Weighing in 1 day a week vs every day

2

Replies

  • WallyH4EverVersion
    WallyH4EverVersion Posts: 172 Member
    I weigh in every morning, everyday after I go to the bathroom; :happy: to see trends and to keep myself accountable.
    I do write it down @ my home calendar .

    When I lose weight I see if I keep it off for 4 days consecutively, then I log it in here in MFP.:smile:
  • tracys2166
    tracys2166 Posts: 15 Member
    I officially weigh in on Tuesday's, but I weigh myself every day :laugh:
  • I weigh in everyday when I can to keep myself accountable for the day before.

    This is what I do, it works for me.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    weighing in at the same time, same day, and under the same conditions is what is important. Your body doesn't know it's Monday per sei...so rando advise that it's best to weigh in on a Monday is...well, pretty just rando. It doesn't matter so long as you are being consistent.

    I weigh in daily because I'm a data analyst and I prefer numerous data points for more accurate trend analysis...also, I understand daily weight fluctuations and they don't bother me or make me freak out. I don't really track an arbitrary number, I look at the trend.
  • susie3g
    susie3g Posts: 267
    I weigh myself every day and record it on a separate app, but I only record my weight on Mondays on MFP. My mindset is a little different from yours, I think. I made my "official" weigh-in day on Monday to give me extra incentive to make wise choices on the weekends (also my hardest days). I weigh myself every day so I can see what certain things are doing to my body such as sodium and watch the trends. It's easier to see the trends with more data points.
  • michelle_816
    michelle_816 Posts: 621 Member
    Thanks everyone!!! Lovin' the feedback! A few of you posted about recording daily loss in a spreadsheet! I am a numbers person, so I may have to give that a try... either that or having a notebook in my bathroom that I can record in first thing after I weigh in.

    I do have an issue with sodium. I only started logging a week ago, but I don't believe I have been below my alloted daily values at all. I have been trying, but some days I just crave the foods that have a bit more in them. I am trying not to stress too much and really strive to drink more water on those days (I am at 6 glasses most days right now).

    To MinnieinMaine, I understand what you are saying about picking one or the other. I just tried to validate that I could have both because it was a reduced fat/sugar mint chocolate chip ice cream ;) And it was a special occasion!
  • susie3g
    susie3g Posts: 267
    Thanks everyone!!! Lovin' the feedback! A few of you posted about recording daily loss in a spreadsheet! I am a numbers person, so I may have to give that a try... either that or having a notebook in my bathroom that I can record in first thing after I weigh in.

    I do have an issue with sodium. I only started logging a week ago, but I don't believe I have been below my alloted daily values at all. I have been trying, but some days I just crave the foods that have a bit more in them. I am trying not to stress too much and really strive to drink more water on those days (I am at 6 glasses most days right now).

    To MinnieinMaine, I understand what you are saying about picking one or the other. I just tried to validate that I could have both because it was a reduced fat/sugar mint chocolate chip ice cream ;) And it was a special occasion!

    I have noticed (by weighing everyday) that sodium plays a HUGE factor in my weight loss! When I have more than usual, I can gain a pound or two of water weight overnight. This signals to me that I need to up my water intake for the next several days to try to get that back down. Also, upping the intensity of my exercise can make me retain water. When that's happening, I see I might need a rest day while the muscles repair themselves. Ultimately, do what works best for you. If you have a smartphone, I know there are all sorts of apps you can track your weight with.
  • michelle_816
    michelle_816 Posts: 621 Member
    Susie3G, I am trying to watch what I eat, portion size, etc... This past weekend (1st one since I started recording) just happened to be one where there was two separate family gatherings. The one that was at a restaurant/bar was the tough one for me. Being in that kind of environment, it's not the easiest making healthy choices. I did have more to drink than I had planned, but I also made sure to gulp down a few glasses of water at dinner between drinks. And I didn't eat any of the bread at the table, ordered grilled cajun shrimp with veggies instead of a deep fried fish. But I did splurge and get cheese on my hashbrowns and enjoyed some awesome taco soup that I only usually get to treat myself to once or twice a year when we go to this restaurant! The fact that I was only up 1.2 lbs was actually impressive to me considering all the sodium I inhaled this weekend!

