Looking at people who come to the gym, I notices that weighing has become a ritual before and after training.
But is that the best time to weigh yourself and how big of a importance is weighing to overall progress?
WHICH SCALE IS THE BEST?
First and foremost, if you want to lose weight you need to be consistent. That includes regular weighing at the same place with the same scale. Today when all scales are digital, there is correct or incorrect scale. If you weigh yourself once in pharmacy, second time at home, third time at friend’s place; it is normal to see discrepancy. Every scale and place of weighing is a little different, so always weigh yourself on the same scale and at the same place so you’ll have the most concrete information for tracking your progress.
WHAT TIME IS BEST FOR WEIGHING YOURSELF?
Immediately after waking up. Don’t weigh yourself after lunch or in the evening because your weight oscillates throughout the day 1-4kg. Ideal time is in the morning after coming back from the toilet at the same place where the scale is. That is the most concrete weight for that time of day.
WEIGHING AFTER TRAINING?
Weighing after training sounds tempting so we can see progress, but that is not a good sign of progress. During training we lose water and scale is going to show a few kilograms less than before training. But that is not accurate weight. As soon as you start drinking water, you’ll regain all the lost water weight. Advice: don’t weigh yourself after training if you want to know how you’re progressing.
WHAT TO WEAR FOR WEIGHING?
You want to know your weight, so weigh just yourself. Ideally without clothes. If you weigh yourself in clothes and depending on the season, you’ll weigh extra 2-3kg, maybe even more if you have really heavy winter jacket.
If you don’t an opportunity to weigh yourself without clothes, then try doing it every time in the same clothes. For weighing in different clothes count +/- 2-3kg extra.
HOW OFTEN TO WEIGH YOURSELF?
You can weigh yourself every day, every week or longer depending on your goal. If your goal is to build muscle or just gain weight, weigh yourself every week.
If your goal is to lose 10 or more kilograms, weigh yourself also every week, but if your goal is to lose less than 10 kilogram, then weigh yourself every 2-3 weeks.
Finally, there isn’t a golden rule, you can weigh yourself whenever you want and it is just not recommended every day.
IS WEIGHING IMPORTANT?
Weighing is important, but measuring your waist is much more important. 1kg of muscle mass is equal to 1kg of fat mass, but different in size. Muscle is much denser than fat tissue. If your weight is staying the same, that doesn’t mean that there is no progress. Weigh yourself as needed, but regularly measure your waist.
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