Daily weights?

 Daily weights?


So I have been weighing myself every day during this project. The LoseIt! app encourages this habit, and some research seems to suggest that it is a beneficial practice.


(While this is not meant to be a scholarly literature review or any kind of comprehensive or definitive statement on the matter, some articles that lend support to daily weighing practices include:


Nezami BT, Valle CG, Nulty AK, Espeland M, Wing RR, Tate DF. Predictors and Outcomes of Digital Weighing and Activity Tracking Lapses Among Young Adults During Weight Gain Prevention. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2021 Apr;29(4):698-705. doi: 10.1002/oby.23123. PMID: 33759388; PMCID: PMC7995618.


Robertson MC, Raber M, Liao Y, Wu I, Parker N, Gatus L, Le T, Durand CP, Basen-Engquist KM. Patterns of self-monitoring technology use and weight loss in people with overweight or obesity. Transl Behav Med. 2021 Aug 13;11(8):1537-1547. doi: 10.1093/tbm/ibab015. PMID: 33837792; PMCID: PMC8604273.


Vuorinen AL, Helander E, Pietilä J, Korhonen I. Frequency of Self-Weighing and Weight Change: Cohort Study With 10,000 Smart Scale Users. J Med Internet Res. 2021 Jun 28;23(6):e25529. doi: 10.2196/25529. PMID: 34075879; PMCID: PMC8277333.


Zheng Y, Burke LE, Danford CA, Ewing LJ, Terry MA, Sereika SM. Patterns of self-weighing behavior and weight change in a weight loss trial. Int J Obes (Lond). 2016 Sep;40(9):1392-6. doi: 10.1038/ijo.2016.68. Epub 2016 Apr 26. PMID: 27113642.)


But I have found that weighing myself daily can sometimes lead to discouragement, as the scale can sometimes show a heavier weight the day after I have done a particularly hard workout and dietary regimen, and sometimes be lower after a slacker day. Of course these day to day variations are to be expected, as overall weight is affected by fluid intake, salt intake, constipation, time of day, in addition to “actual” weight loss or gain.


While I do think it is important to track my weight daily when trying to lose weight, I need to remember that it is overall trends, rather than day to day variation, that is a more accurate (and more encouraging!) measure of progress. When I keep track of weekly or monthly trends, it can provide a smoother measurement and encourage me to keep going. But of course I won’t have these trends if I don’t take regular measurements.


In addition to finding overall downward trending encouraging, I have also found that daily weights enable me to identify and correct upward trending early, which is perhaps just as important. Tracking my weight is one way of keeping mindfulness about my body and my progress on this journey. It is not the only tool, but certainly it is one of the more helpful ones.


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