Have you ever had a weight loss expert tell you to “throw away your scale”? Or maybe you heard that too much focus on scale weight can turn you into an obsessive-compulsive? Well, body composition is more important than body weight – you won’t get any argument from me about that. But what if I told you that research supports a strong correlation between daily weigh-ins and long term weight loss success? Yes, I said DAILY weigh-ins. Do you think that’s crazy, or could this habit be something that might help you increase your fat loss success? This week’s Burn the Fat Blog Q & A column answers…
QUESTION: Tom, I know your Burn The Fat program recommends weekly weight and body fat measurement, but what do you think about daily weigh-ins? What about using a moving average? The problem with daily readings is they may fluctuate based on a number of factors. You never know which is an “up” and which is a “down” reading. But I was thinking the same could be true weekly. You don’t know if your weekly weigh-in is actually a bit higher than your “true” weight or a bit lower. A moving average would smooth out those variances and give you a better idea of your “real” weight and the general trend of your improvement.Thoughts?
ANSWER: Should you weigh yourself every day is a good question that’s debated for more than one reason. You’ve made a good case for how daily weighing could give you more data to work with, and that could help you get a better sense of your true progress and make better decisions… if you know how to read that data correctly.
It’s normal for your body weight to fluctuate, so yes, it is important to control and account for those variances when you weigh-in and chart your progress. Your weight fluctuates not only on a weekly and day to day basis, but even within the same day – sometimes by several pounds just from morning to night!
Changes in weight can be based on numerous factors including hydration (loss or gain of water weight) and contents of your digestive system (how recent the last meal and bowel movements were). A moving average could definitely smooth out the variances.
To get accurate weigh-ins, consistency is also a key. Always do your best to duplicate the weigh in conditions every time: Fed or fasted, clothed or not clothed, bladder empty or full, pre or post workout, morning or evening, high carb or low carb day, amount of fluids ingested, diuretic substances consumed, etc. If you control for all these factors, you’ll get more accurate weight and body composition data and also help eliminate a lot of false positives and false negatives.
As part of the Burn The Fat Feed The Muscle program, I recommend taking a body fat measurement only once a week (once every two weeks would probably suffice, but I prefer weekly feedback). I also recommend weighing yourself “officially” once a week, on the same scale, under the same conditions. But I believe daily weighing can be helpful as long as you’re controlling the variables and as long as you don’t obsess over daily fluctuations (instead, using the multiple data points to track the trend over time).
If you weigh yourself daily, you can log your weight into a spreadsheet and then convert your progress into a graph with the date on the horizontal axis and weight on the vertical axis. The key is to look for the trend over time. Body fat (and weight) should be heading down in a long term trend and lean body mass should be staying relatively stable.
You could also add a column for 7-day moving average if you choose. I think that’s a great idea, which would smooth out the fluctuations or “statistical noise.” Maybe only the analytical, number-crunching “nerds” will go that far, but then again, we have quite a few of them in our Burn The Fat ranks… and some of them are pretty darn lean!)
Another benefit of tracking your measurements frequently is that you can compare your weight and body composition results to your training and nutrition for the same time period to look for correlations between methods and results and hopefully learn what methods work the best for you.
Many weight loss experts say you should “throw away your scales.” They believe it’s a bad idea to weigh yourself daily or even to weigh yourself at all. I disagree, and there’s a LOT of research showing that self monitoring behaviors such as tracking food intake, exercise, body weight and body composition helps to increase compliance and improve weight loss and maintenance.
It’s common sense for weight management, but also well accepted wisdom in teaching, coaching and business management — that you can only expect what you inspect – and what gets measured and tracked gets improved. When measurements are reported to an authority figure, and you are “graded” and held accountable for what gets measured and tracked, results usually improve even more.
Although weight gain can sometimes happen quickly when there are sudden changes in environment, body weight and body fat usually tend to “creep” when left unchecked. Folks who don’t monitor weight or body composition seem to wake up one day and realize they “suddenly” got fat. Of course, what really happened is that tiny increases in fat and waist line went unchecked and therefore, unnoticed over a long time period (or they were noticed, but high standards and limits were not set for what kind of gain is tolerable).
Successful weight reducers and maintainers have a common behavior pattern and that is they keep track of their weight. Weight monitoring could be daily or weekly, but either way, most people will get best results by checking it regularly. This way, if results are negative, you’ll be alerted and you can increase compliance and “buckle down” or change your strategy. Frequent (weekly or even daily) weighings provide a feedback tool which increases awareness, allowing for a quick course correction.
