Why NOT to weigh yourself everyday
For many people, the scale is a source of stress and frustration, but it shouldn't be. Don't think of the scale as anything other than a TOOL — something we use when losing weight to provide info. If you’re using the correct type of scale, it can tell us what's going on with our body so we know what we’re doing is working and to continue to ensure continued weight loss, or if we need to modify our regimen to something a little different to get better results. As long as you are monitoring your progress, there is no need to check in everyday. Weighing in everyday can do more harm than good.
Your home scale isn’t telling you the whole story.
Unless you have a scale that breaks down your total weight into muscle, water, and fat, you can’t take the total as the whole picture of what’s going on. A body fat scale will give you your body fat percentage (ratio of lean to fat weight). So if your muscle goes up, that might not have a big effect on your total weight in terms of loss, but there’s a good chance that your body fat percentage went down which is very important and what you want to focus on more than just the total weight.
Your weight can fluctuate every single day.
There are many things that can affect your daily total number on the scale.
Just a few things are:
water/hydration levels
hormones
sleep
stress
bathroom frequency
exercise
even the weather.
In fact, one dietician weighed herself every hour of the day and she fluctuated 4 pounds! Seeing the scale be up or down that many pounds can be enough to make you change your diet/habits dramatically, and not always in the best way. Ie: if you’re up a few pounds you might overdo it at the gym or skip meals (a big no no!) or if you’re down in weight you might treat yourself or overindulge, and then pay for it the next day. Sometimes the stress of seeing a number you aren’t happy with, can cause weight gain! The stress hormone cortisol can cause one to gain or hold onto body fat! Weighing yourself one-two times a week will give you a more accurate depiction of your progress. At KPF we have our clients start out by weighing in on Mondays and Fridays. We do this so we can see how their weight fluctuates throughout the week. We also do it so our client can see first hand what their weight does when they're "on plan" during the week, and "off plan" on the weekends. The coach may change their weigh in days depending on how their weight fluctuates naturally or if they're feeling stressed by their weight going up and down. Everyone is different and we tailor the program to THEM!
Your progress shouldn’t only be determined by the whole number on the scale.
Somedays we just have off weigh-ins. Those are the days when you have to remember how far you’ve come in your weight loss journey. Don’t let one bad day devalue all the progress you’ve made. Look at how you feel in your clothes now; how much easier it is to do daily activities or working out. Maybe you sleep better now or have more energy throughout the day. Those are all such BIG accomplishments that shouldn’t be ignored.
One of our roles as coaches is to point out these big wins and make sure our clients know how well they are doing! Weight loss and implementing a healthy lifestyle is a rollercoaster! There are days you feel amazing and like you can accomplish anything. And then there are days where you feel like you will never get there. We (KPF coaches) are there for both of those times. We're there to cheer you on when you feel great. As well as to support and comfort you when you don't, and get you back to feeling great. The less stressed you are about your weight loss, the easier [and more enjoyable] it will be!
