Part of the leaning out process is to know where you stand, when to jump on the scale is more of a mental check in but an integral part of your ongoing lean out assessment. We discuss, when, how and why you should be weighing yourself.
Key Topics
Why?
When?
Frequency?
When not to….
Why do it
Simply put, stepping on the scale tells you an output of how your nutrition and exercise approach are impacting your weight.
It provides an objective and empirical number to work with.
It keeps you honest, without someone consistently keeping you to your goals on a regular basis, the scale can “bring you back to the table”.
Helps discover trends over time with how your weight fluctuates. (AM vs PM)
Can be motivating to see pounds lost which can help reinforce the daily exercise and training habits.
When
First thing in the morning is helpful as overnight fasting can help to reveal a more true weight.
It is also the time of day who you have not had a meal or other hydration factors to think about in your weigh in interpretation.
Whatever time you do weigh yourself, make it as consistent as possible so that much like a scientific experiment things are repeatable and other factors can be ruled out.
Frequency
Daily? Weighing yourself daily will not reveal any major baseline changes to your weight. In reality you cannot lose but only a limited amount, so daily check ins are not necessary.
Daily measurements are helpful to reveal water loss and other intra daily factors but not to calibrate actual weight loss. Look for baseline changes to your weight on a weekly or longer time frame.
Weekly? If you are actively engaged and motivated to see changes, weekly is a healthy way to track progress. Dont expect weight loss or leaning out to happen every single week but this is a better way to spot trends and have a real look at whether or not you are moving the dial! For many the psychology of weekly weigh ins is better vs daily.
Monthly? This check in will be too far from the last weigh in and can result in lost time if the approach is not working. Try to time your weight checks more frequently than this.
When not to weigh in
If you have been intensively managing your weight and nutrition, a short respite from the consistency of weigh ins will leave you more fresh to stay engaged in your nutrition program.
Weigh in only on the same scale, this can help to reduce confusion and progress. Again, maintain the consistency of the approach like a scientific experiment.
Other key points
The goal is to lean out firstly and have a healthy body composition. Dont get fixated on a number!
Use body fat percentage as a better tool to determine your progress on an ongoing basis. Many scales and devices can measure this directly with varying levels of accuracy.
Think long term and not about any fixed point in time of your current weight. Recognize that a steady and consistent approach to your body composition goals is key. Using weight will help keep you guided and on the rails but it is by no means the only endpoint towards your success and goals.