By the way, people who have to wear well-tailored suits or tight fitting clothes have a feedback mechanism they can check themselves with every single day. Those who wear baggy clothes / elastic waist bands who also do not weigh themselves tend to succumb to the weight creep and not realize it. If you don’t have to dress up for work every day or if you wear loose, baggy clothing most of the time, its not a bad idea to have a pair of “lean jeans” that you try on regularly just to see how they’re fitting.
Just to be fair and show both sides, the only potential criticisms / drawbacks to frequent weighing that remain include:
1. It might encourage obsessive behaviors (if someone is psychologically susceptible). People with eating disorders and or body image disorders may be better off not weighing themselves at all, let alone every day.
2. There may be only a small amount of measurable progress after one week, and no measurable change after just a day – both of which might lead some people to impatience and frustration if they don’t have a long term time perspective or they don’t have realistic expectations for the rate of weight loss.
So, I admit, daily weighing may not be for everyone. In fact, I think it’s best practice to suggest measuring and recording body weight “at least once a week” and then leave it up to the individual to decide whether they want to weigh daily or not.
Keep in mind, weigh ins are not an absolute necessity and the mere act of weighing yourself every day or every week doesn’t guarantee more weight loss. There are people who for various reasons, choose not to weigh themselves at all, who never go near a scale who successfully lose weight and maintain their ideal weight.
However, regular weigh-ins have consistently been correlated with improved weight loss and some research says that daily weigh ins correlate even more highly with long term success than weekly weigh ins. Studies have also concluded that people who weighed themselves regularly improved weight maintenance and avoided weight regain/cycling as compared to people who didn’t weigh themselves at all.
There’s one last thing I want to re-emphasize and that’s the importance of measuring and tracking body composition (fat vs. muscle) not just scale weight.
Understanding body composition (not just body weight), and developing the patient-person’s lifestyle mindset are the final keys that really complete this self-monitoring advice and helps you avoid compulsive behaviors or obsessing over short term results. This is exactly the approach I teach in the Burn The Fat System
I know there are lots of different opinions on this subject and readers are welcome to share theirs in the comments below (it’s ok if you disagree and say, “Ignore Tom – throw away your scales!). However, just so you know I’m not pulling this out of thin air, or just saying, “That’s what worked for me and my clients,” some of the studies suggesting frequent weigh ins help with permanent weight loss are posted below.
Train hard!
Tom Venuto,
Founder & CEO, Burn The Fat Inner Circle
Author, Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle
About Tom Venuto
Tom Venuto is a natural bodybuilding and fat loss expert. Tom is a former competitive bodybuilder and today works as a full-time fitness coach, writer, blogger, and author. In his spare time, he is an avid outdoor enthusiast, hiker and backpacker. His book, Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle is an international bestseller, first as an ebook and now as a hardcover and audiobook. The Body Fat Solution, Tom’s book about emotional eating and long-term weight maintenance, was an Oprah Magazine and Men’s Fitness Magazine pick. Tom is also the founder of Burn The Fat Inner Circle – a fitness support community with over 53,000 members worldwide since 2006. Click here for membership details
Research references:
Monitoring weight daily blocks the freshman weight gain: a model for combating the epidemic of obesity. Levitsky, DA et al. Int J Obes (Lond). 2006 Jun;30(6):1003-10
A descriptive study of individuals successful at long-term maintenance of substantial weight loss, Klem, M et al, Am J Clin Nutr 1997, 66: 239-246, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine (National Weight Control Registry -NWCR
Charting of daily weight pattern reinforces maintenance of weight reduction in moderately obese patients. Fujimoto, K, 1992, Am J Med Sci, 303(3), 145-150. Kyushi University, Fukuoka, Japan
Irregular patterns in the daily weight chart at night predict body weight regain. Tanaka M et al, Exp Biol Med, 2004, 229(9) 940-945
Self weighing in weight gain prevention and weight loss trials, Linde, J, Ann Behav Med, 2005 30(3), 210-216, University of Minnesota
Cool topic for the obsessive!I was exactly like that weighing in not only everyday but every few hours .. you know how depressing it gets when your weight goes up for no apparent reason.As soon as i threw the weighing away (i hardly use it now) I stopped getting depressed!Although if you do weigh every day trending over time is the only way to look at it.I’m now at my best body compostion without the stress.
