My case for weighing yourself every day.

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Replies

  • MonicaW1988
    MonicaW1988 Posts: 23 Member
    I have done and did today but now I'm thinking I will stop weighing myself everyday, the scale has not moved, I am exercising so it could be due to muscle build up and now I've just started taking measurements and going to go by that and maybe weigh myself once a week instead... no point for me looking at the scales beating myself up after-all I have to realise that this is not some diet but a lifestyle change.
  • lalala06
    lalala06 Posts: 153
    i weigh myself everyday.. actual weigh ins are monday's and i see a loss around fri-sun everything in between is either a lb up or same weight.. very interesting :yawn:
  • I totally agree!
  • kristen6022
    kristen6022 Posts: 1,923 Member
    Weighing in every day is fine...if you don't come on here and freak out that in 3 days you gained 2 pounds and ask what you did wrong. If someone is having frustration over losing weight I'll always suggest not getting on the scale for 2-3 weeks because your body fluctuates so much that day to day, week to week gains can set people in to a whirl wind. And I don't think it's healthy for some people to be so obsessed about what the scale says. It's not about the number on the scale, it's about how fit, healthy and fantastic you look.
  • marycmeadows
    marycmeadows Posts: 1,691 Member
    The reason why most people are told not to weigh every day is becase most people flip out when they have a 'gain' - which is really usually just water weight and normal weight fluctuations...... they can't handle these. I personally weigh every day too, have since I started.... But not everyone can handle that, and so they shouldn't weigh every day.
  • I weigh myself everyday too. It helps me stay on track. I figure whatever works!
  • ColonCh
    ColonCh Posts: 7 Member
    I also weigh myself everyday. It keeps me on track for the week.
  • JMactive190
    JMactive190 Posts: 9 Member
    I go on and off weighing myself everyday... I too like to be able to see the results, however, I still wonder if weighing myself everyday is a good idea as it keeps me constantly feeling like I am on a diet and a slave to the scale... I am looking for the perfect mixture as I certainly need to lose weight(for several reasons) but I also know that the real reason I am using myfitnesspal is to create a better lifestyle with a balance of eating less calories and being active, so if that is being reached day in and day out the scale should not matter so much!!!
  • ravengirl1611
    ravengirl1611 Posts: 285 Member
    For me personally I weigh in every day just before I go to bed at night and I keep track of my weight, steps taken (from my pedometer) a general idea of my food intake (over cals / under cals - high / low sodium) and whether or not I worked out that day - I have all of this info on a single page for a week in a book that I can take with me (I travel a lot) but I only log the final numbers whatever they may be on Sundays. Sunday's are also the day I recalculate my BMR & TDEE and adjust my cals if necessary. I'm a data junkie though and like to see at a glance when things change and being able to see why ie high cal, high sodium, no workout day tends to cause a short term jump - so no more high cal / high sodium / no workout days for me. Probably wouldnt work for anyone else but it works for me. Thats all any of us can do - find that way of tracking that works for us individually and go with it.
  • alschultz33
    alschultz33 Posts: 199 Member
    I weigh myself every morning before I get in the shower. However, if I forget to do it, I won't weigh in after I've eaten anything b/c it messes with the scale. I tried only weighing myself once a week but I found that I would be counting down the days til weigh-in day and it was distracting. I generally don't stress too much over small fluctations. I'm frequently up a pound or two on Mondays b/c I don't get in as much water as I should on the weekends. As long as it's not an obsession, I wouldn't worry about which way you do it. Seeing the number helps me stay on track each day. If I weigh a bit more, I'll try to drink more water and avoid any cheating (with foods like Halloween candy :bigsmile:) for the day.
  • n2thenight24
    n2thenight24 Posts: 1,651 Member
    I weigh myself every morning before I get in the shower. However, if I forget to do it, I won't weigh in after I've eaten anything b/c it messes with the scale. I tried only weighing myself once a week but I found that I would be counting down the days til weigh-in day and it was distracting. I generally don't stress too much over small fluctations. I'm frequently up a pound or two on Mondays b/c I don't get in as much water as I should on the weekends. As long as it's not an obsession, I wouldn't worry about which way you do it. Seeing the number helps me stay on track each day. If I weigh a bit more, I'll try to drink more water and avoid any cheating (with foods like Halloween candy :bigsmile:) for the day.

