Are you a Scale Watcher?

Scale Watching

Many people are guilty of watching the scale every day, or even a couple of times a day, when they are following a diet and exercise regimen because they want to see immediate results. However, the effects of changing your eating habits and being more active are not instantaneous. It usually takes a couple of days or weeks before you can see a significant drop in your weight if you follow a healthy diet plan. If you weigh in everyday, there is a big chance that you will be disheartened because of the slow progress when it comes to shedding pounds.

Additionally, most people do not have a steady weight but rather, a body weight range.  It is normal to fluctuate +/- 2-5 lbs every few days.  This is extremely important information  for a dieter to understand as you are in control of some of the factors that cause the fluctuation and not in control of many others.

Keep in mind that there is 3500 calories in 1- pound of body fat. So, if you gained or lost 2 pounds from day to day it is HIGHLY unlikely that you created a 7000 calorie surplus or deficit to achieve the weight fluctuation.

Scale usage should be utilized for watching your weight trend.  The best method is to begin by finding your body weight range.  To do this - weigh daily for 5 days and mark the lowest and highest weights.  This is your natural body weight range.

As an example if Monday you weigh 167 lbs, Tuesday 164 lbs, Wednesday 166 lbs, Thursday 167 lbs and Friday 165 Lbs. Your body weight Range is 164 - 167 lbs.  Every time you step on the scale you should expect to see a number in that range.

While creating better food and fitness habits you will lose weight slowly.  If your are losing 1 lb of fat per week your body weight range would shift at the end of 1 month.  That means it would go from 164 - 167 lbs down to  162 - 165 lbs.

If scale watching has you in a good mood because the scale moved down or worse... a bad mood because it rose, you need to recheck how you are defining success.  The scale will move regardless of how well you are eating or working out.  Put the #'s in perspective by understanding the components of body weight.
Be aware of your weight range and watch your BW trend for true. long-term results.

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