How to Use Your Scale

Many experts don't recommend weighing yourself every day because it can be defeating if you don't see the numbers go down. It's true that many factors can affect your weight at any given moment, including how much water or sodium you've had, what time of day you're weighing yourself and when you last ate, and these factors can skew what the scale reads as your true weight. But I maintain that weighing myself every day helped me lose 25 lbs. steadily and consistently. I don't advocate slavish devotion to the scale, but I do recommend using it as a tool in your weight-loss arsenal--a guide, if you will. If the numbers keep going up, you clearly need to change what you're doing, and there are many ways in my plan to do that. If they're not budging, you need to try varying your caloric intake and exercise routine or simply wait out the plateau until your body adjusts to it and begins allowing weight loss again. If your numbers are going down, give yourself a pat on the back!

I like to weigh myself first thing in the morning every day so I'm comparing apples to apples as much as possible. I use the number as a guide to tell me how I should be eating that day--do I have a little leeway in my portion sizes, or do I need to cut back? More fruit and veggies, or am I eating enough? One thing I've learned NOT to do is berate myself if the number is higher than I'd like. The scale is not a punishment for being "bad"; it's there to help you reach your goals. Take the emotion out of the equation. So if you're not getting closer to the number you'd like to be, ask yourself what you could do differently today to bring you there. If you make those corrections, you'll be pleasantly surprised by the scale in the coming days, weeks and months.