Weigh-ins daily or weekly?

mkeen77
mkeen77 Posts: 32
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello all! I am new to MFP and have a question. Do you weigh-in daily or weekly and why?

I am 24 years old and 5'6". I never was really skinny in high school (I don't really know how much I weighed, perhaps 170 lbs?). In college I slowly bumped up to 220 (perhaps more but I never weighed myself). When I started grad school I said things have to change. I lost about 25 pounds and honestly didn't really try my hardest to do it. I weighed myself every morning. I know that weight can fluctuate based on certain factors, so I wouldn't get too down on myself if I gained a little or didn't lose as much as I had hoped. I stayed pretty positive I felt. But when I finished grad school I got back into bad habits and I gained most of the 25 pounds I had lost.
January 2012: Again, getting on myself I decided things needed to change and within a few about 3-4 months I had lost about 20 pounds again. Then I moved... and put on about 15 of the 20 again.

So... here I am now. Starting over (for the 3rd or 4th time) but really getting serious...

I guess I didn't need to both explaining all of that, so I am just curious... what do you do? Weekly or daily? Or something else?
Feel free to add me too. I am LOVING the encouragement I have gotten on this website in the first week and love supporting those around me!

Thanks for your responses!

Replies

  • mkeen77
    mkeen77 Posts: 32
    I guess I should have mentioned that I can be an anxious/overly-excited individual... so it is really hard to NOT step on the scale literally every time I walk into the bathroom. It's has become a compulsive habit....
  • pastryari
    pastryari Posts: 8,646 Member
    When I first started I weighed myself all the time. I only recorded weekly weigh-ins but I was stepping on the scale almost every day.

    Now, I just recently weighed myself out of curiousity for the first time in a couple months. Pretty much the same. But I am down in inches and the pictures show a difference.
  • iAMsmiling
    iAMsmiling Posts: 2,394 Member
    I weigh in daily because I'm compulsive that way.
    On the other hand, I try to look at the longer term picture. Day to day weight variation being what it is, I pretty much pay attention to the week to week variations.
  • Pedal_Pusher
    Pedal_Pusher Posts: 1,166 Member
    Do whatever works best for you...................woot!
  • MuddyEquestrian
    MuddyEquestrian Posts: 366 Member
    I weigh myself daily but I only log on here once a week. I take once a week as more of a solid number, every day is just to make sure I'm on track!
  • ShannonBas
    ShannonBas Posts: 101 Member
    I would say... that due to my weight fluctuating so much lately I weigh myself several times a week. Kind of in between daily and weekly. :happy: There are days when I'll weigh more than once in the day, but mostly less than daily and more than once a week. :blushing:
  • jesusHchris
    jesusHchris Posts: 1,405 Member
    Daily. More information is never a bad thing, unless you are a NAND flash cell (what up fellow geeks).
  • amj3303
    amj3303 Posts: 111 Member
    Daily!! I hate it though... I hope soon I can make it weekly!!!
  • maremare312
    maremare312 Posts: 1,143 Member
    Weekly or less. Even though I know in my head that weight fluctuates daily, it still can make or break my whole day, I don't like focusing on the numbers that much. Leads to too much obsessing for me.
  • MrsWilsoncroft
    MrsWilsoncroft Posts: 968 Member
    I can't help but check out the scales most days but my official weigh in is once a week, same day and same time x
  • MyaPapaya75
    MyaPapaya75 Posts: 3,143 Member
    I weigh in when I want sometimes can be daily and sometimes I can go for a month I dont stress it I just weigh in when I think about it...but i always weigh same time and same conditions (nude)
  • FluffyToFab
    FluffyToFab Posts: 99 Member
    I'm a 5-6 times a day weigher... I can't help it.. Like the OP I step on the scale everytime I walk into the bathroom, and sometimes I go in there just to weigh. I only record once a week (On Sunday mornings). It helps me to stay on track and be held accountable .. This is only my 2nd day on MFP so maybe it won't be quite so extream since I am now counting calories (Never done that in my life). I've done WW, but that was points..
  • jessicae1aine
    jessicae1aine Posts: 885
    I weigh randomly. I went 6 weeks or so without weighing, and now I've weighed 3 times in the last week. Just depends on my mood.
  • crazygoog
    crazygoog Posts: 20 Member
    Hello and welcome newbie :-)

    I am only 16 days into MFP having started on a Saturday. I told myself I would weigh only of a Saturday morning, and definitely then only. It got to Wednesday however, and I was an eager beaver. I just had to try. I had lost 5lbs in 4 days. Over the moon would be an understatement. I then went on on the Saturday morning and had lost a further 3lbs. Again, it reached Wednesday, but I kind of wish I hadn't bothered. Now, to some people a 1.2lb loss in 4 days would be quite an achievement, but because of the rate I had been losing it was ever so slightly disappointing - but overall I was still pleased. Anyway, Saturday (2 days ago) came around and I had lost a further 3.2lbs in that 3 day period! This week though I am really hoping that I can resist the midweek scales temptation, and save it all for Saturday.

