then record your weight through a trendline generating program to help you smooth out the inevitable water weight variations and deal with the inevitable week long (or longer) weight loss stalls you will encounter.

Suggested ones are www.weightgrapher.com, www.trendweight.com, Libra for Android, Happy Scale for iPhone.

A lot of scales exhibit fake consistency. You get on them and they show you the same weight again and again. This is not because they really are consistent, but because they just show you the same weight unless your weight changes "sufficiently".

You can detect that by holding a 4oz of water and getting on the scale again. Your weight should have increased by 0.25 to 0.3 of a lb (depending on whether you are using a plastic or glass measuring cup).

If you see no change, weigh yourself again without the water and again with MORE water. Most scales these days will usually not show any movement till you exceed a full cup of water (>0.5lbs)

When buying a scale you can also check if they have a single force sensor, 2 force sensors, or 4 force sensors. The fewer the sensors the more susceptible the scale is to how you position yourself on it.

Unfortunately dumbbells are not calibrated weights and may or may not be reflective of the weight that it stamped on them. If using them to check the accuracy of your scale I would weight myself + dumbbell vs the dumbbell by itself. Scales tend to be more inaccurate at the very bottom end and at their top end.

If I found a discrepancy I would try at least a couple of other dumbbells of the same size (and don't forget to "zero" the scale by weighing yourself without one in between attempts if yours is one of the "consistent" models)

Or... just weight yourself once a day and plug the number in one of the sites/apps I mentioned without worrying too much about all this... it will all work out after a few lbs ;-)

<the usefulness of body composition scales is... none. Accuracy is such that a 25% BodyFat person can be detected as anywhere from 15% to 35%. Your mirror is MUCH more accurate than that. http://www.builtlean.com/2012/09/24/body-fat-percentage-men-women/&gt;

Thank you very much for such a detailed post, the post a lone is sticky worthy haha It makes a bunch of great points and I just wanted to personally thank you for taking a chunk of time out of your day to detail it.

Thank you everyone else for the input, Nice to see Im not the only who notices this and I do intend to do this with my Aria. Also cleared all my weight inputs and am tracking with one and only scale now

PAV8888

The Aria, performs at least two (I think it is actually three) true weigh ins in a row.

Being that it has 4 force sensors and fairly good construction, it is by nature fairly consistent. The weigh-ins USUALLY; but, not always, yield the same result.

If you weigh yourself more than 3 times within a short period of time, it "calibrates" itself and shows you a consistent number.

The Aria automatically sends your number to Trendweight, and Weightgrapher, and MFP, all at the same time!


That, together with the lack of wild weight swings, has now cured me from the multiple weigh-in disease I developed using various Conair, Weight Watches, and Taylor scales!

If you have the room, and can afford the cost (including shipping), the mechanical balance beam "doctor" type scales are probably your best bet for accuracy.

For the record, my Aria weighs me at +1.4lbs as compared to the "calculated" weight of DXA scans (same day, 2 hours difference)