My case for weighing yourself every day.

nellyett

Yep, I weigh in everyday too....but only log it in when it's a new low. That way it's easier for me to see where the bigger losses with the shorter time span happened and can go back and see what my week looked like food and exercise wise.

Sometimes there won't be any log in for up to two weeks with that new low, but if I average everything out I works out to 0.5 lbs per week. Works for me as I only have about 7 to go.

amsohs85

As a few people have already mentioned there are some who are scale obssesive or are triggered by scale fluctuations. I can understand why they dont want to weight themselves everyday. But i've noticed that these are often the very people who will go over there calories two or three days then weigh themselves and claim they gained five pounds. While they may have exceeded their calorie intake by 600 or 700 total they certainly didnt consume enough to account for the wieght gain but they dont want to hear that. So then they fast or vastly reduce their intake. Personally if you dont understand how your body works you're not going to be succesful in weight loss and to me the only way to understand TRUE weightloss and gain is to track your weight daily for at least awhile.

Since being on MFP i've learned the basic mechanics of calorie burn and the fluctuations that occur daily. As a woman this also includes the water retention that occurs during your TOM cycle. I weigh myself every morning and a few times a day. I know exactly how much i go up during the day because of the weight of the food i consume and how much water retention that may occur at points in a month. I dont freak out now when the scale goes up nor do i get over excited over a slight downward turn. Understanding my body keeps me from getting stressed which then prevents emotional eating. When you take the fear out of the scale you may find that it isnt your enemy.

On another point weight alone doesnt dictate body changes. Taking body measurements will show progress which the scale doesnt especially for those who dont have alot to lose but want to develop a leaner body. I think the best advice is educate yourself...gain some perspective and remember that nothing happens over night. Then you will reach your goals and have a healthy relationship with your body.

wendytc

I also weigh daily, but I don't get hung up on it if it doesn't tell me what I want.

I will snap a photo of the scale when it hits a new low. Weighing daily helps me to identify my fluctuations and makes them easier to deal with. At first I felt like I was being obsessive, but I get into trouble when I don't weigh. That's when the blinders go on and I live in an alternate world called denial. The scale keeps me accountable, but I have learned with fluctuations to turn to other tracking tools such as how clothes fit, measuring with a tape, and energy levels to keep things in balance. I will weigh daily and log all new lows. Sometimes when I hit a new low, I bounce up and don't see it again for another week, but I just keep at it until the new low is the norm and press on.

ninic010386

I weigh everday. I believe this to be very encouraging. It leaves less disappointment when weigh in day comes and perhaps I am retaining water. I also use it as a tool. I weigh before a workout and after to calculate water lost, so I know how much to hydrate back.

beekuzz

I have often heard that you shouldn't weigh yourself every day because your weight will fluctuate and you may be discouraged. Well if you weigh in once a week and that happens to be the day you fluctuate up, tell me that is not discouraging having no weight loss in a week.

Ok getting to my point, I weigh in every day and today just happened to be a new low and that is encouraging. If I am up a pound tomorrow big whoop, I am fluctuating but if I reach another new low in a few days or a week from now, hey that shows real progress and makes me want to hit another new low. Maybe it's a case of "whatever works for you" but to me it just makes more sense of tracking real progress.

Thx,
Marty

Absolutely agree. Having done WW before, that once a week weigh in is depressing and discouraging. I believe weighing everyday makes you understand the fluctuations of your own body. Weighing once a week now, makes as much sense as logging your food one day a week. I think it's part of taking full responsibiity. You can look at sodium and many other factors rather than getting upset and quitting. I have just recently hit 199 then back to 200, then 198 and today back to 200. It's almost TOM so I understand. But even though I do log my weight everyday and it makes a cool graph, my official weight, if asked is my low point of 198.

hkry3250

Instead of obsessing about a number on the scale, which IS only a number, why not take measurements. Weight doesn't account for water, bone, lean mass, stress and hormones. When you make the scale your new best friend, you miss other aspecs of your weigh loss journey. True, weight does fluctuate, which is why obsessing over it doesn't do much good. As the OP said, "if weigt fluctuates and it fluctuates up when yo get weighed once a week, isn't that just as frustraiting." Yes it is,but at the same time, a steady weight loss will show ounces fluctuating instead of pounds.

AddieOverhaul

I weigh almost every day, right before I get in the shower. It is before I have eaten or drank anything and after i use the washroom so I think it is the truest time to do it.

I do fluctuate up and down a couple of pounds sometimes, but I too love it when I see a new low. I find it really motivating.

I used to never weight myself...and didn't realizer how much weight I was gaining. If I hop on the scale now and see I've gone up a few pounds I know I need to get bck on track fast.