I agree with raymond that weighing yourself everyday can be stressful. I used to weigh myself everyday then one day my wife hid the scale and I have been feeling better since then. Although I have been weighing myself at my friends house.. lol (I hope my wife doesn’t read this).So the point is that weighing yourself all the time can be stressful and can lead to actually gaining weight.
i guess weight in once or twice a week is more than enough, else you can become really obsessive and that sometimes can be really hard to surpassby the way Tom… when’s BTFFTM v2.0 due to arrive? :)i’d really like to see more detailed stuff on:nutrient timingpre/post-workout nutrition and more on protein shakesnutrition on non workout daysnutrition for muscle building, weight gain
I only weigh in “officially” once a month, but I do tend to check weekly (usually after I’ve had a good week and want to see if it made any difference! LOL!)
Great question and article Tom!Tom, I have to thank many of your Burn The Fat Inner Circle members who are amazing at tracking their progress with spreadsheets and other tools. Using their tracking tools has made a huge difference in my training and results. It’s been awesome to see your Burn The Fat customers enhance your already amazing program with their own tools.There’s definitely been a commonality among many of your Burn The Fat Success Stories… they’ve been great at planning and tracking.I love how you have described Burn The Fat as a detail oriented and precision program. That’s definitely one of the big reasons why it’s so effective. There’s no guess work involved.When I am serious about transforming my body whether its burning fat or building muscle I track my progress once per week. I take a picture, I weigh myself, I measure my body fat, and I take girth measurements. I like to know that I’m making progress in one way or another and if I’m not I know that I need to make some changes in order to produce my desired results.Thanks for your leadership Tom!Scott TousignantPS I’m TOTALLY loving your Holy Grail Body Transformation Program
I go in phases where I will weight myself daily. When I do this I find that I tend to obsess over every little pound. It gets worse when I track my body fat daily. Lately I prefer to just just my progress by how my clothes fit.
Tom,I used to weigh myself and test my body fat on a daily basis. It was a maddening approach for me and did lead to obsessive eating and workouts. I’ve found that weighing myself on Friday and Saturday and averaging the days works best. I also like to check my measurements once a month to make sure I’m not gaining or losing weight in the wrong areas.Dave
I think weighing yourself everyday is “guilding the lily.” I understand wanting to track your progress incessantly, but no appreciable loses in fat are going to occur in a 24 hour period.Once people start focusing on FAT LOSS, as opposed to weight loss, I think they’ll see daily weigh-ins are superfluous.
I’m currently in a weight maintenance period after losing 20 pounds in 2009. I weigh myself every weekday morning immediately after waking up and using the bathroom. Personally I don’t get depressed if I put on a couple of pounds I just look back on potential factors for the gain. I think its a good way of keeping weight “creep” in check. I also see it as an easy way to analyze changes in diet and eating habits and exercise (i.e. intermittent fasting) on my weight.I don’t weigh myself on weekends because that is my time to relax and have a couple of beers. Monday I typically weigh a couple of pounds more :) However by the end of the week the weight is usually gone.
I am in the habit of weighing myself several times a day, and see a big flucuation both daily and weekly. I can vary between several pounds each day. It never occurred to me to actually keep track of these variations and all the elements around them, ie time of day, have I eaten, exercised, etc. I also use a body fat monitor, but I am not sure how accurate they are at measuring body fat as with mine you have to input your weight, so which one do I choose?Anyway, as usual very helpful advice from Tom. Thanks
FYI: I do NOT recommend measuring body FAT every day – there is no point in doing so – the differences would be insignificant – in fact even weekly changes in body comp are fairly small… but they are measurable. I recommend weekly body fat testingAndrea: body fat monitors, if you are referring to impedance analysis scales are notoriously unreliable, but some people have no other mode of testing to use. (im partial to an accurate skinfold test made by a skilled tester). If you must use an impedance scale use my advice from the post above about consistency in taking the measurement (same time of day, same hydration status, etc), to get the best measurement you can each week
I weigh myself daily before my morning workout using a scale that measures body fat, lean muscle, etc. and enter the information into a spread sheet. I understand that my weight will fluctuate daily, but I find weighing daily helps keep me focused, and well, I’m a geek. I even like counting calories and macronutrients ;-)I don’t worry about weighing myself when traveling, I just follow my plan and eat well, exercise as much as possible and then pick up the weighing and regular schedule when I get back.
As always, Tom, a nicely detailed and nuanced post. I only recently bought a home scale again (a Tanita BIA model) because I realized I’d finally matured enough on an emotional level to use it regularly without getting depressed/defeatist or obsessive/manic (which are really just two sides of the same coin). For the summer Burn competition, I have been checking it a couple of times a week, and it’s been very useful as I try to figure out exactly what my nutritional needs are. I recently arrested a trend of too-fast weight loss and LBM loss by switching from lo/hi carb cycling back to a baseline 50/30/20 approach. It’s probably too early to tell for sure, but so far it looks like I’m managing to continue losing fat while holding LBM steady. This level of micromanagement would be impossible without regular weigh-ins…but the crucial thing is that I can now approach the scale calmly and rationally, respond appropriately, and develop that “patient-person” mindset you mentioned–instead of freaking out, misinterpreting, and acting irrationally/disproportionately afterwards!
