Obsession With The Scale Sets me up for Failure

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nygr8guy
nygr8guy Posts: 77 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have a Withings Bluetooth scale that automatically syncs with MFP. I think I am obsessed with getting on the scale everyday instead of weighing weekly.
While I'm within my caloric range, there are days where my weight fluctuates from day to day. One day I can be down a pound the next day I'm up 1.5. This gets me depressed since I work so hard to make the right choices but the scale doesn't seem to move downwards in the long run. I know that sodium levels, water weight and other things factor in to weight fluctuation.
I've been on diets all of my adult life. I know that I'm not supposed to weigh everyday, that once a week is sufficient, although I continue to set myself up for failure.
Has anyone else done this, and what have you done to stop the madness?

Replies

  • NoSFan
    NoSFan Posts: 11
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    I weigh daily as well. I have worked hard mentally to accept fluctuations as a part of life. I read a post that offered a great suggestion of weighing daily then averaging those weights and using that as a weekly weigh in number for MFP. Makes sense to me.
  • D_squareG
    D_squareG Posts: 361 Member
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    I find weighing every day to be helpful. It is when I quit weighing that I get into trouble. If I'm not watching my diet, I won't get on the scale so five pounds can sneak up on me. You know that your weight fluctuates up and down. Don't let that bother you if you are tracking your food and following your plan.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
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    Walk away from the scale!
  • captivatedlife
    captivatedlife Posts: 60 Member
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    You know your problem. That is the first step. Now, either stop obsessing or stop obsessing and weigh weekly or monthly!

    If it's any help, I have the opposite problem- when I get to a new low weight I sabotage myself because wow - look what I can do! I can lose weight... And then eat.... For me, I make a promise to myself before I get on the scale that today is going to be just like any other day - no matter the number! I weigh daily because it's a good reminder for me of where I'm heading. Others hate it. You'll find something that works for you!
  • ibamosaserreinas
    ibamosaserreinas Posts: 294 Member
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    I switched to weighing weekly because of the issues you are talking about. It would ruin my whole day and stress me out no matter what I said to myself. Seriously, there is nothing wrong with weighing weekly or on some other sort of schedule. You miss out on the data that you would get daily but that is not really a big deal.

    For me it was more important to not get discouraged.

    Instead of relying on the scale as the main measure of success I started relying on fitness goals and measurements too.
  • MichaelVakili
    MichaelVakili Posts: 27 Member
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    Just crush it to pieces. And don't buy new one. :smiley: I had similar problem.
  • xmarye
    xmarye Posts: 385 Member
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    I weigh everyday but only log when I lose, unless the weight sticks around. Everytime I lose I gain a couple pounds after, and then I lose it and some more. I don't stress over it anymore.

    Also... As a woman, every time I have my periods, I can't lose. I gain a few pounds too, that will vanish once it's over. But still... This could drive me crazy but I don't let it!

    Like others said, just don't obsess over and trust the process. If weighing yourself once a week works, then that's fine too. But ultimately, you just need to make peace with it. Because even once a week, it might discourage you if you let it. It takes time, and lots of hard work.

    You can do it! Good luck :)
  • grandma107
    grandma107 Posts: 70 Member
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    MichaelVakili wrote: »
    Just crush it to pieces. And don't buy new one. :smiley: I had similar problem.

    Agreed. Get rid of the scale. You can weigh yourself at a doctors visit or some pharmacies have scales. I know it's not weighing yourself at the exact same time nor at the exact same place but this will stop you from upsetting yourself and possibly sabotaging your efforts. Blessings.
  • KarenJanine
    KarenJanine Posts: 3,497 Member
    edited March 2015
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    Ditch the scale.

    If you need to know if your weight is heading in the right direction then weight once a month at a gym or pharmacy etc.

    Also, if you've been dieting for many years and it's not working for you, surely that's a sign that dieting is not for you? Think about why the diets fail - do you restrict calories too far and want fast results? Do you cut out lots of foods you enjoy?
  • jessicapk
    jessicapk Posts: 574 Member
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    I weigh daily and found that it has helped me but the key is that I use an app that averages my dailiy weigh in's and gives me a "trending" weight. That's what I actually enter in MFP once a week. It also gives an approximate goal date based on your current loss rate, which is highly motivating. The one I use is Libra for Android but I'm sure there are plenty others. You could do the same thing on a spreadsheet, too. The really nice thing about the trending weight is, since it averages your weight out, as long as you're on track, you rarely see a gain. You just have to accept seeing those daily ups and downs, which this app makes much easier.