    Off my OT, anyone have tips to succeed when going out to a restaurant/bar or do you just consider this to be a day where you go over your alloted numbers? I don't go out to eat that much, but I usually do splurge when I do.
  • Calliope610
    Calliope610 Posts: 3,782 Member
    I weigh daily, log it into a phone app but only log my weight on MFP when I reach a new low. Works for me.
  • susie3g
    susie3g Posts: 267
    Susie3G, I am trying to watch what I eat, portion size, etc... This past weekend (1st one since I started recording) just happened to be one where there was two separate family gatherings. The one that was at a restaurant/bar was the tough one for me. Being in that kind of environment, it's not the easiest making healthy choices. I did have more to drink than I had planned, but I also made sure to gulp down a few glasses of water at dinner between drinks. And I didn't eat any of the bread at the table, ordered grilled cajun shrimp with veggies instead of a deep fried fish. But I did splurge and get cheese on my hashbrowns and enjoyed some awesome taco soup that I only usually get to treat myself to once or twice a year when we go to this restaurant! The fact that I was only up 1.2 lbs was actually impressive to me considering all the sodium I inhaled this weekend!

    Off my OT, anyone have tips to succeed when going out to a restaurant/bar or do you just consider this to be a day where you go over your alloted numbers? I don't go out to eat that much, but I usually do splurge when I do.

    Totally understandable! I eat out every weekend. My tip is to look up the nutritional info before you ever leave home and log it. I've not had any trouble resisting when I already know what I can have because it's logged already. Also, makes things easier because I don't have to look at the menu and be tempted by the pretty pictures when I get there. I also make sure to drink a full glass of water while I'm waiting for my food. Try to pick something with high protein so you will get full quickly and stay full longer. Hope that helps!
  • asdowe13
    asdowe13 Posts: 1,951 Member
    Every second Sunday I weigh and measure myself!
  • MissLCWolff
    MissLCWolff Posts: 69 Member
    I officially weigh in on Monday mornings, but I generally weigh myself 2 or 3 other times a week just to check in on how I'm doing/reassure myself that I didn't ruin all my progress because I ate over goal a couple times.
  • ketiab08
    ketiab08 Posts: 6 Member
    I weigh myself everyday. But only record once a week on Wednesday.
  • deliacm
    deliacm Posts: 66 Member
    I weigh myself every day, but I will only record it in MFP when I have three days at/below the weight I'm going to record. Doing it this way, I don't record a weight that may have been a fluke. Like this past weekend, I weighed myself and was three pounds lighter than my last weigh-in; unfortunately, the evening after and next morning had me back where I was the days prior. I knew the scale was lying!
  • bmbaldridge
    bmbaldridge Posts: 15 Member
    I weigh about every other morning, but I only log my weight on Thursday mornings. My weight fluctuates a lot from day-to-day (water, time of the month, number of workouts, scale calibration, etc.) so I try not to put too much stock in unofficial weigh-ins. If I find myself focusing too closely on the number on the scale, I only weigh-in on Thursday mornings.
  • geebusuk
    geebusuk Posts: 3,348 Member
    A few of you posted about recording daily loss in a spreadsheet!
    As already mentioned; the 'Libra' app does it all for you and rather nicely...

    uTqgqxqJ7ijLT_qEo5FV8cinRm6z1jckh9GdCWyQVbTlt3bgYfuJ-DYJrVLngzcyMQ=h310
  • Zelinna
    Zelinna Posts: 207 Member
    When I was losing, I weighed every day and recorded once a week. I found that weighing daily helped me figure out how certain foods/ times of month would affect my weight. This in turn helped me not to freak out over the fluctuations in my weight, as long as the overall trend was down.