    At 10lbs loss though MFP has suggested a recalculation in order to carry on and reach my goal weight. This has taken a further 80cals per day off my limit. I just simply use the treadmill for another 7mins to reach this instead of cutting down on the food (which is already hard work keeping under 1500cals).

    Keep reading the posts on here and the success stories will make you want to do even better - that's what i'm doing :-)
  • L_jo
    L_jo Posts: 19 Member
    Stop it! Get off that scale! lol. You know dear, whatever works for you. But as for me , I weigh in once a week. Usually on Sundays. Some people weigh in once a month. I don't think I could wait that long. But the soonest I will weigh in would be one week from the last. Your body fluctuates day to day, so for me, a week is enough time to see a difference. Good Luck!
  • FitCurves444
    FitCurves444 Posts: 169 Member
    I find it beneficial to weigh myself every day.... once a day..... because I do keep a record of the fluctuations.... that's just me.
  • fit4lyfeLisa
    fit4lyfeLisa Posts: 529 Member
    I also weigh myself daily, first thing in the morning, but only log it on here once a week.
  • Erindipitous
    Erindipitous Posts: 1,234 Member
    Weekly. Our bodies fluctuate too much on a day to day basis based on fluid balance, food still in your digestive system, etc.. It can be discouraging.

    If you must weigh yourself every day, only record it once per week.. First thing in the morning, no clothes, before your shower, and after voiding.
  • Megatoine
    Megatoine Posts: 137 Member
    Daily - in the morning before I eat or drink. For me, along with logging my food and exercise daily, its the way to get a complete picture of how my body reacts to my food choices and my activity level. You can get a real understanding of how you gain or lose and what does or does not work for you. Additionally, you can take a look at dates and understand if PMS or midweek job stressors affect your food choices and consequently your weight. Identify your patterns.

    Just my approach - may not work for everyone.
  • BigBrewski
    BigBrewski Posts: 922 Member
    I generally step on the scale daily and record once a week (and when I reach a goal) that being said if you are going to let the number on the scale "adjust" your attitude then only weigh in once a week. Weight goes up and down daily if your going to be stressed becuase it went up on Monday down on Tuesday and Wednesday and up on Thursday then don't cause yourself the stress just weigh in once a week or once every other week. I do it daily out of habit and if the number goes up or down it doesn't phase me too much but if I see the number go up 3 days in a row then I make a point to refocus and work out a little harder however I don't ever let the number on the scale adjust my attitude.
  • junodog1
    junodog1 Posts: 4,792 Member
    Daily. I'm probably a little compulsive about it but it reminds me why I'm doing this AND that I am making a difference.
  • spetermann190
    spetermann190 Posts: 289 Member
    I weigh myself daily but trainer tells me 1x per week and I know hes right cuz I can very 6+ pounds just in water weight. I bounce low 190-200 weighing same time (first thing in a.m.) same clothes. If I play vball night before and skip supper I'll drop 8 lbs, but within 2 days always finds its way back :)
  • ColoradoRobin
    ColoradoRobin Posts: 510 Member
    I weigh once daily in the mornings and record it on physicsdiet.com. They have software that calculates a weighted moving average of all your daily weights. It smooths out the spikes up and down, and shows graphs of what your weight is averaging over time. It is motivational for me, because even a spike upwards will have little effect on my average weight, but if there's an upward trend, it will show up on the graph. Nice for anyone who likes graphs. :D

    I officially check in here once a week, but have been doing twice weekly recently just to stay motivated.
  • MagonElizabeth
    MagonElizabeth Posts: 42
    lol, me too!
  • SimplyEee
    SimplyEee Posts: 57 Member
    My plan is to do weekly's. First weigh in when I started was Saturday morning, so that will be my weigh in date, and measurements once a month :)
  • adjones87
    adjones87 Posts: 5 Member
    I weight about every other day or every 2-3 days, but I only pay attention to once a week. Plus, I don't weigh if I've been bad.lol I don't record my weight on here if it's slightly higher, only when I lose. I'm at the point where I've been losing 2lbs/week, but I have to work at it. I take my son for a walk every day, if it's raining I do Zumba. I've been walking & doing Zumba some days. I've lost 30lbs, but I've only been only MFP for a couple months, this is the first time I've really tried at it, and I can definitely see some changes! My pants are looser, my shirts are longer, and even my shoes & watches are looser!! My hubby even said my booty is sticking out more! Whatever works best for you...best of luck!

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