Scale Inconsistencies

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disneygirl626
disneygirl626 Posts: 132 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Okay, I will preface this with the fact that yes, I do know that the scale is a liar and not the best way to measure progress.

I just want to know if I should believe my scale or the doctor's office scale? Is one more accurate than the other? I just had an appointment and I weighed 4 pounds less at the doctor's(wearing clothes) than I did at home (not wearing clothes). Any suggestions as to why these numbers were so different, probably not more than half an hour apart? I've never weighed less at the doctor's office than at home, so I've always assumed their higher number was correct.

Replies

  • billyfleet1988
    billyfleet1988 Posts: 19
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    There could definitely be a discrepancy between the two scales, but that can be said for any two scales. Who really knows which one is correct unless it's being calibrated by a professional.

    I trust the scale at my house because I know it's approximately correct. You're weight will fluctuate continuously thoughout the day for numerous reasons. For consistency, I weight myself before breakfast each morning in boxers and a t-shirt. Assuming my week begins on Monday, I average the weight for that week and compare it to the previous weekly average and that's how I monitor my week to week fat loss. Since we have our 'fat' days and 'skinny' days, I figured keeping consistent is the best way to find an accurate scale reading.

    Hope this helps!
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    There's no way of knowing which is more accurate. I would say stick with your home scale because that is the one you will have access to the most.
  • evarga12
    evarga12 Posts: 55 Member
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    Stick with your home scale. I weigh myself every morning after using the bath room with out clothing and mark the weight on my excel spread sheet. Then typicallly after a week of progress I sum 7 days (fri-thurs) & divide by 7 which gives me my average amount for the week & then subtract that amount from the last starting point (generally that thursday before the 7 day check) to give me my change in weight.
  • quickcrx702
    quickcrx702 Posts: 46 Member
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    You can kind of check the accuracy of your scale using an object with a known weight. If you weigh yourself first, then weigh yourself holding for example a dumbbell, and subtract the difference, you should get the weight of the dumbbell. Use a couple of items to check, just in case your dumbbells aren't exactly the weight they should be. You can also do stuff like weighing pets, who never stay still on a scale, using this method.

    More than likely both scales were accurate, and the discrepancy is water weight and/or food, but mostly water.
  • qpmomma1
    qpmomma1 Posts: 220 Member
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    quickcrx702 wrote: »
    You can kind of check the accuracy of your scale using an object with a known weight. If you weigh yourself first, then weigh yourself holding for example a dumbbell, and subtract the difference, you should get the weight of the dumbbell. Use a couple of items to check, just in case your dumbbells aren't exactly the weight they should be. You can also do stuff like weighing pets, who never stay still on a scale, using this method.

    More than likely both scales were accurate, and the discrepancy is water weight and/or food, but mostly water.

    That's how I weigh my cat lol
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
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    The most important thing about using any scale is consistency. Same time, place, bat channel.

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