Weigh in every day? Every week?

thaoXLIV · May 2015

I just started weighing once a week (though it hasn't even been a week yet since I started). I previously weighed daily (sometime several times a day), but I would feel pretty terrible on the weekends because my weight went up when I was a little more lax about eating. By the time Friday came around again though, I would be at a loss. This weekend, I don't feel as terrible, but I still worry. Hopefully I won't see a gain when I weigh in on Thursday.

kommodevaran · May 2015

lmcdonald1979 wrote: »

This is from an artical I read;
Forget endless salads and countless sit-ups, the key to losing weight could be as simple as stepping on the scales each day.

Men and women who weighed themselves daily lost three times as much weight as other dieters, a study found.

Those who weighed themselves seven days a week shed almost a stone and a half in six months – a figure any slimmer would be proud of.

It is also well above the minimum amount of weight loss needed to cut the risk of heart disease and other illnesses.

It is thought that daily weigh-ins help slimmers keep track of their weight – allowing them to take action immediately if the dial starts to creep up again.

Seeing their weight fall in front of their eyes may also motivate them to stick to their diet and make it easier for them to resist temptation.

Forty seven overweight men and were given advice on dieting and asked to weigh themselves each day for six months.

I don't think the bolded part is a good explanation, or a rational behavior, as I read it. Weight fluctuates naturally from day to day, actually quite a lot, most of the time. If I were to eat less - or more - according to my daily weight display, I'd have a hell of a job to do, and totally unnecessarily too.

The way I see it, is that daily weigh-ins are the most logical and functional, just because weight fluctuates. Weighing weekly, you could be on a low one week and on a top the next week, and freak out. Daily weigh-ins takes a lot of the pressure and anxiety off the whole process, it becomes a normal part of my morning. It motivates me to stay active and follow my meal plan, because I get the constant feedback that what I do, works. (Just like the other sentence from the study describes. I'm in mantenance, but the same applies, I just want to be within the same weight range from day to day, month to month.)

But those who tend to stress over daily weigh-ins, for instance starting to weigh more than once, and can't figure out or accept those fluctiations, should find other ways to monitor their weight.

MrsMizart · May 2015

Every day. It keeps me focused. I like to see how my body reacts and like to track it (I like stats!). I don't fret if I can't weigh for any reason, just go back to it when I can.

judyparks39 · May 2015

I weigh in every day to see where I'm at and knowing that I did my best

argos14 · May 2015

Every Saturday for sure....and sometimes during the week...

rosehips60 · May 2015

krissyrey wrote: »

I recently became obssesed with the scale and I use to weigh myself 3-4 times a day and get very discouraged at the numbers. Last week the scale showed me a gain of 6.6 pounds. I did not go on the scale for the rest of that week because I felt so down. This morning I went on it, and it's minus the 6.6 pounds. I feel alot better now, and I intend to hide that scale for an entire month. I am seriously going to focus on my measurements, and how my clothes fit going forward .

This is what I used to do. When I joined MFP I made myself weigh in only once a week so I didn't obsess. I've lost 30 pounds and kept it off since last Labor Day, and am now working on my last 11

chloeebrooks20 · May 2015

I haven't weighed myself in months and just guessed what i weigh... i find i get too obsessed with the number and i just track by how my clothes look & how i feel, anyone else do that?

Allelito · May 2015

I weigh in every day to collect stats basically, to get a proper weight loss average in the long run. However, if you do decide to do it once per day, remember to NOT see it as either having gained or lost from the day before. You'll mostly just see a bunch of natural flunctuations/no changes at all, basically a lot of ups and downs. After I put all my weekly/monthly weigh-ins in a table/diagram, I get to see the actual weight loss curve, which I think is really cool

This is just for personal preference though, I love stats and data! Otherwise, once per week should be fine.

insipid42 · May 2015

I weigh every day. But, I hate to admit this, I only log when It shows progress. But it does seem to be working for me.

JeanMBK · May 2015

I weigh myself every day, but only check-in on Monday mornings, my "true" weigh-in day.

ronronronj · May 2015

I weigh myself every day but only report a number if it is a "new low."

gyal3 · May 2015

i weigh everyday for my psyche- I am grossly aware that there are normal daily fluctuations, so it's just to motivate me not to cheat. I only record once a week or every 2 weeks though, it definitly more accurate that way

Lefty1290 · May 2015

I weigh in once per week, doing so every day would drive me insane!

23susu23 · May 2015

I've started weighing every day and log it on Happy Scale app. I know that I fluctuate and sometimes I don't lose but every two weeks. I didn't want to drive my MFP friends crazy with reports so I decided to just log weight on MFP once a week. IMHO if you are weighing MORE than once a day, you are obsessing and need to stop. For me personally, only weighing once a week was maddening when it would show no loss. I am ok with every day. I am interested in seeing my trends.

Nerruse · May 2015

I weigh almost daily, track using Libra, but only post it when I get at least 3 days at the new, lower weight. I like to see the trends and find it interesting to note that for me at least it doesn't drop by small amounts--I'll hold steady for awhile and then just drop a pound or so at a time. I wouldn't be aware of this if I wasn't checking daily. I don't get discouraged not seeing the scale move often when I know how my body loses weight.

jackies620 · May 2015

jaqcan wrote: »

I weigh every day, but I only log once a week on Saturday morning

I do the same. I weigh every morning, but Friday mornings are my only tracking days

mjffey · May 2015

Since two months a weigh daily in the morning after having been on the treadmill for half an hour, and log it. I use to weigh myself ones a week but that was very discouraging ☺. This way i see a pattern and can act straight away.

fatjon73 · May 2015

Depends on your mental state in my opinion too....if your the type that will get obsessed by the scale, and have a breakdown if you see a 1 lb gain then I would not suggest weighing every day........once a week or 2 and doing measurements would be better......if your not obsessive then every day can help to give you an understanding of how your weekly routine affects your body......what patterns you can find in there and adjust later to help continue your loss......I myself eat loads at weekends....and my heavy day in a week is a Monday........so to fit in my routine....I work 4 nights a week...mon to thu.....every week.......I weigh every day during the week.......Mon to Fri I can lose 6 lbs........but it goes on again......most of it....by Monday.....then the cycle repeats.....so.....for me I weigh Mon to Fri.....I log in MFP on a Monday then the rest of the week I lose weight.....so that keep me happy and on track to continue.....then I ignore the weekends....and weigh again Monday.....I compare that to last Monday...not to Friday........and hopefully see my 1lb a week loss then......I used to log in MFP every 2 weeks as I think that's a true reflection of loss.....not a week......