Why is it necessary to monitor your weight over time?
Weighing yourself is an effective method to monitor your progress while on a weight loss journey. However, how often should you weigh yourself is a debatable subject. In this blog, I will be guiding you on how often to weigh yourself when trying to lose weight.
Research suggests that stepping on the scale is a powerful way if you are trying to lose weight. According to a study in the journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, it was found that about 47 obese participants following the same food plan for around 6 months and weighed themselves weekly lost significantly more weight as well as adopted more healthy food goals such as exercising for about 30 minutes or more and cutting out late-night snacking.
Your weight is a crucial indicator of your health. According to Susan Kleinberg, Ph.D. and a dietitian in Washington, the number which we see on the scale is the sum of the total lean body mass that includes bones, organs, muscles, and fat mass. Excessive food consumption or an unbalanced diet may cause excess fat and weight. Moreover, there are different factors such as stress which can lead to eating disorders and abnormal weight loss. It is thus essential to monitor our health to avoid diseases caused by malnutrition and complications arising due to obesity. Thus, incorporating physical fitness is important to manage your quality of life. It is thus vital to monitor your weight, fat, and muscle mass.
How often should one weigh?
Regular weighing
According to a study conducted by American Heart Association, it was found that daily weight ins might be positive. Around 1042 adults were monitored over a year and it was found that individuals who weighed themselves six or seven times a week could see about 1.7 percent weight loss. However, the drawback is immense. Daily weighing can cause more anxiety than motivation. It may stress you out if you don't see the scale change and affect you negatively. Too much focus on stress can be misleading and lead to lower self-esteem. Moreover, regular weighing can cause unhealthy eating behaviors such as skipping meals to get fast results on the scale. Hence, it is not recommended to weigh yourself daily.
Weekly
This method is effective. With daily water fluctuations, weight can change regularly according to Rachel Fine, dietitian of To The Pointe Nutrition. Weighing yourself at the same time every week will provide you with an effective and accurate picture of your body fat gain or fat loss. According to a study in the Journal of Behavioral Medicine, individuals who weighed themselves weekly lost around 1.7 percent of their body weight within a year. In a 12-month study, people who weighed themselves weekly lost 31.5% more weight compared to individuals who did not weigh as frequently.
There are many health and fitness apps such as Lifetrons Health which can be beneficial to help you do regular food records and maintain exercise logs to stay on track. These records can play a positive part in maintaining healthy behavior.
Monthly
It does not enable you a chance to make timely changes to your food habits or exercise plan. Hence, monthly weigh-in is not an efficient approach.
What is the better time to weigh?
It is essential to weigh at roughly the same time of the day to monitor the weight loss program. The best time to weigh is in the morning as many hours are likely to be passed since the last meal and exercise is another factor that will not affect the number.
is another key factor.
With the Lifetrons health app, you can set reminders to help you get into the habit of weighing yourself at set times.
According to the Centers for disease control and Prevention, digital scales are more accurate to weigh yourself.
If your main aim is to lose weight, it is advisable to weigh yourself at least once or twice a week. Daily weigh-ins enable you to get to understand your body effectively. Monitoring long-term trends is more essential than stressing about daily variations in your weight. It also allows you to determine weight loss or gain which could be an indicator of a possible health condition. A 2021 study in the journal Obesity found that digital tools such as health and fitness app to monitor your weight and diet was associated with weight loss along with weighing yourself.
What are the advantages of weighing yourself?
Helps in weight loss progress
Being mindful of your weight because it is one indicator of your health
Understanding the fluctuations in your weight.
Detecting health conditions related to weight gain or weight loss
Helpful tricks and tips for weighing yourself
Wear the same clothes every time
It is advisable to wear the same kind of outfit every time and avoid anything too heavy while stepping on the scale.
The smart scale works positively
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it provides you with a more accurate reading compared to the bathroom scales.
Monitor your progress
Logging your weight in a digital health app such as Lifetrons Health is associated with the greatest weight loss success. It is an effective method to see the trends in your weight loss journey.
Search for other approaches to track your health
There are many health and fitness apps such as Lifetrons Health which can help individuals to log their water intake, and food consumption and track their physical activity. These factors are more within your control and can lead to the desired results.
Skip weighing if it triggers negative effects
According to Cleveland Clinic, one should skip weighing if they have a history of an eating disorder.
Final Verdict
Weighing yourself does not only result in weight loss but tend to be more active and track what you eat more often.
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