If you're trying to
lose weight, it's important to keep track of how much you weigh. But can you
ruin your attempt to get to a healthy weight by stepping on the scales too
often?
Yes, says Keri Gans,
RD, a nutrition consultant in New York City and a spokeswoman for the American
Dietetic Association. Weighing yourself every day, or multiple times a day, can
become frustrating and sabotage your eating plan for a healthy weight.
"People get
frustrated with the movement of the scale, and it might take them away from
sticking with their plan," Gans says of individuals who hop on the scale
frequently. "Especially if they see it going up one day — that could
affect their sticking to their plan."
Scale Obsession and
Healthy Weight
Research backs up
Gans's assertion about healthy weight. One study of Minnesota junior high and
high school students found that girls who frequently weighed themselves often
resorted to unhealthy dieting tactics such as skipping meals, smoking, and
using diet pills or laxatives to reach a healthy weight.
Frequent self-weighers also tended to gain more weight than girls who did not
weigh themselves that often.
The problem is that a
person's body weight can fluctuate wildly day to day, and even hour to hour.
"If you weigh yourself first thing in the morning, you're going to have a
different weight than if you weigh yourself at 5:30 p.m.," Gans says.
"You weigh less in the morning because you're on an empty stomach, and
you're usually a little bit dehydrated."
What you eat also
makes a difference. For example, if your meal the night before was high in
sodium, you might be a little bloated, with water affecting the weight on the
scale. In addition, women's menstrual cycles can play havoc with the amount of
water they are retaining. These hormonal variations can cause the scale to tip
in a way not reflective of your overall healthy weight.
How to Weigh Yourself
Appropriately
"I recommend an
individual weigh themselves once a week," Gans says. "Once a week is
a good time to check in and see if the scale is moving in the desired
direction." You should always weigh yourself at the same time on the same
day so there's consistency in your measurements.
Stephanie Wiseman, 23,
one of Gans's clients, finds that weighing herself regularly is a helpful tool
in reaching a healthy weight. "It gives me a good gauge as to how I'm
doing," says Wiseman. "If you're not losing, you need to switch
something — like your diet or exercise."
However, she follows
Gans's recommendation and doesn't weigh herself too often. "There's too
much variation, depending on what you've eaten and the time of day,"
Wiseman says. "If you're not on track, you can get discouraged and not
want to continue the plan that day. And when you're trying to eat healthy, it's
a day-to-day commitment."
So stay focused, stay
active — and stay away from the scale but once a week.