No question — weigh yourself daily, record weight, date and time and I agree to keep alike circumstances as much as possible. If you weigh yourself once a week or less and happen to be up in weight that day (but for the other 6 days you were down), then you will think there’s no progress whatever!
I weigh myself all the time and it’s great for understanding why you’ve gained weight and when you have gained weight. It is also great for understanding what workout works to lose weight over a period of time. My scale also measures body fat. I also bought calipers to check my body fat. I don’t need them as much because I understand the weight I am and even though body fat scales are the most accurate it will give you some idea if you are trending upwards or downwards.
I once tried the not weighing myself thing (or my food) – I put my scale in the trunk of my car – and I GAINED 20 pounds in like two weeks i think.I weigh myself several times throughout the day, but I know my morning weigh is low and I can tell how much I’v been on target the whole day by my evening weight. Yes, I think it’s obsessive, but if you aren’t obsessive you aren’t going to do well in the whole nutrition thing anyway.
Tom,I know you don’t recommend body fat scales, but I was wondering if you were aware of the Withings WiFi scale? (This isn’t a sales pitch, I’m just a very impressed customer, and this seems relevant to your post today). It works with the user’s computer or iPhone to automatically log weight, body fat and lean muscle %, with no other interaction than stepping on the scale. It can even identify multiple users automatically, based on differences in weight and body fat at initial setup, and send data directly to the appropriate account.This method is almost effortless, and I think it’s worth mentioning, for those who don’t have time or the will power to manually log the data, especially on a daily basis.You (and your roommates) can step on it every morning and forget about it until you feel like checking out your progress, and the data is plotted on charts that live up to the visual elegance and simplicity of the iPhone.
Jeffrey, im not “against” BIA scales, and ive read ALL the research on them. they’re just not my first choice. I would actually LOVE to find one that is more reliable, but i often wonder if there are flaws inherent in the scale/foot, gripper/hand sensor technology as compared to the lab test with the electrodes onthe foot/ wrist which might be a reason they are less than perfect.the direct interface between the scale you mentioned and the tracking software sounds like a great idea, but again if its BIA, you’re subject to the limitations of the technology/ test. Sounds interesting though, Thanks!
For the summer contest I’ve been doing an “official” weigh in once a week — including body fat and measurements. I also check in with the scale in the middle of the week (same time — AM and fasted). But without the BF% check, this extra look is pretty meaningless — just being compulsive!!!I’ve been consistently losing fat and maintaining/gaining LBM, so things are working! I find the daily journaling and “SLOW and STEADY” mind set are really important for me.I’m really getting a feel for the cause and effect aspect of BFFM – I look at my journal, stats and results and KNOW that my efforts translate into progress. Scale weight is just one aspect of my feedback.Thanks for a great program, Tom!Beth
I am one who weighs myself everyday. I have been doing this now for over 2 years. It did effect my mood when I started this over two years ago, but now I feel much more comfortable with the daily results. The number is not the issue for me as much as the trend of up-up-up or down-up-down. It keeps me in check and I have been able to maintain my overall weight loss for 20 months now. Without this commitment to the daily weigh in I feel I would have had many pounds regained. Which would have put me into the yo-yo diet effect for perpetuity.
It wasn’t until i started weighing myself daily that i began to lose the most weight and gain the most lean muscle. It was then that i could see how my weight fluctuated from day-to-day and week-to-week especially during my hormonal cycles. For me, it was helpful as i am not overly obsessive about it and in fact it has helped me to not become obsessive. If i have a 3lb weight gain one day i look at where i am in my cycle and compare to last month and it makes mee feel better knowing in a few days that will go away when i move through my hormonal changes.
Daily monitoring is beneficial if you have weight concerns. If you weigh yourself less than once a week that is not enough time for course corrections. My one exception would be those who get discouraged easily from the feedback they get from the scale, or teenage girls. I’d hate to contribute to an eating disorder because I’m causing a healthy weight person to obsess about their weight.That being said, I agree that body composition is an even more important area to monitor than weight.
I personally think it is critical. It is a great tool for staying on top of your weight and taking care of things before it gets out of control. I know that my weight can fluctuate based on hormones and water weight and I keep that in mind. I don’t get stressed out by minor fluctuations because I know my body. Its much worse to not weigh daily and find out too late that I have been fooling myself as to why the clothes are tighter. I have tried not weighing myself daily and it was not a good result.
