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> Hints > Past Newsletter Editions > Articles > How to weigh or measure yourself effectively

How to weigh or measure yourself effectively

When it comes to weighing or measuring themselves, there are many mistakes people make that render their weight loss adventure more difficult than it needs to be.

Here are the top mistakes I see people making in terms of weighing and measuring, as well as how you can avoid them so that your weight loss adventure is as easy as possible.

Weighing in too often

One of the most common weight loss mistakes people make is to weigh themselves too often.

When you weigh yourself too often, the results you see on the scales can adversely affect the way you eat.

Have you ever had a 'party in your mouth' on a day you saw a number you liked or disliked on the scales?

Alternately, have you ever gone into a spate of restrictive eating when you saw a certain number on the scales, leading inevitably to break-out overeating?

If you'd simply put the scales out of sight and focused on eating according to your body signals, you probably would have felt better about yourself and eaten less overall, therefore resulting in gradual weight loss.

The only way to know if you're weighing yourself too often is to try weighing in less frequently and see if you get a better result. You may well be astounded by what happens.

For over three decades, Jessie thought that weighing herself every day was helping her to maintain her sleek physique of around 52 kilos. However, when she bravely decided to start weighing herself just once a month in April 2007, she was astounded to lose 1.5 kilos in a month. Since that time, Jessie hasn't gone back to daily weighing and reports that she's blissfully maintaining a weight of 50 kilos and is free from constant angst about the scales. To read more about Jesse's success, click here.

Weighing in at the wrong time

Another top weight loss mistake people make is to weigh themselves at the wrong time.

If you weigh in when you're unusually heavy, it can send you into a tail spin and make you either go off the rails immediately or start a restrictive diet which ultimately backfires.

The solution is to weigh yourself when you're at your nadir in normal weight fluctuations.

Some women gain up to 1.5 kilos in the days before and after their period starts, even if they're not gaining weight overall. If your weight varies significantly over the course of your menstrual cycle, you're better off weighing in just once a month, in the week after your period finishes. Research shows that this is when premenopausal women are at the lightest in their cycle.

If you've eaten more than usual for any reason, such as after a few days of parties or a substantial and salty restaurant dinner, avoid the temptation to peek at the scales! Your body is likely to be storing additional glycogen, which holds onto water like a sponge (page 211 of The Don't Go Hungry Diet). Additionally, eating unusually salty restaurant foods can make you retain water. The overall result is that you can weigh up to 3 kilos more even if you haven't gained a single gram of body fat.

Do yourself a favor: for a few days before you weigh in, be especially mindful of eating only when you feel physically hungry, and be sure to stop eating as soon as you've had enough.

Not weighing or measuring at all

While it's important not to weigh yourself too often or at the wrong time, it's also important to not give up weighing or measuring yourself altogether. This is a common mistake I see in people who give up restrictive diets.

If you don't weigh or measure yourself sometimes, how can you know if what you're doing is working for you?

Research shows that one of the unifying behaviours of people who've lost weight and kept it off is that they monitor their weight regularly. If you can't bear to look at your weight, at least measure your waist circumference as described below.

When 37-year old Yvonne registered for my 3-Month E-Mail Coaching Program in April, one of the first things I suggested she do was to weigh herself on a reliable set of scales and / or get a waist measurement, and then do it again in two weeks' time.

When Yvonne reported back to me after her first two weeks on the program, she was overjoyed to have lost 3 kilos and 6 cm off her waist, all while enjoying a few parties and drinks when she had family visiting for the weekend.

Whereas in the past Yvonne would have considered such events a diet disaster and given up, by knowing that she was able to lose weight nonetheless, she learned that she didn't need to give up her lifestyle in order to achieve her desired weight.

Indeed, Yvonne lost 8 kilos in 6 months, reached a healthy weight of 66.5 kilos, and is pleased to have been able to maintain her weight since then. To read more about Yvonne's success, click here.

Using dodgy scales

When you weigh yourself, do you wonder whether your scales are giving you the truth?

Do you have to weigh yourself five times in a row before you start believing the results?

