Stepping on the scales daily: Support or sabotage?

[LondonGirl!]

I have an addiction (...no, its not carbs - anymore!). I step on my scales daily, okay, sometimes more than once a day. I'm obsessed.

Like an addict I'm elated when I see the numbers drop and depressed when they don't move, or worse, go up. Reading through all the forum posts, I notice that our obsession with the scales and why they've temporarily stopped moving seems to be what we talk about most.

So here's my question. How often do you weigh in? Daily, weekly, fortnightly, monthly? It would be especially interesting to hear from those who have lost a lot and and come a long way.

LG.

[imagood1]

This question comes up quite often....I weigh every Monday morning before I get dressed and go out of my bedroom. Weight changes so much on a daily (or hourly) basis the last thing I need is the stress of weighing .5 pounds more at 6:00 p.m. than I did at 10:00 a.m. I have no problem walking past the scale every other morning other than Monday.

[judyintn]

I weigh at the same time every morning and write down what I weigh. It is normal for my weight to fluctuate up to 2 pounds from day to day, and I don't stress if the scales go up a little. If they go up more than two pounds I assume that my diet needs an adjustment and it helps me keep the weight from coming back.

[JulieB]

My official weigh-in is once a week, first thing in the morning. I do occasionally "peek", but I don't let myself get upset (or too excited) about what I see.

[Nanarama]

Sounds like you already answered your own question ..... and you sound like you feel the same as me when the scale moves either way. If it goes up a little, it just wrecks my day.

So I try very hard to weigh only on Wednesday mornings. That way, I'm not subjecting myself to the mental roller coaster.

Good luck ......

[msanjelpie]

Every day upon awakening no matter what time it is. Happy when it goes down, nonchalant when it stays the same, depressed when it goes up. Doesn't affect the diet though, I just keep on going...

[mizski]

I was obsessed with my digital scale when I first got it two years ago. Every time I was in the bathroom, I stepped on it. And I was on Medifast at the time so I was in the bathroom a LOT.

I was intrigued at the daily fluctuations and how I was lighter mid-morning after breakfast rather than when I first woke up. And I noticed I got "heavier" as the day wore on. Different foods caused water retention and it would stay high for a bit and then come down.

What my new scale obsession did for me was desensitize me to the fluctuating numbers on the scale. I still find them interesting but seldom step on the scale anymore. I usually do my official weigh in on Monday.

[Aways2Go]

I weigh every day. I find it interesting to see the variances throughout the day and week based on what activity I have been doing, what I ate over the last day or two, etc. I am happy when it goes down from the day before, but I don't freak out at all when it goes up a pound or two (although I do give a little thought to what I ate or what exercise I did or didn't do in the last few days, in case that contributed - sometimes it just seems rather random).

If I found it highly depressing when it went up a pound or two, I would not weigh myself so often. Weighing daily while still losing overall has shown me very clearly not to take any weight from any individual day too seriously (assuming it was not some dramatic change - I once gained 4 pounds from one morning to the next and quickly figured out not to consume such excessive amounts of sodium).

If every little variance of a pound or two, which is normal, is depressing you, then I would suggest putting your scales somewhere inconvenient for a week or so at a time until you feel more confident about your losses and your diet in general. Why depress yourself a few days of every week as long as you are following your diet plan? It will work overall - but is not going to edge down every single day. Be happy!

[Alexa]

I think as these guys all show -do what works for you. In induction I tend to weigh everyday because you can expect to see progress each day and it's good motivation for a difficult bit of the plan.

In OWL, when it slows I get too down and frustrated so weekly is best for me.

Depends if you can handle feeling diaspointed or whether it my led you to being disheartened.

[cafe_et_creme]

I weigh once a week, monday mornings as soon as i get up.