Weight fluctuations and the weight loss journey - so discouraging!

[Anonymous]

I’ve been on a weight loss journey this year and have lost about 15 pounds so far (slow and steady!) however, I weigh myself several times a day and find myself getting incredibly discouraged by the extreme weight fluctuations I see. Yesterday AM - 147.2. This AM - 151!! I was extremely active yesterday too (ran a 10K, burned about 2500 calories) but also ate a salty dinner. I know this is in my head but it ruins my entire day to see my progress going backwards. This is more of a vent than anything else but does anyone have tips for not letting this bum me out so much?

[Anonymous]

Weight your self less often! Weighing often helps some people but not all. Or keep the numbers in excel so you can see an overall trend..

[Anonymous]

You probably ate a salty, carb filled meal. That'll make you "gain" water weight overnight. Eat less carby today, drink lots of water and your weight will go back down like magic.

Rather than get discouraged by your weight fluctuations, realize that these fluctuations happen. If you are losing weight, next week your fluctuation will be between 146 and 150. The week after that it might be between 145.5 and 148.7...

[Anonymous]

Honestly, at this point I've lost empathy for the people who weigh themselves so frequently. Stupid is, as stupid does.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, at this point I've lost empathy for the people who weigh themselves so frequently. Stupid is, as stupid does.

You do you. As far me, frequent weighing helps me to see if I'm staying on track with my weight loss and it helps me to spot a plateau.

I do not freak out over normal weight fluctuations unless they start to trend upwards - going from 147-151 to 149-153 for instance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, at this point I've lost empathy for the people who weigh themselves so frequently. Stupid is, as stupid does.

You do you. As far me, frequent weighing helps me to see if I'm staying on track with my weight loss and it helps me to spot a plateau.

I do not freak out over normal weight fluctuations unless they start to trend upwards - going from 147-151 to 149-153 for instance.

DP. If it actually helped as you claim it does you would not have started this thread.

[Anonymous]

I like the Happy Scale app. It lets you see trends over time which is helpful for me since fluctuations are also discouraging for me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, at this point I've lost empathy for the people who weigh themselves so frequently. Stupid is, as stupid does.

You do you. As far me, frequent weighing helps me to see if I'm staying on track with my weight loss and it helps me to spot a plateau.

I do not freak out over normal weight fluctuations unless they start to trend upwards - going from 147-151 to 149-153 for instance.

DP. If it actually helped as you claim it does you would not have started this thread.

+1

It's clearly not working. And also rather disordered. You gotta get to a point where you stop caring about a meaningless number on the scale, and on how you feel - how your clothes fit, how much energy you have, how your fitness is going.

People who find lasting success and happiness after weightloss, learn to measure their body and health through other means.

[Anonymous]

Thanks all - OP. To clarify, I have not commented since my original post. Weighing myself does keep me accountable, but maybe I’ll cut down to a few times a week instead.

[Anonymous]

If you must weigh daily, weigh once a day, at the same time, under the same conditions. Preferably first thing in the morning after you’ve used the bathroom. Weighing multiple times a day is foolish and meaningless.

[Anonymous]

I started a weight loss journey at the beginning of March (22 pounds down, woo hoo!). You CANNOT weigh yourself that often and be successful. You'll get discouraged and that's one of the reasons people give up. Weigh yourself twice a week. I try to do the same day, but take note of what may cause it to be a false reading. Normally monday/Fridays are my days but we are going to a cookout tonight so the scale tomorrow will be a false reading because of the bloating. I won't overeat but I will eat food that's salty and carb heavy. I'll weigh myself on Tuesday.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, at this point I've lost empathy for the people who weigh themselves so frequently. Stupid is, as stupid does.

You do you. As far me, frequent weighing helps me to see if I'm staying on track with my weight loss and it helps me to spot a plateau.

I do not freak out over normal weight fluctuations unless they start to trend upwards - going from 147-151 to 149-153 for instance.

DP. If it actually helped as you claim it does you would not have started this thread.

I'm not the Op. I'm just a person who weighs regularly and I find it helpful to do so.

And it absolutely does help me to track my weight fluctuations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I started a weight loss journey at the beginning of March (22 pounds down, woo hoo!). You CANNOT weigh yourself that often and be successful. You'll get discouraged and that's one of the reasons people give up. Weigh yourself twice a week. I try to do the same day, but take note of what may cause it to be a false reading. Normally monday/Fridays are my days but we are going to a cookout tonight so the scale tomorrow will be a false reading because of the bloating. I won't overeat but I will eat food that's salty and carb heavy. I'll weigh myself on Tuesday.

I've lost over 50 pounds in the last 7 months. I weigh every day around twice a day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ve been on a weight loss journey this year and have lost about 15 pounds so far (slow and steady!) however, I weigh myself several times a day and find myself getting incredibly discouraged by the extreme weight fluctuations I see. Yesterday AM - 147.2. This AM - 151!! I was extremely active yesterday too (ran a 10K, burned about 2500 calories) but also ate a salty dinner. I know this is in my head but it ruins my entire day to see my progress going backwards. This is more of a vent than anything else but does anyone have tips for not letting this bum me out so much?

Congratulations on your weight loss! You’re on your way, but you need to be more patient with yourself. While you’re losing weight, you should weigh yourself only once per week. That’s because everyone’s weight varies a pound or so from day to day no matter what they eat or how much they exercise. A pound or two gained or lost in one day is just noise. A weekly reading is much more meaningful. But once you do reach your desired weight, you will need to check your weight every day. There will be some variation of a few pounds more or less day to day, but you will be fine as long as you learn to stay within that natural variation. This is what I have done to successfully maintain my 52 pound weight loss over the past few years. The longer you keep your weight at your desired goal, the easier it gets to maintain it
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[Anonymous]

Weigh yourself when you want to weigh yourself, but if it is every day know that there are fluctuations and track it so you can see the forest not the trees through following trends.

I have long weighed myself every day when losing weight and for me it helps keep me motivated. If I were only weighing myself once a week it might be on the up day, so I would not see progress. Everyone is different, you need to find what works for you. I agree only once a day in the morning so the circumstances are comparable.