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What kind of scale is accurate?

Waggoner83
Waggoner83 Posts: 112 Member
edited February 11 in Goal: Maintaining Weight
What scale do you think is more accurate the digital or the scale that you get on and the meter move based on your weight to the number?

Replies

  • red_road
    red_road Posts: 761 Member
    Not sure, but i prefer the digital ones because i can see more closely how much weight i have lost/gained. Example: 1.6lbs vs 2lbs
  • determined_erin
    determined_erin Posts: 571 Member
    I like the digital scales more just because I am into technology, but they definitely vary. I had a cheap digital scale for 2 years, and then I bought the Withings Smart Body Analyzer. My new Withings scale said I weighed 2 lbs less than the cheap digital scale. I have no idea which one is actually correct, lol. I like to think the new scale is correct!
  • Rak0ribz
    Rak0ribz Posts: 177 Member
    The best way to assess this is with a known calibrated mass.
  • Waggoner83
    Waggoner83 Posts: 112 Member
    I do like the digital scale, because they are easier to see vs looking at the tiny little lines on the other scale trying to figure out how much I actually weigh.
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,572 Member
    Non-digital scales that aren't balance (doctors) scales are more prone to weight shifts, uneven floors, and change over time from older springs.

    The digital scale I have takes all those jiggles from feet shifting and finds the center point in the fluctuations, which is what it reports.

    Mine stays very stable (sometimes more than I want). I could make my old analog scale go up or down 5 pounds by moving my feet. When I changed from the analog to digital I 'gained' 5 pounds (literally - looking at the reading). So while my ticker says I lost 39 pounds, I might have lost 44.
  • garoyall
    garoyall Posts: 8
    The important thing is to weigh on the same scales at the same time of day. I weigh myself every Friday morning when I first wake-up, before I eat anything, on the same set of scales. Even if it's not an accurate reading, I can see if I'm maintaining, losing, or gaining.
  • swhiteism
    swhiteism Posts: 71 Member
    I don't own a scale, but I work in an office where we weight all of our patients on digital scales, so those are the ones I've always used. One scale says I'm 2 pounds less than the other. Once, I stepped on the scale and it showed I lost 6 pounds from the day before. I knew it was wrong before I even let myself get excited. I weighed myself literally 20 minutes later and I was back to the same weight I was before. Obviously, digital scales are not always totally accurate for whatever reason but I don't think it matters. I could care less if I'm 135 or actually 137. I just know I'm not in the 180's anymore, I'm happy with my progress, I'm happy with my body now, and that's all that matters.
  • daniellabella986
    daniellabella986 Posts: 325 Member
    I'd go with a digital scale - I got mine at Bed Bath & Beyond, they have tons. I think regular scales are more prone to not being calibrated properly and don't give the most accurate read.
  • 1ZenGirl
    1ZenGirl Posts: 432 Member
    The best way to assess this is with a known calibrated mass.

    quit gettin' all cerebral on us now....
  • Indiri13
    Indiri13 Posts: 104 Member
    The best kind is the one that is consistent. Really the actual number isn't important, it's the progress over time. If I step on the same scale 3 times in a row then the 3 numbers should be the same or close to each other. I have a digital scale but I buy cheap scales ($20-$30) so after about 2 years they start to die and get inconsistent and need to be replaced.
  • edwardkim85
    edwardkim85 Posts: 438 Member
    What scale do you think is more accurate the digital or the scale that you get on and the meter move based on your weight to the number?

