Does that .X really matter?

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  • TheRealParisLove
    TheRealParisLove Posts: 1,907 Member
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    It matters to some more than others. For instance if you are trying to track water retention or depletion, ever tenth of a pound does make a difference. Weighing before a workout and after a workout to determine how much you need to rehydrate is also important.

    I use the information to track patterns, decide on where I need to cut sodium intake and to determine even the tiniest gain or loss. For instance, I've never gotten below 134.2 so if the scale moves down to 133.8 I know I've made more progress.

    I also count the tenths of miles when calculating my gas mileage on my car. I guess I just like to be precise.
  • GinaBeana1121
    GinaBeana1121 Posts: 49 Member
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    Well as long as you're saying that, why does 1 pound matter? Maybe we should go by increments of 5? The fact is, a loss is a loss, and if you see how much a pound of fat is, losing half a pound is still a valid loss. Why do you need to put others down for being proud of losing 1.4 as opposed to 1 pound?
  • MrsWilsoncroft
    MrsWilsoncroft Posts: 969 Member
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    Every ounce counts lol
  • JenniBaby85
    JenniBaby85 Posts: 855 Member
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    I don't count the .X. Just the whole pounds.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    :laugh:

    I'm a fan of rounding. I don't worry much about the scale anyway.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    My scales only go to the nearest pound... If they has a point, I would flaunt it!
  • commanderval
    commanderval Posts: 187 Member
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    well, it does matter to me since I'm on a .5 loss per week...
  • zachatta
    zachatta Posts: 1,340 Member
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    Whatever motivates people.

    :)

    brb just lost 5.33265743433 lbs.

    In all serious though I don't care I am glad people are making the life change.
  • Awkward30
    Awkward30 Posts: 1,927 Member
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    I'm not obsessed with the number on the scale by any stretch, but my weight only drops in fractions. I don't lose a full pound or multiple pounds at a time. So that's what gets recorded.

    This. Also, by your logic, you shouldn't record anything under 5 lb because it could be water fluctuations? I think it's easiest to just record what my digital scale tells me, but understand that there is a margin of error. Also, my habits are pretty set, so my water weight fluctuations aren't much at all. For the most part, the .X doesn't come back :)
  • danifo0811
    danifo0811 Posts: 542 Member
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    I record the . x but if someone in real life asked me I'd go to the nearest 5 lbs.
  • PetulantOne
    PetulantOne Posts: 2,131 Member
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    Hell yeah it matters to me! I'm losing weight slowly, so some weeks .6 is all I've got. But I weigh myself first thing in the morning before I've done anything, so the water weight isn't there, so to speak.
  • smokinjackd
    smokinjackd Posts: 341
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    If it gives you that little extra hell yeah then definitely
  • misfitswayoflife
    misfitswayoflife Posts: 134 Member
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    I think when you get to a lower weight the .X's matter because you don't have a lot of pounds to go. And I don't know I find it slightly motivational even if I only go down an ounce...
  • half_moon
    half_moon Posts: 807 Member
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    If your goal is to lose .5 pounds a week, then yes it is relevant.

    If it doesn't matter to you, why do you care?
  • AngelicxAnnihilation
    AngelicxAnnihilation Posts: 336 Member
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    Right now it matters to me because I'm just starting out, but as time goes on and when you reach the goal you're aiming towards. No it probably won't matter.
  • Arrabindi
    Arrabindi Posts: 169 Member
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    Of course it matters! I'm set to lose 0.5 lbs/week, so I hardly ever lose a full pound during a week, and I like to record my exact weight each week. I guess a lot of people choose to ignore the .x because they don't want to admit that they should actually be rounding up instead of down. If the scale says 160.5 lbs and you don't record decimals, you should actually put 161 lbs and not 160 lbs, but it's not quite as fun. Also, if you have 200 pounds to lose, 0.5 lbs can seem insignificant, but when you're down to struggling with the last few, stubborn ones, a half pound is a victory!
  • JTick
    JTick Posts: 2,131 Member
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    Some people just record the number the scale says. So, let's say I weigh in on Monday. Last Monday, the scale said 150.00 lbs. So that's what I tell MFP. I weigh again this Monday, the scale says 149.6, so that's what I put in to MFP. Maybe the scale doesn't really matter to me, but MFP will tell me I lost .4 lbs. So maybe that person doesn't care, it's just MFP doing calculations.
  • PomegranatePriestess
    PomegranatePriestess Posts: 2,455 Member
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    When I joined MFP, it asked me what I want to lose by when. So I put in my goals, and it came back with a formula that should have me losing 1.9 lbs per week. I found it funny that it would say 1.9 instead of 2, but that's what it said.

    My scale shows me full pounds, and half pounds, so that's what I record here.

    When I talk to people, I do round the number off. It's easier in conversation. But when I'm putting data in a system that allows for fractions, I use the fractions. Makes perfect sense to me.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    Why would 1.0 matter if 0.6 does not?

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