Scale issue

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RoyBeck
RoyBeck Posts: 947 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Now I know in the grand scheme of things it's not a massive issue but when you're losing very slowly like I am (intentionally as my deficit is only 300 a day) it's annoying!

My scales are showing big swings depending on where I place them! I'm varying from 103.5 to 105.0. I'm weighing naked first thing and after a toilet visit but wondered if there is a slight slope, which I wasn't aware of beforehand, which reading would be more accurate?

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  • neugebauer52
    neugebauer52 Posts: 1,120 Member
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    The electronic scales at the gym are calibrated by an outside company every 6 months or so and I weigh myself there. My home scale always shows between 1.8 kg and 2.2 kg (between 4 and 5 pounds) more than the gym scale. Frustrating, but since I have to lose about 80 kg (175 pounds) I need to look at my long - term goal and not worry too much about tiny daily differences.
  • kellie7850
    kellie7850 Posts: 50 Member
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    I make sure I place the scales in exactly the same place. I have specific tile that I place the scales on to ensure I get as consistent result as possible.
  • MurrayElliot
    MurrayElliot Posts: 17 Member
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    My advice would be not to sweat the small stuff. Perhaps you should simply try to weigh yourself less frequently? Maintaining the same day, time and place is sensible, but beyond that, you're going to get minor fluctuations unless you have an amazing set of highly accurate laboratory-quality scales (as Lolinloggen suggests).

    Just keep going. It's been 3 weeks since I last weighed myself, and I won't weight myself again for another 3 weeks, but I'm keeping a close eye on the calories, so I know it'll head in the right direction.
  • jesspen91
    jesspen91 Posts: 1,383 Member
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    Yeah a slight cadence can make a difference. I make sure to put my scale on the same spot everyday. Maybe you could mark that spot?
  • angelsja
    angelsja Posts: 860 Member
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    There is a 3lb difference in mind depending on if I just hop on or if I hit my program that knows my height age etc
  • cheryldumais
    cheryldumais Posts: 1,907 Member
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    I finally moved my scales to an unused bedroom and they don't move. Then I weighed my dumbells to see if it was accurate. It wasn't. I weighed two different models that were 15 lbs and got 15.2 consistently. Putting both on together gave me 30.4 so I know what the variance is and it is consistent as long as I don't move the scale. If you have a place such as this you can set it up and check if it's accurate in the same fashion.
  • nicsflyingcircus
    nicsflyingcircus Posts: 2,413 Member
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    kellie7850 wrote: »
    I make sure I place the scales in exactly the same place. I have specific tile that I place the scales on to ensure I get as consistent result as possible.

    Yeah, my bathroom tiles are 12*12 and my scale fits nicely on one. The only time I move it is to vacuum weekly, then I put it back.
  • bpetrosky
    bpetrosky Posts: 3,911 Member
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    My bathroom configuration only has tile in the water closet with a toilet and shower which is too small to have a clear area for the scale that doesn't interfere with the door.

    I keep the scale propped up against the wall behind the door. When I want to use it, I position it on one of the 12x12 tiles, then do the calibration step which just takes a second, after that it is accurate enough and I don't see any unusual variations. Almost all digital bathroom scales have a calibration procedure that you can do if it's impractical to keep it in the same spot all the time.

  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
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    I have been really happy with the consistency of my scale. Like @bpetrosky I move mine daily but it also has the calibration step which is easy to see because a big C shows up when it is doing it. It is also easy to initiate because all I have to do is lift the end slightly while it is on and it does it right away.

    Even still I will get different readings but usually they are small like whether it rounded up or down.

  • puffbrat
    puffbrat Posts: 2,806 Member
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    What type of flooring are you putting the scale on? Don't use anything squishy like a rug or carpet. Don't put it on tile grout. I have seen some people suggest putting a piece of tape on your floor where you place your scale (if you move it each day).

    If the fluctuations are different days, it could also be related to things like water retention.

    Use a weight trending app like trendweight or happy scale to even out the daily fluctuations.
  • saphypaige
    saphypaige Posts: 3 Member
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    Could it be measuring swings in water weight? I vary like four pounds depending on how water I'm holding. I'll be down to 132, then after a carb filled weekend or a workout that leaves my muscles inflamed I'll be back up to 136
  • pierinifitness
    pierinifitness Posts: 2,231 Member
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    I have a Weight Watchers scale purchased at Costco several years ago. Recently, I purchased s Withings Body Composition scale.

    As a “science experiment”, I weigh myself on both of them. The WW scale reads about 0.5 lbs. lower but sometimes by only 0.2 lbs.

    Good enough for me as the downward trend for a 30 day period is all that matters to be although it’s nice to hit a new low like I did this morning after patiently working through a stuck point.

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