The Big Question: Weighing In
By FrancescaFrancesca and Plumcake want to know:
How often do you weigh yourself?
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November 14th, 2007 at 9:28 am
Maybe once every two weeks. Or once a month. It depends. I’m not a slave to the scale though. I have friends that obsessively weigh daily. It makes no sense because weight naturally fluctuates.
November 14th, 2007 at 9:51 am
Probably once every three weeks or so…. I think!
I only weigh myself if I think I’m starting to get closer to a certain magical “no-no” weight that I have set in my head. I usually go by the fit of my jeans and shirts rather than the scale because of my bone and muscle.
I’ve learned not to be a slave to the scale, at 5′7″ when I weighed 140 people were starting to ask the hubby if I was ill….
November 14th, 2007 at 9:55 am
I don’t. Not even at the doctor’s office.
November 14th, 2007 at 10:16 am
Never.
November 14th, 2007 at 10:21 am
Never.
My daughter, age 13, was just weighed at the doctor’s office. (She’s a size 0.) I realized that I only weighted 20 pounds more than she when I graduated from college. Yet I thought I was “fat” and needed to diet! All those wasted years!
November 14th, 2007 at 10:42 am
Every Sunday morning at Weight Watchers.
November 14th, 2007 at 10:46 am
About once a week if I’m trying to lose weight.
November 14th, 2007 at 10:48 am
Once a week on Monday morning.
November 14th, 2007 at 10:52 am
I use my clothes as a gauge; I don’t own a scale. If I did, I’m afraid I’d be hopping on it all the time.
May I say that I don’t have nearly the clothes-search issues that you writers do, but that I read this every day for the insights, humor, and tips? Thank you for all your posts. They cut across size, age, and weight. We all need to hear it. It helps keep those sick little head games we’re all susceptible to at bay.
November 14th, 2007 at 10:54 am
A few times each year
November 14th, 2007 at 11:09 am
Currently not at all because I have enough stress in my life without inflating the importance of a number. If I let myself think about it…2 or 3 times a week. I try not to do that though. What matters to me is if my clothes still fit and if I can climb stairs/walk downtown without getting seriously winded.
November 14th, 2007 at 11:10 am
about once or twice a week – I am trying to get healthier, and make my clothes fit better
November 14th, 2007 at 12:06 pm
Only when I feel like I need a jolt to motivate myself to exercise more. For the most part, if I’m happy with my body image, I stay the heck away from The Scale of Doom.
November 14th, 2007 at 12:09 pm
I don’t own a scale, so usually the only time I’m weighed is at the doctor’s office. But I’ve been staying at my parents’ house for a couple of weeks, and I’ve fallen back into the habit of stepping on their scale almost every day.
At first I was thrilled to see I weighed 10 pounds less than I thought (yay for that sinus infection that laid me up for days, barely able to swallow!). Then I started obsessing over each daily fluctuation of a pound or two. I shouldn’t have waited until after breakfast! How much weight did that haircut take off? If I’m going to eat this many cookies anyway, should I just not eat anything else?
Never mind that my clothes fit exactly the same every day, or that I felt and looked exactly the same. I’m going back to my scale-less life soon and will certainly be saner for it.
November 14th, 2007 at 12:12 pm
I haven’t weighed myself since high school. I look away at the doctor’s office. :D
As long as my clothes fit and I’m healthy and happy, who f’ing cares what a scale says?
November 14th, 2007 at 12:14 pm
Once a day, in the morning before my shower. I’m not so focused on the number, but find it helps keep me mindful of my body, which for me is a good thing.
November 14th, 2007 at 12:21 pm
Only when I am pregnant and they force me on the scale.
November 14th, 2007 at 1:14 pm
Every day, but just in self-defense against my compulsive side. If I don’t keep track of what I weigh for a while, it takes on Vast Importance, and I tend to freak out when I do find out the number — whether it’s higher than I expected, lower, or pretty much what I thought. It can unnerve me for days. So I check daily so as to give it less weight, so to speak.
I won’t be weighed at the doctor’s office, though I will give them a ballpark figure if they ask.
November 14th, 2007 at 1:14 pm
Daily, on an accurate digital scale. Then I input the figures in the Google 15, which calculates the 15 day average (eliminates fluctuations.)
November 14th, 2007 at 1:20 pm
At the doctor’s office, which, now that I’m not pregnant with twice/weekly appointments, is once/year.
November 14th, 2007 at 1:31 pm
Only at the doctor’s office. I don’t feel that the scale should be used as a way to judge myself.
I pay more attention to my blood sugars. Given that I am diabetic and seriously insulin resistant, I haven’t been able to lose any weight until I was put on the diabetic meds. And even now, I only lose a few pounds in a month or two.
My biggest problem is that I forget to eat. And no doctor I see believes me.
The combination of that and the diabetes means my metabolism is slower than a snail – so everything, including protein, goes straight to my weight. I have been able to maintain weight for over 20 years (instead of gaining it like I did as a teenager), but losing weight has constantly eluded me.
So, obsessing over weight doesn’t help me at all.
November 14th, 2007 at 1:34 pm
Not anymore. Not worth the risk of ruining my whole day. I’d rather be happy.
