After losing weight several years ago, I’m still weighing in everyday. I know that there is some discussion online if it is a good idea to weigh or not to weigh everyday. For me, the choice is to weigh.
I was reminded of this when something popped up on my Facebook feed in the memories section. It was about weighing in and BMI.
5 years ago on Facebook – March 2013 –
Had a great day the gym yesterday… I’ve been doing those weight management workouts twice a week and yesterday was the end of the first session. I lost 8.5 pounds and gained one pound of muscle over 8 weeks. My trainer said that I actually lost a whole other pound of fat to replace it with muscle, which he says burns about 40 more calories a day… I’m excited because my BMI numbers take me from overweight to normal. I even “ran” the track for 12 minutes. (Okay… my arms were running, but my feet still looked like a fast walk.) Best of all, I feel a lot stronger. I signed up for the second session that starts Monday. This has been my “solution to reach a new years resolution.”
To Weigh or Not to Weigh
Do you weigh yourself? Some people weigh everyday. I know that it helps me.
Some people just get on the scale once a week, usually at an organized weigh in. When I did the weekly weigh ins I would already know what I weigh from weighing in a home. I used to obsess about it.
Long ago, when I really did need to get fit, I rarely weighed myself. In fact, the only time I used to weigh in was at a doctor’s office.
I remember the first time a doctor talked to me about my weight: “You really need to get a treadmill. The Ohio weather just isn’t nice enough to exercise outside reliably.”
It wasn’t the lack of treadmill that was my problem! It was primarily food choices and food portions. I’ve since heard things like “It’s 80% the kitchen and only 20% the gym.”
After I decided to adopt a healthy lifestyle, I changed my relationship with the scale and have been weighing myself every morning when I wake up. It probably is a bit obsessive. I do find it helps me to keep things in check. I have a “scream weight” which I refuse to go over. But it is the strength and muscle mass I’d really like to stay focused on now — that and maintaining my weight loss.
Body Fat Percentage
Some scales measure a whole lot more than just weight. They will keep track of your body fat percentage and the muscle mass numbers as well as the overall weight.
Many of the new scales have the numbers for water percentage too. My water number changes all the time (obviously) based on how much I am drinking or if I am slightly dehydrated.
Not sure I can always believe the fat percentage, but that’s the number that I’d really like to change. Move some of my overall weight from the fat side to the muscle side.
I think I need to lift more – and run less. Well, maybe not run less. (I get more hungry when I run!!) I do like the effects of cardio exercise. The endorphin feeling is great and there is something satisfying about seeing the mileage add up.
I know some people are working on changing their BMI (Body Mass Index.) BMI is a quick way to measure the weight to height ratio. For a some people, for instance those who weight lift, it is way out of whack, but in general, it is a guide. A quick google search will provide lots of BMI calculators, if you want to check your BMI bynber,
General guidelines want your weight to be a at a BMI number 18 and 25. If I get to 25, it’s only for a little while, but I’m generally 26 or 27, which is just into the overweight category. While I like to think it is all my muscle mass, I’d be fooling myself! I’m not there yet!
I think better yet would be a BMI scale that measures fat percentage and muscle mass. There probably is those calculators too.
Being heavier really bothers me for running particularly, because it slows me down. Think of running around holding two 8 pound weights all day. I know I’d be faster if I could drop those weights.
So, while I weigh in everyday and know my BMI number, it isn’t what I want to measure! It’s muscle mass. Gaining muscle! But I still insist on stepping on the scale every morning.
How about you. Do you weigh every day? Why or why not? Do you know your percentage of muscle mass? Please leave a message below or send me an email at chris@becomingelli.com.
I too weigh every day or pretty close to it. I don’t take my scale on vacation with me (I have heard of people doing that!) I read a book ages ago about people who kept weight off. The author said what she discovered was that often people who are losing weight should not weigh themselves but those who had taken weight off and kept it off weighed themselves consistently. So, your weighing yourself every day is consistent with what the author said. (I’m trying to find the author and book title; I’ll let you know if I find it.)
Of course I found the book as soon as I posted this. The title is Thin for Life: 10 Keys to Success from People Who Have Lost Weight and Kept It Off by Anne M. Fletcher M.S. R.D.