The Proper Way and Time to Weigh Yourself
Hey Angels and Alphas,
The majority of people who are on a weight loss journey make an effort to weigh themselves daily. But the way they do it and the time they do it can vastly differ, and because you’re weighing yourself to gather data you can use strategically on your journey, it only makes sense that you would make an effort to commit to a way of weighing yourself that’s consistent and productive.
So how many times a day should you weigh yourself, anyway? When exactly is the best time to do it? What kind of scale should you use? Does any of this matter?
The answer to that last question is yes, yes it does.
But let’s take a look at the other questions and answer each of them below…
First off, what kind of scale should you use?
If you’re trying to lose weight (or gain weight), the most important thing you need to remember is to stay consistent. That means you have to use the same scale every single day – even if the number on that scale is a little off, it should still be accurate enough to give you a good idea of whether or not you’re making progress.
That being said, the number one marker for a good scale is accuracy. Nowadays, you can literally get a scale that connects to your favorite apps and devices, and some even claim to be able to measure body fat levels. Whether you’re into all of that is up to you, but in general terms, just get a scale that’s accurate and calibrate it correctly.
What time of day is best for stepping on the scale?
Again, the most important thing here is consistency.
If you’re trying to compare how much you weigh in the afternoon after you’ve had lunch to how much you weigh as soon as you wake up in the morning, you can literally fluctuate up to 5-10 pounds over the course of a day.
You have to make sure you’re not mistaking that for weight gain or weight loss.
Most people tend to weigh themselves first thing in the morning. This will typically be the longest stretch of time you go without eating a meal, meaning your weight won’t be affected by the food and liquid you’ve consumed.
What about weighing yourself after a workout?
It can often be tempting to jump on the scale right after you’ve finished your workout. You could be stripping down to take a shower, and after all, the scale could be right there.
But guess what – unless you train the exact same way every single day, you won’t be able to get the most consistent output of data. You’ll be comparing apples to oranges and the scale won’t be reflecting your true weight.
If you, let’s say, sweat a lot, you will tend to lose a lot of water weight over the course of a workout. And if one day you hydrate well, and the other day you don’t hydrate as well, you’ll see a difference on the scale that won’t be reflecting true changes in your weight or body composition.
What should you be wearing when you’re weighing yourself?
Since your goal is to weigh yourself, you should try your best to only weigh your self. In general, clothes can add up to 2-3 pounds of extra weight. Same for your shoes. If you’re that motivated to get the most accurate read as possible, you can remove any excess clothing you have.
If you’re weighing yourself in the morning, that’s even easier to do. Since you tend to wear different shoes and clothes every day, wearing them during these weigh-ins will lead to producing inconsistent results from day to day.
And finally, how often should you really weigh yourself?
How often you do it largely depends on why you’re doing it. If you’re just sort of “checking in”, then, by all means, you can hit the scale every other day or even once a week.
But if you’re on a mission to drop pounds (or gain them) you might be persuaded to turn weighing yourself into a daily habit. The more data you can get on your weight, the better you can manage it.
Even though daily measurements can be a little noisy and largely affected by how much you ate (or didn’t) during that day, they’re still a great way to gain insights into your progress and performance. That’s why it’s easy to say why if you’re committed to a goal, weighing yourself daily is your best option.
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