Happy New Year to everyone! I wanted to get some opinions on weighing. I've always have issues with weighing myself on the scale because let's face it we all are human and if we don't see that scale going down it can be a demotivator and discourage you. What we tend to forget is that sometimes you have to take in to account, water gain especially for women and that muscle is heavier than fat and that as we exercise we gain muscle. Also we tend to forget the inches that we are losing.

I'm thinking to throw away my scale and to count how many inches I've lost and how my clothes are fitting and if they are getting bigger. Considering the fact that I was a buliminic and struggle with that for 5 years off and on and I'm glad to say that I haven't had an episode in the past 4 years, the scale for me isn't just a great thing mentally. I walk at least 3 miles everyday and i do spinning classes 2 days and week, yoga 1 day a week and dance aerobics at home with a DVD 1 day a week so I know I'm gaining muscle. For me counting calories and eating healthy foods not just empty calories are essential for me to lose weight. I will say I do give myself a free day 2 times a month to eat whatever I want but I usually do this when I'm going hiking in the mountains for 6 hours.

So since I'm not going to weigh myself anymore I'm going to stick with an inches lost chart..

Hmmm.... well, do what is best for you for sure. But, don't throw the scale away, just put it somewhere where you know where it is, but won't be "threatening" to you out in the open.
That's my suggestion. Good luck!

Hi,
I can definitely understand were you are standing. Weight fluctuations can be scary. What I do is the opposite of what you are going to do: I weight religiously every morning before breakfast, but to take into account the daily fluctuations, I have an excell chart were I track the weight and the trend. Using the trend number instead of the number on the scale, helps a lot. The idea is from the Hacker's diet, which I recommend (it's free, you can find it online).
However I would like to tell you BRAVO for overcoming your bulimia. I'm currently struggling with it so I know how hard that is. How did you do that? Have you done it by yourself or did you have help?

Lucy

There's nothing wrong with doing whatever works for you. Lots of women here weigh everyday, lots weigh weekly, and some weigh monthly. There are lots of pros and cons either way.

Definitely, lots of us in all camps measure, because often those inches go down even when the scale doesn't.

You guys have more strenght than me.. When that scale doesn't go down it discourages me and then what happens is I'll binge.. I think I'll put the scale away and just go by my inches and clothes and take pics of myself each month to have a picture diary of my weight loss.. my goal is to get into my size 6 jeans right now I'm in a size 12.. not too sure of my weight haven't weighed inover 5 weeks.. wow some of you weight everday, I just couldn't do it..

seyralu, I finally went to a support group after I took 11 laxatives in day and ended up in the hosiptal, that's when I realized I needed help. You hang in there and if you need a support buddy I'm here..

It is an individual thing - and you should do what works best for you. You don't need the scale to tell you how you are doing. A tape measure can do that.

For me, I need the accountability that the scale provides. I got in trouble when my scale broke and I didn't replace it.

I'm a recovered (mostly) anorexic, and I can say that the scale is torture for me. I haven't been on one in a few weeks. If I see it go up, it depresses me, and when I see it go down, I get too lax on what I'm eating - so for me, weighing myself is counterproductive.

yes you are right, weighing yourself does for some keep them on track and make sure that they aren't slipping.. I agree it is whatever you prefer and works for you.. I wish it could be that way for me.. weighing myself and if the scale isn't going down will lead me to binge and it's better for me to maybe weigh ever so often and go by my inches and clothes.. Oneday I'll be able to overcome that scale terror as I call it, It's amazing that it can discourage me in such a negative way.. I'm human I guess or just crazy

Julie your pics look great I forget to mention that in my earlier post.. way to go.. and how you lined up the pics were very nice.. you are looking good.. keep it up.. by the way how did you line up the pics with photoshop?

Ideally you'd use a combination of weight and body fat percentage. But measuring body fat is kind of a pain and the electronic scales are inaccurate at best. Measuring using a measuring tape might have some benefit, but I think that would be about as inaccurate as the body fat scales.

Using a scale is certainly the easiest, and if you realize that weight fluctuations do occur due to water, etc, you won't get too depressed about them. I'd suggest weighing yourself right after you wake up, and maybe only once per week.

If you don't quantify your progress somehow, it's impossible to tell if your weight loss plan is working. In the case of calorie counting, you have to use your progress to adjust how many calories you should eat. With the laws of thermodynamics, you can be certain that, if you eat less calories than you use per day you *must* lose weight.

Thank you so much! I think I did the pics in PictureIt (microsoft) just because it's a freebie on my computer. It's *really* old , but it did the job. I had to line them up because it wouldn't let me just attach 9 photos

Sounds like a good plan for you. The scale seems to be a good way for those of us with 50+ or 100+ lbs to lose, but it's still frustrating, and I wouldn't use it if I didn't have so much to lose.

Do you have a close friend who you can weigh weekly at her house for accountability purposes? That way the scale is out of your daily reach, but you still have a concrete measure recorded and you are accountable. Good luck.

I know how you feel. I have a Wii Fit so I end up weighing myself everyday. Today my weight went up 1 lbs from yesterday, but I was expecting it because, well... you know... girl stuff. But it still really got me down. I know I have been sticking with my plan, though, so I just sucked it up and went about the day.

For me, I think measuring is too much trouble, and I can never get it quite right.

Well Negrita75, by all means do what works for you. The scale should be a tool not an enemy. If it cause you to do worse, than ditch it. Just be careful with the tape measure as well: even them can go up or down depending on different things like water retention.
As for the other issue, thanks for you support , where I live there aren't any group for help, so I hope to find some here.... This is really a nice community.
Lucy