How often to weigh?

FreyasRebirth

I only really have 15 lbs to lose, and I'd probably be happy if only 10 came off. I tried the whole never weighing myself, that's how I gained the weight without noticing it. I thought I had gained a "few" pounds (3-4) when I had really added a dozen. I'm not really sure how many I should expect to lose in a week.

I also measured myself today and remember my waist and hip measurements from a few years ago. At the minimum I'd like to lose enough around my thighs and hips be able to wear the clothes I already own. It sucks wearing maternity clothes and pajama pants all of the time.

toholio

I only own a set of kitchen scales.

Then you're going to have to portion yourself out and weigh each section.

On the plus side, cutting your legs off results in permanent weight loss.

AndyOSC

Daily weighing is probably the worst thing you could do for your self confidence, just because of how much your weight can fluctuate based on random things.

I can't agree. Since making it a part of my morning routine it's become just another part of the day. I know if I've eaten too much (calorie-wise) the day before, and I can sort of predict the results.

...though I might skip weighing if I had a particularly excessive cheat day the day before.

Then you're going to have to portion yourself out and weigh each section.

On the plus side, cutting your legs off results in permanent weight loss.

HA!

IsaacHudson

I strongly disagree with the notion that weighing yourself weekly helps balance out fluctuations.

Logically, weighing yourself more often is the best way to deal with fluctuation.

toholio

I strongly disagree with the notion that weighing yourself weekly helps balance out fluctuations.

Logically, weighing yourself more often is the best way to deal with fluctuation.

Indeed. If you weigh weekly you're just as likely to weigh on a day with an upward fluctuation and those fluctuations can be as big as an entire weeks weight loss. If you weigh daily you can actually see the fluctuations.

I can see why people who get obsessive don't want to weigh daily but there's nothing wrong with it if you aren't prone to that.

Another option is to get some fancy wifi scales. Since they log the weight online automatically you don't have to think about it as much. Some mornings I get on the scales, get weighed, then get off again without actually looking at the number.

424a57

I strongly disagree with the notion that weighing yourself weekly helps balance out fluctuations.

Logically, weighing yourself more often is the best way to deal with fluctuation.

I agree. Here is an example. You can see the daily weight measurements fluctuate quite a bit, but math smooths it out. If I just looked at the first and the last, they are the same. But, looking at the trend shows progress. Sometimes see that progress is the only thing that keeps me doing the next day.

albertine58

I jump on the scale like twice a day! It's unnecessary obviously, but I do it when I get up and when I get home at the end of the day- if I don't sleep well I retain water in the morning, so I sometimes see a lower number in the evening. It motivates me so I do it!

I track my daily weight on www.skinnyr.com. I like seeing all of my body's fluctuations- it helps me understand water weight, sodium and alcohol's effect on body water levels, etc. I feel more in tune with my body! Even though I'm not thrilled when I see a higher number, I don't get upset because I know I've been doing everything right; I know my loss will show up on the scale within a few days.

If I only weighed once a week, I'd feel like my entire existence boiled down to that number on that one Wednesday or whatever- which is silly! I think that would make me MORE obsessive. Now I hop on the scale, if there's a loss, YAY, if not, I carry on with my day and think, "I'm sure I'll lose a little by tonight or tomorrow!" It keeps me motivated- I get excited even over 0.2 lbs which I think is a good thing.

Goal179

I asked this same question a couple of weeks ago and I got a bunch of different answers. Honestly, a case can be made for all three methods, never weighing-just measuring and taking pictures, weighing once a week and weighing daily. So I do a combination of all three. I weigh myself every day and track it just to see how I am trending and to get an idea of how food is moving in and out of my body. Going up in weight from day to day can help me understand if I am taking in too much salt also. But once a week, on Sundays, I do my official weigh in that I actually record on MFP to determine my actual weight loss. I also take pictures every two weeks and I measure every two weeks. I get motivation from all three sources. BUT I will say this, if you are like me and tend to "freak out" when your weight fluctuates up a little bit, you better skip weighing daily because it could be discouraging. Hope that helps.