Hi Tom,Thank you so much for the interesting, motivational articles!! Weighing myself is a kind of ritual I do simply to motivate myself. I make a special point not to get obsessive about it, but just to let the numbers sit in the back of my head for the next time I may be tempted to have that hot fudge sundae, LOL. I usually weigh myself at the beginning of every workout to enter the amount into the treadmill. Then I weigh myself at the end of the workout, cause I know I’ll have lost some water weight. Eventhough it’s only water weight, it makes me feel good and encourages me to do more. My weight loss is slow, but that’s ok because I am maintaining a lifestyle that I can handle, tweaking that everyday.I was also weighing myself every Sunday morning on an empty stomach, along with measuring body fat, lean mass, and taking body measurements. Then I averaged the month’s numbers and compared them to the previous months. I’ve fallen out of that routine but want to get back to it eventually.On this routine I have lost 26 lbs and am 4 lbs away from my goal weight.
I’m not a big fan of weighing to often. I used to weigh myself once every 2 weeks and i even found that stressfull; particularly as i lift a lot of heavy weights, even if i’m looking to loose fat. I now only weigh myself once in a while and then only to calculate how many calories i can eat and still loose fat or how many calories i nees to eat to gain more muscle. For some weighing every week or day may be a positive thing but i just found it never worked for me. I perfer the mirror and the belt that holds my jeans up :)
I have been weighing myself first thing every morning since 1980 after successfully losing 45 lbs. I have maintained my weight (except durning 2 pregnancies at age 38 and 42, I gained 40 lbs with each) of 115 not by being obsessed with what I weigh but being aware of when I’m gaining and cutting back before it gets out of hand. I am 54 years old and have had to make adjustments in my diet and workouts over the years to compensate for my age but keeping track of my weight is the number one thing I would say has been instrumental in maintaining my weightloss for 30 years. It’s not for everyone but it certainly may work for some.
I’ve been weighting each day since I joined the gym four years ago. I cannot go without it, call it obsessive or whatever but I need to know about that sneaky pound if it shows up. I weighin wearing similar street clothes each morning. It’s part of the documentation process as far as I’m concerned.Not trying to hijack a post but I want to brag a little. I went on a 7 day cruise to Jamiaca and never gained a pound. You know what kind of food they have on the cruises. No one believes it but it’s true. Tom really had a large part in that when he told about going on trips and staying with the program and even losing a little while on business trips. If he could do it on business than why in the world couldn’t I while having a good time. I kept the weighin going while on board also. A daily weighin seems to be better for me.TomThanks for the best blog on the internet.Rodney
I have maintained a 50 pound weight loss for 4 years and I think consistent monitoring is important. The rub is what does “consistent” mean and what are you monitoring. I weigh weekly, but I also do a personal “how am I feeling” analysis weekly. If my energy is good, my mood is good, I am able to physically perform my daily activities and exercise then I know I am doing well.I find that as I have hit middle age, my weight means very little to me, but how I function in my daily life is incredibly important.
I used to weigh myself daily, but now I am only weighing myself once a week. The change has seemed to help me to not cheat on my nutrition due to the fact that I buckle down in the last few days of the week because I want to ensure I am making progress when weigh day does show up. The not knowing all week seems to keep me more focused for some reason.
At last, someone that doesn’t tell me to throw my scale away. I have weighed myself daily for years and years. It is definitely what keeps me in check and I don’t obsess over the numbers because I look at weekly trends or monthly trends not the little ups and downs that happen daily. So much common sense here, as usual. Thank you for this article,Ann
I LIKE THE ONCE OF WEEK WEIGHTING AND IT HELP ME TO MAINTAIN MY WEIGHT. I WEIGHT SEVERAL TIME A WEEK AT NEXT TIME BECAUSE I WANT TO KEEP MY WEIGHT UNDER THE WEIGHT AFTER EATING ALL DAY.
As a guy who’s lossed 160lbs in the last 16 months and has 10 more pounds to go to reach his goal I can tell you daily trips to the scale are crucial for me. Not because I’m obsessing but because the scale represents accountability to me. I’m also smart enough to know the I need a minimum of 72 hours between comparitive weights. For the most part I just track my daily weight against the daily scale weight of the previous week.Frankly, I was a guy who woke up one day 340lbs and miserable because getting on a scale was the furthest thing from my mind. I use the scale as an accountability tool now. Its helped to transform my life..
