Women and men alike often make the same mistake of visiting their scale on a daily basis. This is ineffective and detrimental for two reasons. Firstly, weight can vary tremendously from day to day and are not necessarily reflective of how healthy you are on any single day. Furthermore, such behavior can have a negatively impact your psyche and damage your will to improve your upon your lifestyle choices.
Setting a goal with regards to weight loss is a good thing. Watching the scale on a consistent and semi-regular basis is a fantastic way to gauge your progress. But do not weight yourself every single day!
The scale can be the cause of a roller coaster of emotions. A loss of a pound one day may result in jubilation while just a small, likely temporary, increase engenders dismay. Such dismay can cause someone to give up hope, when, in fact, they should be ecstatic the changes they have already implemented to their diet and lifestyle.
The primary reason that weight can fluctuate so heavily on a day-to-day basis has to do with the retention of water. Minor fluctuations are not necessarily indicative of the progress you are making. Another way to figure out if you are doing well is to reflect upon how you feel in an overall sense. Are your pants a little less tight or does your body feel learner? Is your energy level up?
These are the types of questions you should be asking yourself in lieu of stepping on the scale. Josh Bezoni recommends that you visit the scale no more than a single time per week. Also, many scales are imperfect so be certain to weigh yourself on the exact same scale over time. Additionally, keep in mind that weight cannot gauge whether you have shed fat and put on muscle. Therefore, it is important to listen to your physical body and not just the number on the scale’s dashboard.