Scale help?!

Hi!
I am extremely confused, I've been staying within the same "range" for a good couple weeks eating 1800-1900 calories. I used the Sunbeam Black Dial Scale from Walmart that was $10. http://www.walmart.com/ip/Sunbeam-Black-Dial-Scale/10264545
All of a sudden my weight has increased by 4 pounds this morning! And, even after going to the bathroom later in the day (a lot lol) my weight was still high. I didn't eat a lot of sodium by any means (I stay between 1800-2400) and my carbs were around 320g.
It is also not my TOTM at all.
Could it be my scale finally "cracked?" Or should I reduce my intake?

Replies

  • Try not to freak out about it, all sorts of things can make the scale fluctuate. I would give it a few days and see if it's back to normal before worrying about changing anything. Try increases your water intake that sometimes may help.
  • Archerychickge
    Archerychickge Posts: 606 Member
    I don't like dial scales. If you move them from one place to another they can change. They just aren't as accurate as a decent digital. I picked up a digital on sale at Kohls this past spring for abotu $20. Wait till the spring sales when all the New Years Resolution diet aid stuff gets marked way down.
  • tovajade
    tovajade Posts: 3 Member
    I was having the same problem, I was going over a lot in my sodium intake which was causing water retention I also came down on my carbs and upped my protein!! and I lost 7lbs last week. So i would say give it about 2 days
  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,584 Member
    All of a sudden my weight has increased by 4 pounds this morning!
    poop or water.

    I would get a better scale, though.
  • chaarlotte289
    chaarlotte289 Posts: 84 Member
    All of a sudden my weight has increased by 4 pounds this morning!
    poop or water.

    I would get a better scale, though.

    even after pooping a lot (TMI much?) my weight was still high so I doubt it was poop.
  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,584 Member
    All of a sudden my weight has increased by 4 pounds this morning!
    poop or water.

    I would get a better scale, though.

    even after pooping a lot (TMI much?) my weight was still high so I doubt it was poop.
    still water or poop.
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    Agreed - dial scales can do all kinds of crazy things. I had one for years and it would say something different every time I stepped on it or moved it to a slightly different spot. I'm on my second digital scale and really like this one.

    http://www.walmart.com/ip/Healthometer-LED-Split-Mat-Bath-Scale/10264542

    ETA: Water weight can also be from exercise. Have you started anything new or upped the intensity of your workouts lately?
    Also, sometimes the type of sodium can be a factor, at least for me - like when we have chinese food or when I make salad with a certain dressing and croutons. And it can take a few days for it to come back off.
  • chaarlotte289
    chaarlotte289 Posts: 84 Member
    All of a sudden since when? How often do you weigh yourself? I weigh the same time of day, every day. No clothes, after peeing and before eating. Sometimes my weight fluctuates 5 pounds from one day to the next depending on exercise, what I've consumed, what I've eliminated, etc. Usually it drops back in a day or two. If it hangs on longer than that I make an adjustment. In short, don't let one weigh-in throw you off. :)

    I weigh everyday between 8:00-9:00 am! No clothes, peeing, and before eating/drinking :)
  • spoiledpuppies
    spoiledpuppies Posts: 675 Member
    Definitely don't worry. My weight went up 11 pounds in 36 hours--I have no idea how or even where it was because while I felt all puffy, I didn't look it. Things leveled back out within a couple of days.
  • donnabullen
    donnabullen Posts: 47 Member
    I have stopped weighing myself, well for a week now as my weight was so up and down and left me feeling very down in the dumps after eating healthy and exercising so from now on i'm trying my hardest to stay of them whilst continuing on my weight loss/ get fit journey xx
  • chaarlotte289
    chaarlotte289 Posts: 84 Member
    Definitely don't worry. My weight went up 11 pounds in 36 hours--I have no idea how or even where it was because while I felt all puffy, I didn't look it. Things leveled back out within a couple of days.

    Really? That eases some of it, I actually feel like I look like I have lost however, my scale definitely says otherwise. I tested it for accuracy and weighed my laptop and it was the exact as what the specs are on the Apple website :)
  • HeidiCooksSupper
    HeidiCooksSupper Posts: 3,839 Member
    If you are totally relying on the MFP database for sodium counts you may have missed some. There's a lot of data missing in some of the listings. If you opened your diary for the last couple days I could look for the culprit. Also, if you are a "cycling" (as opposed to post-menopausal) female, it's not unusual for water weight to increase and decrease dramatically.
  • cronus70
    cronus70 Posts: 191 Member
    I had very inconsistent results using mechanical dial scales so now i use the Wii Fit Board and weigh myself the same day each week at roughly the same time. It takes a bit longer to actually get to the part of weighing yourself and it can be a little patronising at times but it's very accurate and i like the fact that it tracks your weight and displays it in a graph.