Confused by Weight Discrepancies

disclaimer01
disclaimer01 Posts: 3
in Fitness and Exercise
I've recently begun going to the gym after hitting an all-time high on the scale that I considered unacceptable. However I noticed that many of the machines (such as bikes and ellipticals) give a different weight than what reads on my scale (it's nothing fancy- just a standard one that doesn't have any electronic components). The difference is as much as 20 lbs. Either way I plan to stick to my new exercise routine, but as far as numbers go- which one should I trust?

Thanks in advance.

Replies

  • SIMAKRA
    SIMAKRA Posts: 97 Member
    Trust the scale you have at home, if weight is the thing you want to measure for success, stick to ONE scale, that is the easiest
  • walk757
    walk757 Posts: 96 Member
    Be consistent......same scale, weigh same day of the week, same time of the day. I weigh every Friday around 6 am.
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
    your gym has bikes and ellipticals that measure your weight? you must go to an awfully fancy gym, because all mine do is inaccurately count calories burned
  • Lleldiranne
    Lleldiranne Posts: 5,516 Member
    When I go to enter the weight on a treadmill or elliptical, it defaults (usually to 150) ... allowing me to adjust it up or down to reflect my own weight. I rarely use this, because I mostly just warm up on them, and it is merely a tool to get "more accurate" calorie burns.

    Is it possible this is what you're seeing? I've never heard of bikes or ellipticals that actually have scales in them to weight the user.



    Edit to Add: either way, use your scale at home. It doesn't actually matter which is closer to the "real" number, as long as you use the same scale (same time of day, same state of dress) to see your trends.
  • SeahorseDolphin
    SeahorseDolphin Posts: 131
    Weight lost is weight lost. If you're using the same scale and the number is going down, who cares what you weigh? Pick a scale for tracking progress and ignore the other numbers! Eventually your body will be bangin'. And again, if you look hot, who cares what you weigh? :wink:
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
    20lb difference seems ridiculous.

    1-2kg is normal and unless you do it at exact same time there will always be some variation.

    Pick one, use that.
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
    I would love to see these ellipticals and such that weigh you. Are you sure it's not just displaying the last weight that was entered by a previous user?
  • disclaimer01
    disclaimer01 Posts: 3
    So I figured out that it was actually the default weight set on the machines. I guess I haven't gotten used to them yet. Thanks for all your input!

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