When should I weigh myself to check for weight loss?

meganlr_

I weighed myself on January 31st (the day I started actively using myfitnesspal) and two weeks into a cardio routine.
I'm 165 and my goal is 140 (my original weight before I discovered delivery). My goal is to drop 2 pounds a week but I'm terrified of weighing again in case it's too soon. I can get easily discouraged. My diet is almost totally changed and I'm taking in far fewer calories than I was previously and my portions are cut in half. Not to mention I'm getting more nutrients now than my white rice and frosted flakes were providing.

Starting this week I upped my cardio from 30 minutes spinning to 60.

When should I weigh again? The end of February maybe or sooner?

bms34b

Everyone prefers to weigh in at different times. Personally, I weigh several times a week, but many people weigh once weekly. Many suggest that you don't weigh at all, but you take measurements of your body around your waist, legs, hips, etc.

magurski

I tend to weigh in every week or so. Since the body's weight will naturally fluctuate both throughout the day and the week due to hydration and other factors, I just pick a consistent time (ie, Saturday or Sunday, right after I wake up and "deal with things") and only weigh in there.

You *could* weigh in every day (again, consistent time like "morning"), but you'll see yourself gain/lose day to day. Some find that discouraging, others use it for monster spreadsheets.

DemoraFairy

I weigh everyday and log it in a spreadsheet. If you get easily discouraged you might find it hard at first if you don't like the thought of seeing fluctuations, but after a while you realise that they will happen, and that they mean nothing. You realise that if you suddenly weigh 2lbs more one day, then it'll be gone the next, because it's happened so many times before. This also raises a problem with weighing weekly or monthly - if you weigh on a day you're fluctuating, you may think you've stayed the same or even put on weight, when actually if you just weighed again the next day it would be gone. Only by weighing everyday can you KNOW what your weight is.

Of course some people don't like weighing everyday, they find it makes them obsess over the scale and they get discouraged at fluctuations. Personally, weighing every week would make me obsess FAR more than everyday. When you weigh daily it's a normal, boring, mundane thing. Once a week however and it suddenly becomes this event that you're spending the whole week waiting for. And I'd get so much more discouraged if I'd waited a week to see how much I lost only to find I hadn't lost anything than if I did it everyday. But you have to find what works for you, of course. Just putting this opinion out there.

odddrums

I weigh myself most mornings before I shower and before I've eaten anything, keeps things consistent. If you do every day or really more than once a week don't get discouraged with ups and downs because you will definitely see rises and falls.

kmarshalljansen

You *could* weigh in every day (again, consistent time like "morning"), but you'll see yourself gain/lose day to day. Some find that discouraging, others use it for monster spreadsheets.

I weigh every day, first thing after waking up, after the bathroom. By doing this I've got a consistent time and status (same level of clothing, etc). I also plug this into a monster spreadsheet, which lets me see what happens when I do a heavy workout the night before, or eat a ton of sodium, or don't drink my water... and what happens when I do drink my water, etc.

That said, as long as you're consistent, it won't really matter. Just realize the more often you weigh, the more likely you are to see fluctuations. In a single day my weight can go up 5 or 6 lbs but then be back to my 'normal' the next morning. If fluctuations will bother you, weigh less often.