Do you need to turn your scales upside down and weigh yourself again to be sure your scales aren't giving you some random number they've stored in their 'memory'?

If your scales are untrustworthy, one of the kindest things you can do for yourself is to get rid of them and only use scales that give you reliable results.

Losing weight without restrictive diets is not a steady 'one-kilo a week' adventure. Sometimes you lose more and sometimes you lose less. You need a scale that will clearly tell you how well you're doing, whether you're losing four kilos or four hundred grams in a month.

If you don't like to keep scales at home, use a big set of scales in a public place (e.g. in the chemist's shop, a shopping centre or at the gym). Don't bother looking at percent body fat measurements. While scales that measure body fat by bioelectrical impedance can give you a good indication of your overall level of body fatness, research shows that they are neither accurate nor precise when it comes to tracking changes in body fat content from one month to the next.

If you do like to keep scales at home, invest in a reliable set. I've spent so much money over the years on scales that gave me dodgy readings, so I finally bought a set from a medical supply company. My new scales cost twice as much as any other scales I've ever bought, but they're sturdy and dependable and the peace of mind they give me is worth every cent. If you'd like to purchase the same scales, I now have a few sets available through my E-Shop. For details, click here.

Back up your data with a waist measurement

When 54-year-old Millicent started losing weight by listening to her body, she was pleased to register an approximately half-kilo loss at each of her fortnightly weigh-ins. It was slower than what she'd managed to lose in restrictive weight loss attempts in the past, but she was happy with her results because it didn't come at the price of being constantly hungry.

Then one day Millicent went interstate to host a trade display at a one-week conference. She was on her feet all day, every day, and she did loads of walking around the gigantesque convention centre. She was so busy that she scarcely had time to eat. When she did eat, she was careful to eat according to her hunger because she knew her next weigh in was just around the corner. She felt certain she'd see a great result that fortnight.

So when she came home and saw she hadn't lost any weight in the past fortnight, she was so disappointed she lost her momentum and regained 2 of the 2.7 kilos she'd already lost in the past twelve weeks. Had she taken a precise measure of her waist circumference, however, she would have had a second chance of receiving the positive reinforcement she needed.

It's quite common to lose centimeters from your waist even if you don't lose weight on the scales, especially if you do more activity than usual as Millicent had done. That's why I recommend you weigh and measure yourself precisely during your weight loss adventure, because then you get two bites at the cherry of positive reinforcement that will motivate you onwards.

Your waist circumference is the distance around your waist. To measure it precisely and accurately, take a tape measure and run it around the narrowest part of your torso between the top of your hipbone and the bottom of your rib cage. If there's no obvious narrowing between these two landmarks, measure your waist circumference at the mid-point between landmarks. Make sure the tape measure is flat against your skin, but don't pull the tape so tightly that it digs into your skin. Relax your abdomen - neither sucking it in nor letting it all hang out - exhale, and take your measurement. Take several measurements until you consistently hit the same number each time you take a reading.

Over to you

Here's something you can do immediately to put these ideas into action.

Are you ready to make 2009 the year you escape the prison of yo-yo dieting for good?

If so, start with some precise data so you'll know how well you're doing.

First thing in the morning, weigh yourself and / or measure your waist circumference and write down your measurements.

Now put the scales and tape measure out of sight and out of mind for a couple of weeks so you can concentrate on connecting with your body signals.

If you eat only when you feel hungry and stop before you've had too much, and provided you eat at least two servings of fruit and at least five servings of veggies every day, then when you weigh and / or measure yourself again in two weeks' time you'll probably be thrilled with your results. Add some regular physical activity to the equation and you'll accelerate your progress.

It sounds simple and it is. The only catch is that in order to be absolutely certain you're reading your body signals accurately, it's essential that you keep a written record of how hungry and satisfied you feel before and after everything you eat or drink using a Success Diary as described here.

If you'd like to ensure your success, reserve your place in my Summer Weight Loss Boot Camp this month and receive a 20% discount off any of my coaching programs. To register now, click here.

Have a great month and 'see you lighter',

Amanda

Dr Amanda
Connect with your body
www.DrAmandaOnline.com