I don't own a scale...

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  • FireOpalCO
    FireOpalCO Posts: 641 Member
    And @ person who will not leave me alone - I don't pay for the food any time I eat out and the Wii is my ex's because he got the Wii U, so bite me. I make $1000 a month which is nowhere near enough to go run out and buy a new scale for me or to weigh food or any of those other fancy gadgets after taxes are taken out.

    When is your birthday? Because this year I got a scale (husband and son), and a food scale (in-laws) for my birthday. They thought I was kinda nuts, but it was what I requested. Start putting the diet/fitness stuff you want on a wish list, tell your love that items off this list are what you want instead of flowers or other gifts.

    Do you do protein shakes? I do Total Lean 25 (GNC) and it's $40 a tub (with GNC membership). One tub is 16 servings, so that works out to $2.50 a meal since all you have to add is water. You don't even need to own a blender, just a blender bottle will do. If you watch for sales you can do buy one get one 50% off which works out to $1.88 per meal. Each one will give you 25g of protein, 8g fiber, and 20% of your iron. There are probably other options out there with similar or lower pricing, I just like the GNC ones because the high fiber makes them filling.
  • THICKandFIT
    THICKandFIT Posts: 63 Member
    Do you live near a YMCA or a gym? Every month just go there and tell them you are thinking of joining. Walk around and stand on a scale.:p

    Will... will they let you do that? There are three around my area, I guess I could try that.

    @ runningagains: I have a measuring tape for sewing. I've never really thought to take my own measurements as a way of tracking. I wanted to track weight in order to figure out my BMI, but I guess that should do.

    I'll also see about keeping the Wii board flat and in the same place, but my apartment is rather small so I put it away when I'm not using it. The YMCA idea sounds neat if that works.

    I just wanted to chime in and say that the YMCA, at least where I live, has a policy that prevents them from turning anyone away due to financial reasons. I don't know the specifics but I do know that a friend of mine has a membership for $4/month because of her limited income. If you qualify for an affordable rate then you'll have access to a gym AND a scale. Yay!
  • lookpretty
    lookpretty Posts: 276 Member
    I bought my scale at a thrift store for two dollars, people throw them out all the time, tested it next to other scales for accuracy, was fine, did this a few years back as well, think I paid one dollar for that one
  • jrose1982
    jrose1982 Posts: 366 Member
    I used a Wii Balance board for a long time (in a carpeted living room). And when I went to the doctor, I compared my weight to the balance board. It was always off by as much as 2 lbs. But for how much I was trying to lose, I really didn't need it any more accurate than that. I mean, if I was only trying to lose 5-10 lbs, it would drive me crazy. But for trying to lose 100 lbs, I only needed my relative weight.

    I had to adapt my thinking. It's perfectly normal for weight to fluctuate, so I have get used to bigger fluctuations. So long as the overall trend was downward, it really didn't matter.

    I should add the I did end up buying a better scale. I think it cost $20 on clearance. My biggest reason was just that it takes too long to boot up the Wii and everything just to weigh myself. If I felt like I was in any kind of hurry (and I usually did) I just didn't bother weighing myself at all.

    Another drawback is that stupid Wii Fit character. When you gain a little weight he asks you why you gained weight like you did something wrong. Considering how much my weight fluctuates, that's really annoying.
  • maidentl
    maidentl Posts: 3,203 Member
    Another drawback is that stupid Wii Fit character. When you gain a little weight he asks you why you gained weight like you did something wrong. Considering how much my weight fluctuates, that's really annoying.

    Yes! And when you're obese he has to tell you EVERY weigh-in in that sad voice, "That's obese." :tongue:
  • VaporeonSugar
    VaporeonSugar Posts: 117 Member
    I use my wii fit board to weigh myself, it makes fireworks every time I hit a small goal so it's fun. I bought a scale for 5 dollars, it sucks i mean really bad lol so i would stick with that. Also it is no one's business about you money, I would use the wii fit board, oh and I also use a a measuring tape to measure myself, i am not sure if it is the kind you would use for sewing but i think so :)

    I haven't actually used it with the Wii Fit game yet... so I'll see if I can hook the thing up and find the disk this week. And yes, a half-inch thick measuring tape is what I use for sewing, the kind you roll up, not the metal, retractable tool ones. I usually use it for patches or other projects, so I feel a little stupid not thinking to use it for health purposes.

    @ FireOpalCO: My birthday is in August, so I guess I can ask for fitness stuff. I don't tend to ask for presents in general since I'm never given any. My family isn't big on birthdays and my fiance isn't a gift type. I might mention it to my STB mother-in-law though since she likes buying us stuff.

    @ jrose1982: Thanks for the input. I didn't really think of it like that. I have a large amount to lose, so I guess for the next few months to year or so wouldn't be that big of a deal. I'll start using the Wii board and worry about it more when I notice the weight being gone.
  • Trinehar13
    Trinehar13 Posts: 19
    You can always buy a cheap scale then get a weight like a 10 pound dumbell and weigh that to see how inaccurate your scale is and go from there.

