scale different then dr's * sigh*.. :(

lin7604
lin7604 Posts: 2,951 Member
edited October 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
i started exercising just a little over 1 month ago as i tipped the scale at 142, being that i am just 5.3. i was at my max bmi and weight for my height. My goal is to be atleast 132/133. I dropped to 140 and then quickly back up to 142. ( peroid time)... so i was bummed. Then i dropped back to 140 and thought, ok i guess maybe i did lose 2 lbs... yipee... then i went to the dr last week to get my thyroid levels checked ( quarterly) and her scale showed me at 142 :( AHHHHHH.... i think i may overlook any weight loss till i am under 138.... then i know i actually lost something. SO now at home i bumped my scale up 2 lbs just to make it more even, but now i am thinking maybe a digital scale would be better ( more accurate) and i should purchase one?

Replies

  • daydream58
    daydream58 Posts: 572 Member
    You were probably wearing 2 lbs of clothes?
  • Lozze
    Lozze Posts: 1,917 Member
    Weight is just a number. It's really quite irrelevant at your weight. You're a healthy weight so if you're looking for a better body shape, then lift! That will help strip fat and show your muscles.
  • mytime60
    mytime60 Posts: 176 Member
    They are not necessarily more accurate. I can step on mine three times in a row; and get three different readings. Don't fret that the scale at the doctor's office was 2 lbs higher; several things could contribute to this. Time of day, different clothes, was one before a meal and one after. It's not enough of a difference to worry. If you want to check your scale out, next time you buy a bag of flour or sugar, put it on your scale and set it if it's off.
  • Athena413
    Athena413 Posts: 1,709 Member
    Weight is just a number. It's really quite irrelevant at your weight. You're a healthy weight so if you're looking for a better body shape, then lift! That will help strip fat and show your muscles.

    ^this
  • wish21
    wish21 Posts: 602 Member
    you have clothes on and it make a huge difference than when you weigh at home with undergarments
  • thinnerisstronger
    thinnerisstronger Posts: 124 Member
    Your weight does fluctuate through the day. The scale weighs everything you put on top of it and that includes clothes, food, water etc. Don't be discouraged if the scale says you've gained two pounds and its the middle of the day. For the most accuracy, you should be weighing yourself first thing in the morning, before breakfast and without clothes. Good luck!
  • chrisc16
    chrisc16 Posts: 94
    Just look at the "trend". Is it going down? If so, that's good.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,378 Member
    i started exercising just a little over 1 month ago as i tipped the scale at 142, being that i am just 5.3. i was at my max bmi and weight for my height. My goal is to be atleast 132/133. I dropped to 140 and then quickly back up to 142. ( peroid time)... so i was bummed. Then i dropped back to 140 and thought, ok i guess maybe i did lose 2 lbs... yipee... then i went to the dr last week to get my thyroid levels checked ( quarterly) and her scale showed me at 142 :( AHHHHHH.... i think i may overlook any weight loss till i am under 138.... then i know i actually lost something. SO now at home i bumped my scale up 2 lbs just to make it more even, but now i am thinking maybe a digital scale would be better ( more accurate) and i should purchase one?

    What time of day were you weighted at the doctors? Unless it is first thing in the morning or you have fasted and not drank anything you are weighing not only your body weight, but anything you have consumed which is digesting. It is not like food and drink magically stops weighing anything when you eat it. Every ounce you eat increases your weight by an ounce. I weight about 4 pounds less when I weigh in the morning compared to what I weigh less that a half hour later after breakfast and 32 ounces of water.
  • lin7604
    lin7604 Posts: 2,951 Member
    thx everyone for trying to make me feel better :) i just find i seem to struggle at this so it was a downer for sure. I actually weighed myself at home, went to the dr an got re weighed and then weighed myself as soon as i got home to compare the numbers. It all was with in 1 hr. ate nothing or drank in between, just drove from a to b... I do normally weigh myself in the am right after i wake up and my number was the same before i left as it was 1st thing in the am. I guess i am at a healthy weight but at my MAX, so i want to get below that to feel better.i don't want to be super skinny or below 130 even, just comfortable that if i do put on a few pounds here and there it's not going to make a difference, especially in my jeans where as right now it does. They are on the snug side :(
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,378 Member
    Just don't try to lose it fast. No more than half a pound a week. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficits
  • lin7604
    lin7604 Posts: 2,951 Member
    They are not necessarily more accurate. I can step on mine three times in a row; and get three different readings. Don't fret that the scale at the doctor's office was 2 lbs higher; several things could contribute to this. Time of day, different clothes, was one before a meal and one after. It's not enough of a difference to worry. If you want to check your scale out, next time you buy a bag of flour or sugar, put it on your scale and set it if it's off.

    i like that idea,lol.. i think i will try it! Last time when i went to buy the scale i have i stepped on every scale in the store and they all read something different? why is that? they all were set to 0 yet....
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,423 Member
    Your jeans are probably going to be a better guide than scales. Scales can vary so much (as you've discovered!)
    Keep weighing, but don't get stressed about the number on the scales. When your jeans feel looser, you'll know you're doing well :)
  • lin7604
    lin7604 Posts: 2,951 Member
    and after 1month no difference in my clothes yet either... i am measuring myself too just to se eif i was infact losing inches before lbs but NOPE, nada. nothing.

    rileysowner: thanks for the link. I was aiming for 2-3 lbs a month and i'd be happy. Sure a lb a week would be amazing but i know it isn't going to happen, just like it hasn't yet.... i really would just like to be 5 lbs lighter by dec 30th. that would of been 2 months of hard work exercising and watching my eating....
  • lin7604
    lin7604 Posts: 2,951 Member
    thx. i too am hoping i am going to make this a lifetime journey this time. I am not getting any younger and if i keep gaining like i have in the last year ( 10lbs) then i'm in trouble! I weight more now then i did after i had my son 5 years ago! so i want to make it permanent. I know i am pushing more exercise right now to just lose the weight and then once i'm below 135 i can relax a bit and just maintain what i have. I just want to be healthy. I do feel better since i have started this journey this time, so i hope i can keep thinking positive that it's better for me all around!
  • havalinaaa
    havalinaaa Posts: 333 Member
    My weight fluctuates by 5 pounds a day. Water weight, food intake, pooping and peeing, they all change throughout the day. All scales will read you slightly different, and they're all probably wrong. Just monitor your weight using the same scale at the same time of day once a week or less and count that. Even that isn't wholly accurate, but it's the best you can do.

    For more accurate progress checks, take measurements. Even these aren't perfect as all it takes is a slight shift of the tape to get an off measurement, it is usually much more consistent up/down and unless you're very bloated doesn't really have the same fluctuations on a daily basis that weight does. I try to make my measurements more accurate by wearing the same pair of underwear and the same bra when I take them so I have something to line the tape measure up with for my chest, waist, and hip measurements. I measure every two weeks.
  • lin7604
    lin7604 Posts: 2,951 Member
    i have been keeping of my measurements and nada not a inch anywhere....
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