To Weigh or Not to Weigh?

Writing down the numbers from a scale is the go-to way of measuring progress for most people. Some people do it almost every day, some less often. But how good of an indicator is it and what kind of effect does it have on your overall progress? Weighing yourself while on a diet can be stressful. It can cause anxiety, drastically impacting your motivation and self-confidence if you don’t see the expected numbers. Only when you’re completely comfortable and sure that it won’t cause any side-effects should you step on the scale to weigh yourself.

Advantages of Weighing Yourself

If you do choose to use the scale, you should measure your weight once a week at the most. It should be done in the morning on an empty stomach, after the first bathroom visit.

It Can Help You to Make A Change

Seeing a big number on a scale might give you the incentive to keep going. It could also make it a lot easier to ignore junk food cravings. When you’re striving to reduce that number, you become more aware of all the things you eat throughout the day. For those with strong mental will, it can be a huge motivator that will help you stick to your goals and avoid setbacks.

Easy Monitoring

It’s easy to track your progress. You compare two numbers and see how much closer to your end goal you are. Setting and fulfilling short-term goals is very satisfying. It can take a long time to see the progress reflected in the mirror. Weighing yourself can show you the progress on a weekly basis and push you to go through to reach your goal.

Disadvantages of Weighing Yourself

Unreliable

Our weight can fluctuate from 1-5 lbs on a daily basis. Measuring your success based on how good you feel is much more helpful for weight management. Even the amount of water intake can make your weight vary drastically. This can make the scale show a higher number, even if you lost body fat.

Obsession Isn’t Good

Don’t put all of your faith in a number. Eating healthy is instantly beneficial for the human body and weight loss comes with time. It’s not a good indicator of your body composition. Since muscle weighs more than fat, the bigger number might just mean that your fat-to-muscle ratio changed.

Weight = Good Looks

Don’t let your goal be a number on a scale. Focus on how you look to yourself not so much about weighing yourself while on a diet. Notice how clothing fits you differently, or how thinner your waist is. Introduce as much positive change as possible and keep tabs on your progress in different ways. Don’t starve yourself, but rather eat healthy. A plate full of fresh vegetables won’t hurt your weight loss.

A Word from GR8NESS

For most people, there are more benefits to completely ditching weighing yourself while on a diet. Take even better care of your mental health throughout your weight loss journey. Listen to your body and experiment to see what benefits it the most. Take it slowly, one day at a time.