Scales! Argh.

[Amberoo]

Hello there!

I think it's time I purchase a new scale. I don't have much money for fancy one, but I'm thinking about going digital.... If there is a thread on this, please direct me and I'll take my question there. Sorry if this has been repeatedly asked... I'm just overwhelmed by the options. Right now I have a regular needle, super sensitive scale where if I'm glancing down to read my weight, it says one thing, if I'm standing up straight looking forward, I'm another and if I breathe in, it says something different!! It's changes with any slight movement that I'm not having faith in knowing what I really weigh and if I'm really losing.

ANY suggestions on what kind/brand/style of scale I should get? Should I get one that tests BMI (do they do that??) and all that, is it worth the investment? Are digital scales better than the older style and how exactly can you test to see if it's working correctly - does putting a dumbbell on it assure its accuracy?

Thanks so much!!

[lumifan4ever]

Personally i would just buy a cheap digitial. I don't really buy into a scale that can "read" body fat percentage. All i need is something to tells me what number i weigh. I don't even really care about ounces. I just round it down anyways. Who really cares about if i weigh 154.4???? I'm going to call it 154. If you doubt the weight it shows, get a 5 pound weight and put it on there. if it reads 5 pounds, well....i guess it's accurate. Every now and then i pull out my old needle scale and check my weight against it and the digital and always end up with the same number. it's just easier to read the digital. kinda takes the guess work out of "what number exactly is that needle pointing at??".

[cagesorwings]

Yeah... I spent a lot of money on scale that read body fat, and personally I think it's kind of BS! Just get a simple digital scale.

[need2loseinGA]

I just bought my first scale in years last night. I debated a long time in the aisle on which one to get because of the options out there. I decided to go with a 17$ digital scale. Its made by Sunbeam. It said it measures up to a fifth pound or something like that. So instead of just being 150 it will say something like 150.6 etc. I am happy with it and it seems pretty accurate for me.

[JayEll]

I also bought my first scale in years recently. I got a Tanita and it cost quite a bit, and yes, it does measure body fat percentage and total water percentage. These numbers are of interest to me, especially the body fat percentage.

When I weigh in the morning, my weight is down, my body fat % is up, and my total water is down. When I weigh in the afternoon, my weight is up, my body fat % is down, and my total water is up. That's how I figured out that indeed, I can have a 3-pound difference just from water weight.

As long as a scale is reasonably accurate, it doesn't matter which kind you get. Just always use that scale, and record your weight at the same time of day wearing about the same clothes (or none). That way you'll have consistent readings.

Jay

[JamieY]

I also have the Tanita body fat % scale. I just use the weight though, not the fat % part. I did body for life a long time ago and one week I would be 140 and 25% body fat and the next week I would be 138 and be 28%, I didn't really understand that so I stopped using it because I found it discouraging. Just get a simple digital scale.