    Now that I am in maintenance, I try to just weigh once a week and will hopefully reduce that as I feel I am successfully maintaining.
  • hatsumi141
    hatsumi141 Posts: 62 Member
    I weigh myself everyday, so that I have a constant reminder to stay on track. It can be quite the motivator.
  • FindingAmy77
    FindingAmy77 Posts: 1,268 Member
    I weigh in everyday and log it but dont count it as official weigjt until fridays
  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
    My weight (like most folks) fluctuates a bunch during the week, and when I'll see a low during the week is pretty unpredictable, so I weigh daily, record it if it's a new low, and shrug it off if it isn't. As long as I'm hitting my calorie and exercise targets I know it'll keep going down so I don't stress on the upticks. For me, a weekly weigh-in would make that day "too important", since if it wasn't a decent amount of loss I'd have to wait until a week had passed.
  • bwogilvie
    bwogilvie Posts: 2,130 Member
    I weigh in every day and plot it in excel and then plot a trendline. This trendline is what I pay attention to. The daily variations don't bother me.

    I do this too. Your weight fluctuates depending on water, salt, and fiber intake, and other factors having nothing to do with calories. Using an exponentially weighted average can help you filter out the noise and focus on the trend, as John Walker explains in "The Hacker's Diet" (http://www.fourmilab.ch/hackdiet/e4/). The chapter on "The Rubber Bag" explains, briefly, the source of these fluctuations. The chapter on "Signal and Noise" explains how some simple math can filter them out. Walker explains how to do the math, but you can also set up a free account on his server to do it for you, or use a service like Beeminder or TrendWeight.com.
  • elkhunter7x6
    elkhunter7x6 Posts: 88 Member
    I officially weigh in on Thursdays, but weigh every day morning and night so I can see the patterns in my weight fluctuations.

    I do the same but my official weigh day is Monday.
  • JG762
    JG762 Posts: 571 Member
    Every day, my opinion is that if you're afraid to look at the scale you're not doing something right or you're trying to fool yourself.
    make the scale your friend, it's only there to help you and only you control what it tells you.
  • sokkache
    sokkache Posts: 220 Member
    I weigh in maybe once every two weeks. One time I weighed in once a month and I ended up having lost nearly ten pounds. I find it really nice that way.
  • KhatLady
    KhatLady Posts: 51 Member
    I weigh several times a day, but the only one that counts is the first one after the weekend. That should be my highest point for the week.

    All the others are more to watch how much my weight is stabilized. If i'm fluctuating a lot over the course of the day, I probably need to watch the salt or drink more water. If my weight suddenly shoots up for no good reason, I'm probably gearing up for girly issues and I know to take that into account both for "valid" weight and to steel myself against insane cravings.
  • beautifulwarrior18
    beautifulwarrior18 Posts: 914 Member
    I work nights so I don't even bother weighing in once a week. I just kinda jump on the scale whenever. When I get a day shift job I will start weighing in weekly. If you feel the most confident by weighining in on Friday, then weigh in on Friday. Who cares what works for everyone else, do what works for you.
  • I weigh myself daily first thing when I wake up in the morning. I've just learned that I can't get discouraged though with minor fluctuations up and down, because that happens. It's having a long term downward trend that matters the most.
  • whitebalance
    whitebalance Posts: 1,654 Member
    I weigh in daily and I'm a big fan of doing it. Seeing how the numbers fluctuate from one day to another has helped me NOT obsess over my weight.
  • Another advantage of weighing in every day is that it makes it easier to pinpoint what part of your diet is causing you to gain weight, or conversely, what part of your diet is helping you to lose weight. If you suddenly gain 2 pounds in one day you can just go back to the previous day and see what you ate.

    If you weigh in once a week, it becomes more difficult to figure things out.
  • I weigh in every single morning, first thing before eating anything.

    I have a digital scale that shows it like "135.4" so I can see a more specific number. If I didnt have that I wouldn't weigh in every day.