Daily Weigh-In: Why it's working for me!

witchaywoman81
witchaywoman81 Posts: 280 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Just wanted to share this in case it can help someone.

Full disclosure: I have been known to hide from the scale in the past. I have also been known to try to "trick" the scale with weekly weigh-ins, making myself crazy by not eating much the day before I weighed in, etc. I have also been known to step on the scale multiple times in a row, or multiple times a day in the hopes that the number will "magically" be less. You can imagine how that went...

Well, a couple weeks ago, I bought a digital scale that syncs my weight with MFP. Combined with weighing in daily, it's really been working for me. If I gain a little one day (like today, for example), I don't freak out. Instead, I think about what I may have eaten or done the previous day that caused it. I'm also much more cognizant of any extra water weight I may be carrying, and I don't let it bother me too much. Finally, since the scale does sync every time I step on it, I step on it once a day, at roughly the same time each day, and I move on.

I feel like I'm finally getting a much healthier handle on this weight loss journey, and my attitude about the scale is certainly part of it.

Replies

  • snemberton
    snemberton Posts: 175 Member
    I'm a sucker for charts and data points. My official weigh-in is each morning at pretty much the same time, wearing the same thing. I watch it bounce around, but as long as the longer term chart shows a slow and steady downward trend, I don't worry too much about the number going up. I'll even pop on the scale over the course of the day, just out of curiosity. I've seen my weight vary by as much as 5lbs from morning to night, depending on how much food I've eaten, water intake and bowel movements. I know it is impossible for me to actually gain 5lbs in one day with the food I eat, so I don't let it freak me out. I've also been able to use the weight to watch my TOM fluctuation patterns.

    I've also started doing measurements of my thighs, hips and waist weekly. That's a much better indicator of my progress with less fluctuation.
  • Dee_D33
    Dee_D33 Posts: 106 Member
    I weigh myself every day, sometimes twice a day. I find it interesting to see how much I can “gain” in a day which can be as much as 4-5 lbs depending on what I eat/drink/do for the day. I think it’s important to see those fluctuations and if more people were aware of how quickly and easily their weight could change they may not freak out so much at sudden weight gain. It also highlights the importance of weight in at the same time every day and in the same manner. Personally, it makes me more in tune with my body and what it’s doing at certain times. Glad to hear you’re not afraid of the scale anymore! It’s an unnecessary fear that unfortunately too many other individuals have during their weight loss journey.
  • buffinlovin
    buffinlovin Posts: 100 Member
    I weigh myself at least once a day, sometimes twice. Always in the morning right before my shower, and sometimes at night before bed. I found it helpful to see how much my weight fluctuated from the morning to the night, and can frequently tell when I'll be at a new low just by seeing what I weigh before bed.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,941 Member
    edited June 2018
    I sometimes suddenly drop fluid weight, and if I work out then I might end up in hospital with shortness of breath for as of yet unknown reasons. I weight every morning and know that my weight tends to be lowest on Sundays and Mondays, and then slowly rises due to having an office job and a bit more water weight. If my weight suddenly goes down at an odd moment then I know I should not workout.
  • singingflutelady
    singingflutelady Posts: 8,736 Member
    yirara wrote: »
    I sometimes suddenly drop fluid weight, and if I work out then I might end up in hospital with shortness of breath for as of yet unknown reasons. I weight every morning and know that my weight tends to be lowest on Sundays and Mondays, and then slowly rises due to having an office job and a bit more water weight. If my weight suddenly goes down at an odd moment then I know I should not workout.

    Dehydration? I get short of breath when dehydrated.
  • Matt200goal
    Matt200goal Posts: 481 Member
    I like to weigh every day - but that's because I'm a creative of habit and it helps me stick with a routine (and maybe understand my body a little better). And I understand that it's not the daily ups & downs, but rather the overall trend that matters and don't freak out about a day with a "unexplainable(?)" weight gain of a couple of pounds.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,941 Member
    singingflutelady wrote: »
    yirara wrote: »
    I sometimes suddenly drop fluid weight, and if I work out then I might end up in hospital with shortness of breath for as of yet unknown reasons. I weight every morning and know that my weight tends to be lowest on Sundays and Mondays, and then slowly rises due to having an office job and a bit more water weight. If my weight suddenly goes down at an odd moment then I know I should not workout.

    Dehydration? I get short of breath when dehydrated.

    Probably, but where this fluid comes from is as of yet unknown. It might be an endocrine problem which is causing this as I end up drinking like crazy and just pee everything out again. Then it vanishes again a while later. The reason is as of yet unknown (bloody NHS)

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