For me, daily weigh ins are less frustrating. I used to weigh in a couple of times a week, but I found myself anticipating each weigh in, putting too much importance on it, getting stressed about it. The wait was too long. And I felt like I was “flying blind” in between each weigh in, not sure if I was going in the right direction until that weigh in told me where I was. Weighing every day desensitizes me to the results. If I don’t lose weight on a particular day, that’s fine because it’s just been one day. Expectations are lower and more realistic.Also, now I only write down the results when I lose weight! So I can look on that piece of paper and see the general trend downwards, and how much weight I’ve lost in total. For example, this month I’ve lost about 13 pounds. :-)
The first year I was on BFFM I was weighing myself daily. I would get up at 4:30am, have a coffee, take a bowl movement (too much info?), go for my daily 10km run and THEN weigh myself naked before jumping in the shower. Breakfast was at 6am.I found I was losing 100-200grams a day or more, totaling a kilogram to a kilogram and a half each week. If I failed to lose at least 100g a day then I would kick my butt a little harder. It was actually very motivating. I lost 31kgs in total, and down to about 8%BF. That was over 2 years ago.During my winter bulk ups since then I only weigh myself weekly to make sure I’m not gaining fat too quickly. I added 10kgs of muscle last year and I am hoping for similar results this year. Come August I begin cutting again for summer. I should be ripped before November.
It’s interesting to note the varirty of opinions on frequency of weighings, and the justifications for each, it seems that everyone has a weighing schedule that works for him/her, and whatever it is, if it works for your needs, and the kind of analysis you use it for, it’s good, personally, I don’t have the timeor inclination to do the analysis, some of the dailyweighrwe do. Personally, I weigh every 2 weeks for several reasons I can’t (nor do I have the inclination toweigh myself more than once a week(long story) every week. When I weighed every week, I rarely saw more than a small fluctuation in my weight 1 lb. or less. I hated that, those fluctuations rarely held for the week, so, I settled on every 2 weeks, same time, same scales each week. the compromie of 2 weeks, shows more viableresults, whatever the direction of my weight change, it seems real, an actual gain or loss, not a mere fluctuation.Barbara
HI Tom,weighing myself every day has always helped me to keep track of my body fat.at the moment i weigh 54 kilos ,ten years ago i used to weigh 49 kilos , i dont mind it when my scales show a kilo extra or a kilo less(obviously) as long as i can see clearly my abs showing and all my muscles well defiened , when i sometimes neglect my scales and have a weigh in once in two weeks i tend to find my weight creeping up gradually and fat hiding my mid section. im 42 yrs old and a mother of a12yr old. the heaviest ive ever been was 65 kilos after i had my son i lost the weight in 9 months , and since than added the extra kilos in muscle, being slim andmuscular requires alot of effort and good eating and hard training but im so much into a routine that i literally hate it when imiss a workout. reading your 2 books has helped me to keep on track and to understand much better how my body works.thanks tom for your good and very wise tips and advice ,ialways look forward to the news letters .regards Alice Galea :)
“”Frequent (weekly or even daily) weighings provide a feedback tool which increases awareness, allowing for a quick course correction. “”- tomI think that sums up it up the best for me. I have been weighing myself at least once a day for maybe 10 years now and I am convinced it was the key to getting my diet and ashtanga yoga practice properly focused to allow me to bring myself back to my 25 year old body shape and weight. self awareness.I know that water and undigested food make up a huge portion of daily fluctuations, but seeing it on the daily weigh-in helps me confirm “yeah I did eat more today than I should have” or “I knew that lunch was salty look at the water retention”, and then I adjust food/exercise for the next days. But it takes a cool head to not let a 2 pound digestion/water gain get to me. I think daily weigh-in actually helped me relax into a better lifestyle, by allowing me to be more free in my eating patterns, allow for “bad” or “cheat” days and know that I will see it and know I can bring it back.
i like weighing on a daily basis…. i actually enjoy the procedure! i am currently on my ideal weight and i like to see minor changes so that i can ‘correct it’ if sth goes wrong…. i just cannot wake up and not weight…yes maybe obsessed but i see nothing wrong with it….. its only 3 seconds of my time :)
I weigh myself almost everyday..and fill in a food log. i feel that keeping track and planning are key to being where you want to be.