For me, weighing almost every day has been a big part of my success in losing 40 pounds to date - only 10 more to goal!

ETA: I take measurements about every 6 weeks as well.

like_milk

I weigh myself almost every day. I like to do it because it shows me how meaningless the scale can be. No one weighs a fixed amount all the time so I find it odd when people say 'yay, I lost .5lb this week,' what does that even mean? It's such a small number it could mean anything!!! On the other hand a loss of .5lb is a good amount of weight loss in a week, but it's not the kind of amount you can measure weekly, it could be anything.

I tend to pick a rough number which is where the scale hits most often. I like to see new lows but I ignore them until they become more frequent.

Getting on the scale has told me I can 'gain' as much as 6lb in a day and then lose it in two days! Imagine if I weighed in weekly or monthly and saw those extra 6lbs, that really would be discouraging! As long as it doesn't stay up there I'm not worried.

Reading all this talk about scales caused me to pop on mine again. I originally weighed myself five hours ago and apparently I've gained 2lb since then. But I needed the loo, so went, weighed myself again, and lost 1lb. I find it amusing, you cannot take the scale's reading too personally.

Measurements are what I'm really interested in. I don't measure every day as the changes are so small, but losing an inch really is something to celebrate.

EnchantedEvening

I map my daily weight on a calendar (Dry-erase). Write it in green if its lower than the day before, red if its more than the day before and purple if its an all-time low. When I start stacking green days during the week, I try harder and harder each day .. because it will lead to that really special purple day! and nothing feels better than a new all time low!.

I've been using a boring Excel chart to track my weight every day and look for patterns, but I really like this idea. Thanks!

shellybean73

I wake up, I pee, I weigh....EVERYDAY! and Im happy with it...sometimes its a great day, sometimes i lokk down and think...eat a little better today girl!:flowerforyou:

jennieth

I wake up, I pee, I weigh....EVERYDAY! and Im happy with it...sometimes its a great day, sometimes i lokk down and think...eat a little better today girl!:flowerforyou:

This is exactly my pattern. Everyday keeps me aware and keeps me honest.

leolin6

Daily to keep accountable and get back on the wagon

minizebu

I weigh myself daily and keep a spreadsheet that I use to generate a graph and a trend line (see my profile picture).

This visual aid is one of my most valuable weight loss tools. As long as the trend line is going down, I don't concern myself with the peaks (or valleys) in the weight line. If the trend line flattens, or goes up, then I know that I need to make adjustments to my energy intake and output in order to get that trend heading back down.

IamSheaMc

I'm more curious about what my tape measure has to say.

molliepw

I also weigh daily, but I don't get hung up on it if it doesn't tell me what I want.

I will snap a photo of the scale when it hits a new low. Weighing daily helps me to identify my fluctuations and makes them easier to deal with. At first I felt like I was being obsessive, but I get into trouble when I don't weigh. That's when the blinders go on and I live in an alternate world called denial. The scale keeps me accountable, but I have learned with fluctuations to turn to other tracking tools such as how clothes fit, measuring with a tape, and energy levels to keep things in balance. I will weigh daily and log all new lows. Sometimes when I hit a new low, I bounce up and don't see it again for another week, but I just keep at it until the new low is the norm and press on.

totally agree with ya!

Mojamabo

I am glad you posted this comment. I was beginning to feel like I was a freak and becoming obsessed with my scale. I have the same feeling that what if my weigh day is on a fluctuation up. And I have noticed it happen. Had I not known that two days prior I was less, I might have been quite discouraged. So yes, I weigh almost everyday.

TriShamelessly

Marty - I'm with you (and many of those who have already responded) on weighing myself everyday. As a numbers guy, I like to see the trend rather than just a static number. If it fluctuates up one day, it reminds me to stay on the straight and narrow. If it fluctuates down (and particularly when I hit a new low), it is positive reinforcement that I'm doing something right. Either way, I get a little dose of "keep it going" every day. Best of luck on your journey!

rrumbolt

i agree with your way of thinking,

wallacam194

I weigh everyday, numerous times a day.. i write down my morning and night weight every single day. So i definately know what your talking about when it comes to staying focused and on track. Ive tried weighing once a week and I wasnt seeing any progress. weighing every day keeps me focused and keeps my weight on my mind so i feel more in control!

continentaldivide

Totally agree. Using the MFP reports I can see my weight loss trend. I am not losing fast, but I am losing healthy. My health was was the main motivator to me when I started on MFP and it still is. I've lost about 35 pounds in a little more than two years and am w/i 6 lbs of my goal. Slow and steady and it feels like I'll be able to keep it off.