11 Things You Need to Know Before Stepping On That Scale

Oct 10, 2018

When trying to lose weight, maintain weight, or gain muscle, scales are not our friends. Seeing your weight every day can lead to disappointment, negativity, and heartache. However, you can’t focus so much on the scale.

They are tricky, and we can’t believe what they say without considering other factors that cause changes in weight.

Here are a few crucial factors to keep in mind before you step onto the scale.

To be able to track your weight accurately, you should weigh yourself at the same time of day every time. The best time to weigh yourself is in the morning after you go to the bathroom, but before you have eaten anything.

Wear the same or similar clothes every time you weigh yourself. If possible, try to weigh yourself without any clothes on at all. Clothes can be heavy and cause your weight to be different just because you wore something different.

Where you put your scale can affect the weight it shows. You should put it on a hard and flat surface, not carpet. If it is on a soft surface or not lying flat, you can get an inaccurate weight.

If you aren’t standing still on the scale, it won’t read accurately. Try to keep your weight equal between both feet. It works best if you are barefoot. This will get the most accurate reading.

Scales differ from one to the next. The working mechanism is different for each company so the reading will vary slightly.

Certain scales also provide much more information than a basic scale.

To prevent a confusing scale reading, it is best to use the same scale every time you weigh yourself.

Believe it or not, weather can actually affect your weight. Scientific studies show that lower temperatures, high precipitation and the speed of wind can cause weight loss.

However, these slight changes are not permanent.

If your weight is higher than normal, think about what you ate the day before. If you had a lot of salty foods or food high in sodium, you body is probably retaining water. This will cause your weight to increase, just temporarily. But it is just water weight and won’t stick around.

For women, weight can change because of hormonal changes. Periods and ovulation cause your body to retain fluid. This will cause an increase in the scale.

It doesn’t have anything to do with what you actually weigh. It is only temporary. Check your weight in a few days and see if it has changed.

Your weight can be different based on your body composition. Muscle is more dense than fat, which means it weighs more. Knowing your body fat percentage is very important.

You could actually be gaining weight but getting leaner by gaining muscle.

You shouldn’t weigh yourself right after a workout. Your weight will be lower but this only because of dehydration. It’s not because you actually weigh less.

If you do weigh yourself after a workout, this should only be because you are trying to keep track of your fluid loss.

You should never weigh yourself after having a night out. Food at restaurants is usually filled with salt, fat, and sugar. In addition, you usually eat more than usual at restaurants. You tend to retain a lot of fluid after having a night out.

Because of this, you should wait at least a day or two after a night out before weighing yourself again.

Before you get on the scale again, take these factors into consideration. Don’t take the numbers so seriously!

Let us know what you think of these helpful tips and make sure you share them with your friends!

Our content is created to the best of our knowledge, yet it is of general nature and cannot in any way substitute an individual consultation with your doctor. Your health is important to us!