Tom,Great post as usual. I have read several arguments to throw away the scale vs. daily weigh-ins etc, and its always this or that. What I love most about your posts is that you depict a balanced and informed picture – on every issue you address – and while you do share your preference – you ultimately leave the power of the decision with the individual! And I like what you say – there is no one size fits all answer – you need to find what works best for you!Thanks,Kaustubh
I keep a food log and am quite obsessive about weighing myself (I have Polycystic Ovaries so it is incredibly easy for my weight to shoot up *a lot* over the course of a week if I don’t keep a really close eye on it).I weigh myself first thing in the morning, then when I get home from work, then when I get back from the gym and finally, before bed.Yeah, I do have an issue (you don’t say!) but it does keep me in check as I know that I can watch what I eat the next day if I’ve gained too much.The fat monitoring is done once a week though.
You would never adjust your retirement investments based on day-to-day market fluctuations, which are more or less random noise. Same thing with weight. Once a week is much better for tracking “real” progress, and for maintaining a healthy mental approach to weight and fitness.
I’ve started weighing myself daily because I’ve been using a zig zag calorie reduction method, and I thought it would be “interesting” to see what my weight did while I was doing it.I know that my weight tends to fluctuate a lot during the day, and day to day–I know it, but it has still been depressing to see the numbers go down, then up, then down then up.I will continue to monitor my weight daily while I’m zig-zagging, and try to overcome the feelings, but this isn’t something I plan on doing long-term. It’s just too stressful.
Fantastic article and agree with you 100%. I only weigh myself once a week and make sure I mimic same time, day as I find it’s the most accurate.My key indicator to keep me in check is wearing tight clothes… Nothing like a tight pair of jeans and a top to make you feel good if they fit correctly…or lead you to pay attention to what you are eating when you see and feel lumps and bumps in the mirror.Thanks for the validation that what I do is the correct method!
Hey Tom,I look at it like this:Would you ever call someone that checks their bank balance and keeps track of their money in their checkbook daily – obsessive?I call it keeping a finger on the pulse :)B
Tom,No way I would throw away my scale, especially now that I’m doing the 98 day Summer Challenge! I weigh myself every day to see where I’m at. I don’t care so much about what the scale says as much as whether or not I’m gaining a WHOLE lot of weight in a short period of time. If I see that I have gained more than 2 pounds in a day, then I know my diet is off. Especially if my clothes still fit. It also indicates to me that I’m possibly retaining water because I didn’t get in enough water the day prior!These are things I can fix.Nope, I’m keeping that contraption!
Definitely daily weigh-ins AND body fat % check (although I get both with my scale). As others have stated, it helps with staying focussed and it helps to have that constant feedback. Yes, you have to understand that there will be fluctuations; sometimes these fluctuations can be traced back to free meals, high days, hydration differences, etc. and sometimes they can’t. If you can accept that, without letting one day’s numbers getting you down, then it can be extremely valuable for burning fat over time.John
I weigh myself once a week. That is enough for me. Any more than that seems a tad bit obssessive IMO. What’s most important to me is FAT LOSS, which isn’t the same as weight loss.I’m a 34-year-old man, who’s about 6’l,” and weighs 205 pounds. Weight isn’t a problem for me as I’m heavly muscled. However, the circumference of my waist IS very important. I will weigh myself and take a measurment of my waist every Monday. Sometimes I’ll measure my waist multiple times a week when I’m feeling insecure.That measurment carries much more weight in my mind, than anything the scale indicates. As a man, I would love to weigh 230 pounds, AND have a 31″ waist (my current waist size). As long as the weight gain is muscle, the more the merrier….Generally each week I’m losing fat, the circumference of my waist will decrease .25 to .5 inches. As long as that trend continues, I could care less what the scale says.
Re: Daily Weigh-ins: Actually, it’s a great idea. For reasons unknown to me (not really) I haven’t done so, but I shall from here on. It’s like practice of any sort. It gives you steady feed back. There’s a saying, the pianist, Artur Rubenstein(?) said, If I don’t practice one day, I know it. If I don’t practice two days, the critics know it. If I don’t practice three days, everybody knows it. Why if you had a rudder on your boat, would you not use it every day? And finally, not knowing that you don’t know is the greatest sin. Thanks for all your help, Tom
I do agree on regular weigh check but it needs to be done on daily basis just after bath with bare clothes which gives the actual weight . But more important is the muscle weight and reduction in fat weight .
i want to thank you for your great advicei was 95 kgm when i was 17 years old. i started to loose weight and became 56 kgm only within a yearbut what happened is i forget about weight monitoring till i found myself at 87 kgm againnow i am 25 years old and i try to loose weight again i loose 1.5 kgm by reducing carbs and Im measuring my weight weeklyit really helpsthank you
actually this is a great idea, and one that will help keep people on track. better to see that 1 or 2 pound gain today than to wait 2 weeks and see the 10 pound gain later
I weigh myself daily, but only compare it with last weeks number (and only if the week has been normal (as in no deviation from THE PLAN.)
