Is my scale broken?

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myfitnessisavirtue
myfitnessisavirtue Posts: 673 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
This is all within 2 minutes: The first 2 times I step on the scale it says one weight (today 262.5) and after that it says 3 pounds less each and every time (today 259.5). I do this every time I weigh myself and the difference is always 3 pounds. I don't know which number is correct (although I hope the lower one). Does anyone know why it does this? It is a digital scale with a button cell battery that was recently replaced.

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  • now_or_never12
    now_or_never12 Posts: 849 Member
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    Is it on carpet or an uneven/not level floor? Flooring will change the readings... hitting it all the time can also affect the readings. Do you have a 10 or 20lb dumbell laying around? If you do put that on it and see if it reads correctly. That will tell you if it's reading correctly or if there is an issue.

    How old is the scale? Is it kept in the bathroom? Were you standing on the scale differently?
  • aloha311
    aloha311 Posts: 118 Member
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    My digital scale does this too but it is off anywhere from .5-1lb. I can stand on the scale 5 times in a row and get 5 different readings. It's very frustrating. I'm thinking of going back to a regular scale and see if that makes any difference.
  • cartrat
    cartrat Posts: 120 Member
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    sometimes i don't realize i'm leaning on the counter and then i'm like "I LOST 20 POUNDS!!!!! #$*(&#@(@IFUEIO!!!" but then, i realize... i'm leaning on the counter.

    i just have a regular scale and it's a little iffy. sometimes if i lean a certain way, it changes a pound or two. and what now_or_never1 said, if you have tile floor and the scale is on a crack or whatever, that could influence the number.

    i just say stick with the lower number, ahahaha! XD
  • myfitnessisavirtue
    myfitnessisavirtue Posts: 673 Member
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    Is it on carpet or an uneven/not level floor? Flooring will change the readings... hitting it all the time can also affect the readings. Do you have a 10 or 20lb dumbell laying around? If you do put that on it and see if it reads correctly. That will tell you if it's reading correctly or if there is an issue.

    How old is the scale? Is it kept in the bathroom? Were you standing on the scale differently?

    Floor is level and I don't hit it although I would like to haha. It is about 7 years old but rarely used until now. I keep it in our bedroom but move it to the bathroom floor for use. I love the dumbell idea, why didn't I think of that. I have 3 pound ones (2) that I will try.
  • sunshinelady512
    sunshinelady512 Posts: 29 Member
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    My digital scale messes up sometimes, too. I have to make sure that it is completely flat and level and that I am standing on it squarely and in the middle. If it is unbalanced or you are standing on it unevenly, it can give an inaccurate reading. Do you have anything in your house that has an exact weigh - Such as a dumbbell or free weight? If so, put that on the scale and see what it reads - that way, you will know how accurate it is.
  • deadmittens
    deadmittens Posts: 536 Member
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    Do you weigh yourself naked in the morning right as you wake up? That's when I do it... it can vary day to day but if it's varying every single time you step on within minutes of each other maybe you do need a new scale.
  • Drop_it_Like_Its_Hawt
    Drop_it_Like_Its_Hawt Posts: 226 Member
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    Yeah, my digital scale does the same thing. It has to be on absolutely level ground, so I marked on the floor (with masking tape) where it needs to be pulled out to be accurate. But even then, it fluctuates 3-5 lbs depending on my posture, how far up or far apart my feet are, etc. I'm seriously considering saving up for one of those big scales like you get at a doctors office, and in the meantime just weighing in at the local doctors on duty once a week instead.
  • twimom03
    twimom03 Posts: 19
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    Mine does too and it is frustrating. To make it easier and less aggravating...I weigh myself ONCE...and that is it! I don't bother going on again to set myself up to see the scale go up. I would keep going on and even take the battery out to see if that helped. I figure it is pretty accurate and if I only do it once each day...then the scale is at least accurate in regards to how much I lost day to day. If you keep weighing yourself and getting different numbers then you won't know what numbers to go by...the second time you weighed yourself yesterday to the third time that you weighed yourself today? Just do it once and always go by those numbers.
  • jaj68
    jaj68 Posts: 158 Member
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    I also have a digital scale. I put it away when I am not weighing myself. Mine too can fluctuate, but what I have noticed is when I set it out..it turns on. I wait until that clears....and then I weigh myself. It gives an accurate weight that way. If I just stand on it the first time I move it....and weigh myself a few minutes later, it is always different. So try letting it clear itself.
  • myfitnessisavirtue
    myfitnessisavirtue Posts: 673 Member
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    I thought I would update...I finally figured it out. I looked on the internet for info about Taylor digital scales. Basically I have to zero it before I weigh myself (due to the fact that I move it from place to place). So step on it just enough to get it to read something and then it will zero itself. So the lower weight actually was the correct one, yay!!! Thanks for the replies.

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