    MIRROR & MEASURING TAPE
  • Nicolee_2014
    Nicolee_2014 Posts: 1,572 Member
    I prefer digital, although they can be a bit tricky at times (showing multiple readings) My doc even uses the digital ones.
  • starrylioness
    starrylioness Posts: 543 Member
    I use digital scales that I bought from Walmart. I think the key is just to use those sames scales each time you weigh. I like the digital ones because it measures not only pounds but ounces as well and seems more precise than non-digital.
  • Waggoner83
    Waggoner83 Posts: 112 Member
    I don't own a scale, but I work in an office where we weight all of our patients on digital scales, so those are the ones I've always used. One scale says I'm 2 pounds less than the other. Once, I stepped on the scale and it showed I lost 6 pounds from the day before. I knew it was wrong before I even let myself get excited. I weighed myself literally 20 minutes later and I was back to the same weight I was before. Obviously, digital scales are not always totally accurate for whatever reason but I don't think it matters. I could care less if I'm 135 or actually 137. I just know I'm not in the 180's anymore, I'm happy with my progress, I'm happy with my body now, and that's all that matters.
  • Waggoner83
    Waggoner83 Posts: 112 Member
    I purchased my scale from walmart and it seems to be in the right neihborhood far as weight. I think my floors are a little un-even at my home that is why it may changes on a constant bases. Sometimes it goes up a couple of numbers and down a pound or two another day. I can witness to what the young lady said below;I am just glad that I am not in the 180's anymore and seeing 160 and 164 some days is good news.
  • Waggoner83
    Waggoner83 Posts: 112 Member
    The digital scales can be a bit tricky :happy: It drives me crazy at time although they are just numbers and I need to understand that. I just get frustrated at times, because I be wanting to see accuracy after I have bust my butt and worked hard.
  • Waggoner83
    Waggoner83 Posts: 112 Member
    The best kind is the one that is consistent. Really the actual number isn't important, it's the progress over time. If I step on the same scale 3 times in a row then the 3 numbers should be the same or close to each other. I have a digital scale but I buy cheap scales ($20-$30) so after about 2 years they start to die and get inconsistent and need to be replaced.
  • somefitsomefat
    somefitsomefat Posts: 445 Member
    The digital scales can be a bit tricky :happy: It drives me crazy at time although they are just numbers and I need to understand that. I just get frustrated at times, because I be wanting to see accuracy after I have bust my butt and worked hard.

    The way I look at it, even if my scale is wrong at least it will be consistantly wrong if I use the same one. You'll still be able to see a trend up, down, or flat. I use a FitBit Aria because it updates MFP (via linking with the FitBit site) automatically.
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  • nohaynicknamesdisponibles
    nohaynicknamesdisponibles Posts: 94 Member
    All scales are accurate if they have been properly calibrated previously.
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  • NeverCatchYourBreath
    NeverCatchYourBreath Posts: 197 Member
    A measuring tape.
  • Waggoner83
    Waggoner83 Posts: 112 Member
    It doesn't matter. What you want is consistency, not accuracy.
  • Waggoner83
    Waggoner83 Posts: 112 Member
    Lol Guitar Jerry tell it like it is :smile:
  • shrinkingbrian
    shrinkingbrian Posts: 171 Member
    I use a digital scale. When I started my weight loss journey, I was over 400 pounds so a digital scale was my only option. I bought the Eatsmart Precision Plus Digital Bathroom Scale with Ultra Wide Platform and Step-on Technology, 440-Pounds by EatSmart on Amazon (about $37 including free shipping). When I first bought the scale, I knew I was over 400 pounds but I didn't know how much and it has been almost 10 years since I stepped on a scale. Fortunately, I registered on the scale at 405 pounds. It's within 1 pound of the digital scale at my doctor's office and within about 2 pounds of the scale at my gym which is a mechanical physician's scale. The EatSmart scale is very accurate. Check out the reviews on amazon.
  • Jess732008
    Jess732008 Posts: 98 Member
    What scale do you think is more accurate the digital or the scale that you get on and the meter move based on your weight to the number?

    Hi, I have tried digital scales but the results are never very accurate. I even got one that was around $50 and it still had problems getting the same number more than once. I decided to get a doctor type scale and it works so well. It was $150 on Amazon, and it should work for a long time.
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