When I am trying to drop weight I definitely weigh in every day.What I do is keep an eye on my lowest weight. So if my numbers fluctuate by 3 – 5 lbs during a few days, I count the lowest number and shoot for a new low number on the scale.When I’m trying to maintain weight I do the opposite, I pay attention to the highest number and if it continues to climb then I consider changing my strategy.
Five years ago I lost 60 pounds. When I was losing I weighed myself everyday. For some reason that I can not think of now I stopped. I gained all but 10 pounds back over the next three years. In the last year and half I have lost over 100 pounds. I credit alot of this to weighing myself each morning. Just like Tom said the same time, pretty much the same condition as for clothing. Yes, my weight does flucuate (sp?). But I use it as a time to cheer myself for a reduction or recomit myself if there is stall or reexamine what I did the day before if I gained.In my opinion if you are serious about making a lifestyle change you need to weigh yourself daily. I know some will obess over every little change but that just might make up for the cheats you have along the way.Love the newsletter Tom. It has been a big help to me in my lifestyle change.
Great topic!I know when I am doing carb cycles, my weight can vary by anywhere from 2-3lbs.Thats why its always important to use the mirror as the biggest indication of progress in my opinion.But I think it is great that you explained this topic so well as I dont think people realize the fluctuations that can occur.All the best,
Once in a week cause it is more beneficial if you are looking for the perfect and long term results while losing weight.ThanksStela
The best way to monitor your weight is on a daily basis. Weigh yourself under the same conditions (same clothing, same hour, same scale) Then take the weeks average (adding every day weight and divide it between the number of samples), and only worry about those avarages. As Tom says, “which smooths out the fluctuations or “noise.”. But the important thing is dont expect to lose more than a pound per week. More than that is to starve your body; you wont get anywhere with less.
I’ve never heard the term “moving average”, but I have been doing that for years using a free, little software program called “Weight Tracker by SoundTells.”
I weigh myself daily upon waking up and after my morning toilet trip. After a few days of data entry, a blue line on the graph shows me my weight loss trend. I really love this little program and aim to keep that blue line going down for weight loss and horizontal for maintenance. If that blue line starts to creep up, I get serious about cutting calories or upping my exercise. It has been my most valuable weight tracking tool.
If you use the bioelectrical impedance method of calculating body composition, such as used in the Withings scale, weigh yourself every day. This is because readings can fluctuate wildly from day to day and you won’t know if the .5% move is a normal weekly result or an aberrational daily reading that can be deleted and retried ( unless you weighed daily and saw the jump over a single day as opposed to a slow progression.)
Fantastic Article Tom.
I must confess, I do daily Weigh-ins at the same time with the same conditions and find it to work best for me.
I’m not stressed about weight changes because I know it can change daily. I do a full body measurement with weigh-ins daily, capture daily calory intakes and capture daily exercises. This way I can keep myself motivated by seeing the trend. I can see the effect of different food types and also different exercises on my body.
I think it is a personal thing if you want to measure yourself on a weekly or daily basis as long as you don’t become obsessive or demotivated by slight changes to weight and body composition.
Negative changes can motivate you to take corrective action fast where positive changes motivates you even more to continue on this path because you’re doing something right.
Thank
While weighing yourself every day can be stressful, it reminds me of a story I heard about the Governator when he was a young guy.
From what I understand, Arnold used to have a huge gut. To motivate himself to lose it, he’d wear shirts that revealed it in public!
Its a similar idea to weighing yourself every day. You get on the scale and think “aw MAN- last year I weighed X pounds less!” and motivate you to starting losing it.
I’ve purchased your book and read it. It makes sense, but I can’t stick to it. I have read about self-image and other motivational resources but my bad habits keep resurfacing. I’ve made progress with controlling emotional eating and indulge in sweets and refined snacks less often, but there’s always another place in my nutrition that I blow it. My exercise dedication is great. I do cardio about 4 days a week (some HiIT, step aerobics elliptical, or other aerobics at relatively moderate to high intensity for 20-60 minutes) and strength training at least 3 days/week (20-40 minutes). I don’t know what else to do, but I refuse to believe I will not lose this weight. I know I can succeed, I just don’t know how to get there. I am tired of wasting weeks without progress. And despite all my efforts I’ve gained weight in the last 2 months.
I agree with Tom that whether you do your weigh ins daily or weekly, you must be very consistent in weigh in conditions. But I guess, it is much better to weigh in weekly as you get to see result in a weekly manner and you’ll have a week to improve your weight.