    ^^This! I weigh every morning, right after using the restroom and before I'm dressed, but if I forget I won't weigh myself later. I also think this makes it easier to see the numbers go up slightly, because you know that tomorrow, they could go down even more! And it doesn't bother me if the numbers don't move, I'm just happy that their lower than they were when I started!!
  • helloburger
    helloburger Posts: 243 Member
    I like to weigh in every day also just because previously when weighing in weekly I'd think at the beginning of the week it was okay to slack off my eating as I would have a whole week to catch up on getting the calories burnt, then before I knew it, it would be the night before my weigh in.

    By having in mind that the next day will be a weigh in, it forces me to make good food choices as well as drink my 8 cups of water a day! It also stops me putting extra salt on my food!
  • clarkehn
    clarkehn Posts: 24 Member
    I am another daily weigh-er. I say to each their own. If weighing daily effects you then don't do it but for those of us who do it serves as a constant reminder to eat clean. I do see the scale fluctuate up from time to time but it is a reminder that the day before I went over my sodium or I ate too many carbs (I am carb sensitive). Seeing the fluctuation gives me the motivation to try better!
  • amj3303
    amj3303 Posts: 111 Member
    I have the same thoughts as you Marty. Because I weigh in daily.. well most of the time. I have taken days off and when I do. The scale is always higher.. Makes no sense.. and you are right at least I can monitor the fluctuation etc.
  • PennStateChick
    PennStateChick Posts: 327 Member
    I'm not weighing myself again until February! However, I think it's whatever works for you. My first major weight loss journey, I weighed everyday and lost 67 pounds. This time around, the scale isn't moving and it's frustrating, but I feel fantastic so my scale is hidden until Feb 9th. (It's the day after my 30th birthday.)
  • yup.....i do the scale everyday also! can't help myself. when i see a loss it encourages me.....if i have a gain it also encourages me to work harder.
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
    I agree with you. I haven't weighed for a week though since I've been eating too much. :tongue:
  • DEEDLYNN
    DEEDLYNN Posts: 235 Member
    I weigh daily and I accept that the scale toggles. I see it as the dashboard on my car. I check the gas gauge daily. I hate when it fluctuates, but it gives me a sense of where I am as far as gas consumption and needs.

    I weigh in the morning. Take mental note and mvoe on about me day.
  • aliceb39
    aliceb39 Posts: 84 Member
    I'm a morning & bedtime weigher. But I know I can handle small fluctuations due to water weight, heavy calorie days, etc. If I got depressed about gains, I'd weight once a week. I recommend that for anyone new. I got a digital scale a few months ago and I love seeing even a tiny loss like 0.1 lbs!
  • jlapey
    jlapey Posts: 1,850 Member
    I was weighing/measuring several times a day and getting upset so I tried putting the scale/tape measure away for 2 weeks at a time. I found when I did this, my expectations were higher and I was usually VERY disappointed. So I'm back to every day, though now I'm not upset about it. I prefer being aware of the fluctuations and not wondering if after 2 weeks I'm at the high or low end of it. I didn't and still don't log every time I weigh, only when I hit a new low.
  • nellyett
    nellyett Posts: 436 Member
    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
    amsohs85 Posts: 166
    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. :smile:
  • wendytc
    wendytc Posts: 189 Member
    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
    ninic010386 Posts: 70 Member
    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
    beekuzz Posts: 428 Member
    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
    hkry3250 Posts: 140
    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
    AddieOverhaul Posts: 734 Member
    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
    like_milk Posts: 79 Member
    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
    EnchantedEvening Posts: 671 Member
    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
    shellybean73 Posts: 88 Member
    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:
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