    Today I weighed my 10 pound kettlebell and it weighed 10.6 pounds on my scale which told me I need to subtract an extra .6 pounds when I weigh myself.
  • Caper88
    Caper88 Posts: 418 Member
    Are you more interested in/important that you know your actual weight or just that you lost? If it is more important that you know your loosing compared to the actually number then don't worry about how accurate the scale is at the place you volunteer or wii fit on top of carpet is and use it anyways. My weight always shows a difference between my home scale and dr office. When my dr weights me, it always shows that i'm 2lbs heavier then my home scale however they always reflect the same amount of loss. So if I am down a lb at the dr office then my home scale shows that I am down a lb. Maybe different numbers but regardless one number smaller then the week before. I always go based off the same scale. What is important is consistency with what scale you use, where it is located and the time. For example always use your wii fit board, located by the living room wall, sun morning before you eat/drink. .
  • VaporeonSugar
    VaporeonSugar Posts: 117 Member
    You can always buy a cheap scale then get a weight like a 10 pound dumbell and weigh that to see how inaccurate your scale is and go from there.

    Today I weighed my 10 pound kettlebell and it weighed 10.6 pounds on my scale which told me I need to subtract an extra .6 pounds when I weigh myself.

    Oh wow! This is a wonderful idea. I have 5 lb weights and I can put them on the Wii board to see if it says they weigh what they actually do. Awesome tip! :3
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
    You can always buy a cheap scale then get a weight like a 10 pound dumbell and weigh that to see how inaccurate your scale is and go from there.

    Today I weighed my 10 pound kettlebell and it weighed 10.6 pounds on my scale which told me I need to subtract an extra .6 pounds when I weigh myself.

    Oh wow! This is a wonderful idea. I have 5 lb weights and I can put them on the Wii board to see if it says they weigh what they actually do. Awesome tip! :3

    Except the innacuracy of scales is largely due to the surface they are on and is therefore NOT a linear innacuracy. What that means is if you have your scale on a floor that has a little bit of give then the first part of the weight is used to press the floor down before it starts to press the scale down. Once you put enough weight on the scale the floor is completely compressed and that innacuracy goes away.

    What that means is that a scale, on like a carpet or a floor that bends a bit, will be very innacurate with a light weight like 5 or 10 pounds while being fairly accurate with a heavier weight.

    What I would really do to test the accuracy is stand on the scale yourself (thereby compressing the floor) and then stand on it again holding the weight. Then it should read more by the amount of weight you are holding. If you just put a 5 pound weight on the scale it will seem wildly innacurate unless your floor is very hard.

    Not to mention a lot of digital scales won't even register a low amount of weight at all.
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
    My kids lost all of my sewing measuring tapes, so I just use a piece of ribbon and a yardstick. One tip: when measuring your waist, do it in front of a mirror so you can look straight ahead. Glancing down adds an inch or two to the measurement.
  • ruqayyahsmum
    ruqayyahsmum Posts: 1,513 Member
    In the past i used to nip into my doctors at their lunch break on a Monday and they would happily let me get on the scales

    Now i pay 50p once a month and get weighed at boots which are regularly calibrated

    It doesn't matter if the scales your using arnt 100% accurate so long as your weighing in on the same scales each time
  • shunggie
    shunggie Posts: 1,036 Member
    @vardaemi- Good advice on the looking at a mirror thing. Makes me want to remeasure-but I ususally do it around the 15th!
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,740 Member
    I have next to no money and I know the cheap $15 scales are inaccurate, that's why I don't own one. Thanks for the sarcastic rudeness though. :)

    Inaccurate? What does it matter as long as they are consistent. Your wii balance board on the carpet will work fine...doesn't matter if its 10 pounds off from your "True" weight whatever that means as long as you can track your trend with it thats all that is needed.

    This.

    My scale cost $3.99 at a local pharmacy. Supposedly it's worth $40 but they were having a promotion...who really cares. I am looking to track a trend.
  • ruqayyahsmum
    ruqayyahsmum Posts: 1,513 Member
    a weight loss consultant i was sent to see for a few months used these special feet on her scales when weighing me in her carpeted office. she forgot to bring them one time ( she saw clients at her home too ) she decided it would be a great idea to put her scales on top of her desk and make me climb up there to stand on it

    gave people walking past her office window a good chuckle
  • Branstin
    Branstin Posts: 2,320 Member
    I brought a $10.00 scale from Walmart over two years ago. It works just fine. I agree that it's only the trend you need. Stores like Dollar General, Family Dollar, and thrift stores have scales for about $10 or less. Furthermore, a scale only generates a number but doesn't account for body composition (fat, bone, water and muscle). Therefore, don't allow the fact that you don't have a scale deter your efforts. You don’t need a bunch of fancy gadgets and equipment to lose weight. If you feel the need to weigh yourself, consider going to your doctor’s office once a month and ask to use the scale. You don’t need to see the doctor or nurses, just ask the people at the front desk. Do the best you can until you get a scale but focus more on creating and sticking to your overall plan like eating less and moving more.
  • lizziebeth1028
    lizziebeth1028 Posts: 3,602 Member
    Buy a tape measure and use that to track progress. That along with how your clothes fit and taking progress pics is the most accurate way to go.
  • KylaDenay
    KylaDenay Posts: 1,585 Member
    Who cares about the scale! It cause mental problems anyway. Just use a measuring tape and go by how your clothes are fitting.

    Yes and take progress pics.

    There you go, no money, then no scale needed.

    Edit to add: P.S. - if you must have one then try a yard sale or craigslist for one.

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