    When I was weighing once a week, I got discouraged because I might weigh on a higher weight day and think my whole week was messed up. I think that averaging it all out keeps me on track and reminds me that weight loss is not linear but I'm still losing.
  • jnv7594
    jnv7594 Posts: 983 Member
    edited March 2015
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    I agree with the others. Either learn to accept the weight fluctuations or get rid of your scale. Those are really your only two options. I weigh myself daily as well, but the ups and downs that I see don't really bother me. It's normal...weight loss is not linear.
  • jchite84
    jchite84 Posts: 467 Member
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    Weight fluctuates daily. Every time you weigh you are in the neighborhood of what you might consider your "actual weight" if that exists. Go ahead and weigh every day and use an app like WeightTrend+ and calculate your rolling average. Weight loss is not linear. To give you an idea of what my weigh ins look like:
    Actual Weigh In Rolling Average
    220 219.6
    223 219.9
    218 219.8
    217 219.5
    217.5 219.3

    So, even my 3 - 5 lb fluctuations don't affect the big picture that dramatically. The important thing is that (for the most part) my average is still moving down.
  • atypicalsmith
    atypicalsmith Posts: 2,742 Member
    edited March 2015
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    I weigh myself daily, but don't consider it obsessing or sabotaging myself. It's just what I do every morning to make sure that gradually, and sometimes quickly, the weight goes down. My norm is that I fluctuate a pound or two for several days, then wham! I drop two or three pounds below my previous low. If not, then I step up my exercise. When I weighed myself only once a week or month, I become lackadaisical and the ounces/pounds start creeping up on me and I would give up trying. But that's just me!
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    Pick a day to weigh, and hide the scale for the other six days. If you can't handle the day-to-day fluctuations, then getting on it daily isn't for you.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,627 Member
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    people who obsess over scales or have reactions to normal weight fluctuations shouldnt own scales.

    just my 2 cents....
  • senglishrose
    senglishrose Posts: 86 Member
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    I agree with both sides -- weigh every day or don't.

    The difference is, of course, IF you understand that it can go up and down from day to day and are ok with that, then weight every day; however, it appears it gets you down when it goes ups despite you trying so hard to i would say pick a day of the week and make that your weekly weigh in day.

    I had a trainer that hated the scale. She would always say it's only "one" measurement of our success in what we do. True to think of other measurements of your success like your measurements or how your clothes are fitting, or even that you have it documented that you have eaten and exercised well. That's success!!

    It will show up on the scale eventually...just not before going 2 lbs off, 1 lb back, 1.5 off, etc etc.
  • Thunderbird74
    Thunderbird74 Posts: 1 Member
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    jessicapk wrote: »
    I weigh daily and found that it has helped me but the key is that I use an app that averages my dailiy weigh in's and gives me a "trending" weight. That's what I actually enter in MFP once a week. It also gives an approximate goal date based on your current loss rate, which is highly motivating. The one I use is Libra for Android but I'm sure there are plenty others. You could do the same thing on a spreadsheet, too. The really nice thing about the trending weight is, since it averages your weight out, as long as you're on track, you rarely see a gain. You just have to accept seeing those daily ups and downs, which this app makes much easier.

    When I was weighing once a week, I got discouraged because I might weigh on a higher weight day and think my whole week was messed up. I think that averaging it all out keeps me on track and reminds me that weight loss is not linear but I'm still losing.

    This. http://trendweight.com is another option that can connect to your scale and calculate the trend from the your daily weight data. You might also benefit from reading the The Hacker's Diet which is where the mathematics used for the trend and forecast originates; the chapter on Signal and Noise should be helpful to you.

    Also - give it some time. I believe 10 days of data is used to compute the trending weight so at first your trending weight may be a bit erratic, but after two weeks it should smooth out.
  • mommymissy82
    mommymissy82 Posts: 48 Member
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    ibamosaserreinas wrote: »
    I switched to weighing weekly because of the issues you are talking about. It would ruin my whole day and stress me out no matter what I said to myself. Seriously, there is nothing wrong with weighing weekly or on some other sort of schedule. You miss out on the data that you would get daily but that is not really a big deal.

    For me it was more important to not get discouraged.

    Instead of relying on the scale as the main measure of success I started relying on fitness goals and measurements too.

    This exactly, I had to do it weekly. My days mood would be set by the scale and it wasn't always good. Weekly weigh ins have kept me happy and looking for are to Sunday weigh ins to beat my previous week...competitive nature in me coming out
  • nygr8guy
    nygr8guy Posts: 77 Member
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    I checked out TrendWeight. This makes me feel better.

    Weight Change Over Time:

    Since yesterday: -0.2 lbs

    Since a week ago: -1.1 lbs
    Statistics:

    You are losing 1.3 lbs/week of total weight.

    You are burning 627 cal/day more than you eat.

    You have been tracking your weight for 2 weeks.

    You have 27.3 lbs to lose to reach your goal weight.

    You will reach your goal around August 5, 2015.

    You must cut 123 cal/day to match your plan.

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