I trying to start a new weight loss attempt again. When is a good time day to weigh yourself and how

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  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,794 Member
    Answer ✓

    ideally weigh yourself with minimal clothes on (underwear or no clothes), in the morning before you have eaten and after going to the loo. If you can do that, you’ll have a good baseline for all future measurements (ie if you weight yourself after food, the weight of the food in your digestive system will vary). Scales are best placed on a flat non-carpeted floor. Some people weigh once a week, others like to weigh every day. Your weight will naturally vary as your body holds onto different amounts of water depending on what you’ve eaten, whether you’ve exercised etc.

  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,892 Member
    Answer ✓

    ^^

    This. Naked, or om light clothing, and preferably the same clothing every time, after using the bathroom, before eating or drinking, first thing in the morning is the optimal.

    Clothing, food and beverage intake, weather, exercise etc all show up on the scale, so weighing later in the day introduces variables.

    I weight more than once a week, maybe not daily, because I like to track fluctuations and understand where they came from. When I weighed once a week, I'd find that there may be a gain on the scale and I'd be devastated, and not know that the day before and the day after I was lower, and the day I weighed I was retaining fluid, for example. For me, more information takes the mystery out of it and gives me data to work with. For other people, too much information like that causes stress and they get caught up in the daily fluctuations and benefit from weighing less often and tracking long term trends. That bit is a personal choice.

  • KiwiAlexP
    KiwiAlexP Posts: 194 Member
    Answer ✓

    Just before I get in the shower around 7.30am on Mondays - after my morning walk.

    Just follow the same conditions each week to get accuracy

Answers

  • Hobartlemagne
    Hobartlemagne Posts: 645 Member

    I used to do underwear-weigh in, but now I keep consistent with how they do it at my Dr's office: No shoes, empty pockets, typical clothes that I normally wear.

    As far as time, I always do it when I get home from work. I also dont eat or drink anything my last 2 hours at work so Im not adding food/drink weight. This is the most consistency I can do. I also dont weigh on the weekend since my daily routine is different.

  • LauraCron
    LauraCron Posts: 7 Member

    I weigh on Monday mornings before I jump in the shower. Just once a week for me!
    when I use to weigh more often, it messed with my mindset.

  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 10,412 Member

    I weigh daily because it takes the guessing out of normal fluctuations. Like if I were to weigh once per week, and this corresponds to having eaten more salt the day before, or cycle, new exercise or anything else I might feel more defeated for having worked a whole week and then see an up on the scale. All those fluctuations become a lot more clear with daily weighing.

  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,149 Member
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/comment/48541632#Comment_48541632

    Food — and the weight of it — stays in your body for a lot more than two hours. If your experience differs from that, you might want to see a doctor.

  • Hobartlemagne
    Hobartlemagne Posts: 645 Member

    If I can save a 16oz drink until after weigh-in, thats 1 lb ungained as far as measuring

  • jodymaro1
    jodymaro1 Posts: 158 Member

    I usually weigh myself 1-2 times a week tops… always naked in the morning before consuming any food or beverage. Sometimes I even wait until I have elimination before I weigh myself haha. :-P

  • crb426
    crb426 Posts: 666 Member

    I agree in the morning. I like the Happy Scale app on iphone for daily weigh-in entries. It helps show you whether you're on track even if you don't always see it.

    I will add that in the beginning of weighing yourself, maybe you should weigh yourself at different times throughout the day, and in different clothing options (naked vs jeans and a sweater), for several days in a row. This would be for a bit of a learning experience to show that your weight may not always be the same day to day, hour to hour. For learning purposes.

    Your body weight will fluctuate based on many, many factors from day to day as well. So don't stress if you suddenly weigh 2 pounds more than the day before. It will go back down.

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