[roobear]

Both the mirror and my friends (and my trousers to an extent) tell me i've lost weight but the scales tell me i've gained, whats going on? Anyone else have this problem?

[CountingDown]

Both are true. The scales don't lie. They tell your weight. The do nothing to tell you the makeup of that weight - fat/water/bone/tissue, etc.

The mirror shows the results of your weight-loss/exercise efforts. It shows that your body shape/composition is changing.

Which is a truer reflection of your progress? The mirror and the tape measure.

You can easily replace fat with muscle - weigh the same and be much healthier, fitter, and fit better in your clothing.

Moral of the story - don't rely on the scale exclusively to measure your progress!

[MoonGirl]

I read Michelle McManus' diet story recently and she said she once lost 4.5 inches off of her tummy and more off her hips and thighs but was only 1 lb lighter according to her scales.

My clothes are fitting better and I'm looking slimmer but my scales tell me I'm not losing at the moment. I've chucked them under my bed!

xx

[missirishwoman]

The Scales definately win in this...I told friends I rejoined weight watchers a few weeks ago...they ask every day how im doing...first week i had a weight loss of 7 lbs...2nd and 3rd week i stayed the same (wedding and AF) then one of my friends called to see me and like a big dope when I opened the door she shouted oh my god the weight is FALLING off you. .Now im a big girl and for me to lose 7lbs IT DIDNT EVEN MEASURE IN MY TROUSERS NEVER MIND ON MY FACE OR BODY..she just acting stupit...I hate when people do that.....they think they are doing you a favour but they are not....also when you have lost a good bit of weight and worked your back off to lose it...they come up with comments like.."my god the weight just fell off you" jesus come on get real folks.

[Stella]

I feel the measuring tape/clothes will tell more accurately.

The scales only tell you what you weigh, not what you look like (muscles look better, but are heavier, than fat!) Friends may want to be polite as they see that you are trying hard. But I feel that there is nothing more accurate than clothes becoming too wide or measurements shrinking!

Stella

[Mahina Lani]

For me, I go by the tape measure and how my clothes feel on me and how I feel within myself.

I don't listen to people if they tell I look like I've lost weight. Nine times out of ten, I haven't and they're just trying to be nice; which is sweet but really not helpful.

[georgiad]

My question is "what tells the truth, the mirror or the camera?"

When I look in the mirror, or at a reflection, I see myself as larger than I should be, but not massive. My clothes (I'm a UK size 12) tell the same story. But the scales (200lbs) and the camera tell a different story. I always look huge in pictures, and my weight doesn't seem to add up with my clothes size.

[Thyme]

I do find in photo's I usually look quite terrible (it's a wonder I'm not photo phobic) but I usually find, as do my friends taking the photo, that I really don't look as bad in real life as I do in the photo. However, whether this is the case or not, knowing how long photos can be around for, I personally want to look good in the picture when I see photos of my past self when I look back on them in 10 years!

[marina]

Having serious body images I dont tend to depend on any of those things!

The only thing I use to gauge what weight I am is how my clothes fit me as its the only thing that matters TBH I am past caring about reaching a certain weight

[annie175]

None of the above......take a picture and look at that. Pictures tell the real story.

[sophstar]

I have the same problem! I usually can tell when I'm doing well and when I'm doing badly.. For example, this week I haven't been to the gym at all and I've been eating badly so I know I've put on some weight, i don't need the scales to tell me that!

I think the best thing is to look at the big picture, think about what the scales say, how you're looking in the mirror, in your clothes, what your (honest!) friends are saying, and how you feel within yourself!

[sindy9001]

I have the same problem.

[joyra]

Yes! Pictures! Pictures shock the heck out of me.. I lose a couple lbs, my clothes get lose, people give me compliments and then I see new pictures of me---OMG, I still have back fat!

Compliments, loose clothes, the scale going down... I start to think I've lost more than I actually have. Putting pictures from a high weight next to current weight is the only way for me to really judge what has changed.