Baffled by the scale..how much do I really weigh?

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  • LaurnWhit
    LaurnWhit Posts: 261 Member
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  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
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    My weight fluctuates a lot when I have PMS. That's why I only weigh myself once a week. If I weigh everyday, I'll slowly drive myself insane. Day to day fluctuations are completely normal. It is affected by everything from water retention to the last time you had a bowel movement. Scales are fickle.
  • TMLPatrick
    TMLPatrick Posts: 558 Member
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    Cheap bathroom scales are mechanical devices that tend to report differently depending on where they are.... I really notice my crummy weight watchers electronic scale will report different weights if I weigh myself 3 times in a row on it. It also changes based on where my feet are on the scale... the best thing you can do is not get attached to the number that comes up on that screen. Weigh yourself regularly, and keep track and just make sure that the overall trend is downward. If your weight this week is between 195-200, make sure that in 3 weeks it is between 190-195.... that is how you know you're doing the right thing. It sounds simple, but people tend to get caught up on a single measurement, which does not really mean much of anything.
  • ccaym
    ccaym Posts: 86
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    It's good to hear that I am not the only one frustrated by crazy fluctuations. I am going to try weighing myself once a week and recording that weight whether up or down. We'll see if I can actually resist weighing myself the other days. As I mentioned before, the number is on the scale is a big motivator for me so I will have to stay open and see what works best. I know I am moving in the right direction...my clothes and rings are looser, I can see changes in my shape, and my legs are much stronger. MFP folks have been so supportive! I can't express how nice it is to be able to come here with questions or needing encouragement knowing that you all have my back/ Thank you!!!
  • TourThePast
    TourThePast Posts: 1,753 Member
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    Because weight can fluctuate from day to day, I never rely on a weekly weigh-in. If you happen to weigh yourself two weeks running on "heavy days" that can be extremely demotivating.

    I therefore weigh myself at the same time every morning, after going to the loo, before having a drink, and enter the weight on a spreadsheet which creates a graph.

    While the weight may fluctuate from day to day, it's easy to see a clear downward trend on the graph - whereas two points on that graph, representing two random days a week apart, may give an extremely false picture.

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