(I do weigh in at the doctor’s office, but I give myself a pep talk beforehand.)
November 14th, 2007 at 1:37 pm
Only at the doctor’s office, and sometimes not even then. I use my clothes to gauge how my body is doing, weight-wise. It’s usually more accurate anyway, since weight can change for a whole host of reasons. Weight really is just a number and I try not to use it to judge myself. Some days that’s easier than others.
November 14th, 2007 at 2:16 pm
I go by clothes: NONSTRETCH jeans straight out of the dryer. When it’s too hot to wear jeans I still check every month or so that they fit.
November 14th, 2007 at 2:19 pm
I weigh myself nearly every morning, although I don’t let the number influence my eating habits. Its more of a habit to remind myself to eat healthfully, even if I indulge now and then. Typically, I’m able to determine if I’ve gained or lost weight based on how my clothing fits, pants, tops, even shoes and my engagement ring. Those are the true indicators of how I’m managing.
November 14th, 2007 at 2:51 pm
Never. I don’t even own a scale, like others here. I only allow myself to be weighed when it’s absolutely medically necessary.
November 14th, 2007 at 3:20 pm
Every 3-4 months at the gym or the doc’s. I do so much better not watching the scale.
November 14th, 2007 at 3:44 pm
Enough to realize that my scale is the nastiest piece of electronic equipment I own. Why can’t that bitch put our differences aside for one day and show me the number 125 the next time I stand on her? Just once is all I’m asking for.
November 14th, 2007 at 3:47 pm
Once a week. I’m less interested in the absolute number than any changes – it’s simply one way I can get objective feedback about how my body is responding to what I’m doing. (I don’t rely on weight alone – I also take measurements regularly and look at clothing fit because these numbers all react independently.) I have a scale that reads only to the nearest half pound, which is all I really need to know.
My doctor suggested weighing even less often, every other week, but I need the constant of “every Monday morning” or I will forget.
November 14th, 2007 at 3:50 pm
I don’t.
November 14th, 2007 at 3:53 pm
Until a few months ago, two or three times a day. I’ve stopped altogether to get a grip on my sanity.
November 14th, 2007 at 4:11 pm
Only in the doctor’s office, and then I never check the results. I prefer to concern myself with how my clothes fit and how my body is feeling overall. Weight is a number, but it’s a number that has more power to discourage than it ought to.
If I start feeling unhealthy or my clothes get tighter, I do my best to pay more attention to what I’m eating and how much I’m moving. If I feel good and my clothes either fit as they did before or start getting looser, then I figure I’m in a good place and the specific number doesn’t matter.
November 14th, 2007 at 4:34 pm
Every morning right before I jump in the shower.
November 14th, 2007 at 4:52 pm
3-4 times a week, when I remember before my shower. Because when I didn’t, I didn’t notice the weight sneaking on board, it was a nasty surprise to find 15 extra pounds, and a lot more work to take them off.
But it IS just a number. My best friend in high school/college was OCD with eating disorders across the board, and I’ve seen what that can do to even a brilliant person. I’ve learned a lot about how my eating & exercise affect my weight, & how my weight doesn’t necessarily reflect my fitness (clothes are looser but weight is up?).
And I’ve learned not to hit Mr. Man with the scale when he’s upset because he can’t keep weight ON.
November 14th, 2007 at 4:53 pm
Um, maybe once every few months. If I’m trying to lose some weight, once a week.
November 14th, 2007 at 5:16 pm
Only at the doctor, and then I look away. Except now I’m thinking about getting scale, if only to keep things from creeping up on me. An extra 15 pounds isn’t the kind of surprise anyone wants.
November 14th, 2007 at 5:42 pm
Maybe it’s just me, but how does an extra 15 pounds “creep up” on someone? There have to be at least some subtle physical indications that you’re gaining weight — like a tight waistband or snug rear area — right? Or am I just weirdly in tune with the fit of my clothes?
November 14th, 2007 at 5:43 pm
every morning. it’s just a reminder that i’m healthy and happy at the weight i’m at now, and if that starts to go too far upward then i should re-evaluate my exercise habits.
November 14th, 2007 at 7:15 pm
Rarely.
November 14th, 2007 at 7:37 pm
Every day.
November 14th, 2007 at 7:49 pm
Jamais.
November 14th, 2007 at 9:13 pm
Regarding the extra 15 pounds “sneaking up” on you, it’s happened to me. I don’t wear jeans and rarely wear any kind of tight-fitting clothing. The A-line skirts and dresses my wardrobe is built on are surprisingly forgiving. Then, one day, I put on one of the party dresses that I rarely wear and noticed that it was tighter than I remembered it being and didn’t look so good.
I didn’t used to own a scale, but after having 15 lbs sneak up on me in college, losing them, and then having them come right back a year later, I decided to buy one. Now I weigh myself about twice a week. I haven’t lost those 15 lbs again, but I haven’t gained any weight either, which is what’s important to me.
November 14th, 2007 at 9:33 pm
I try not to! But sometimes when there’s a scale lying around and no one’s looking I step on and see how much I weigh. Hihi. Of course, then I’ll become horrified with my weight and crash diet for 30 seconds. At least until I come across a delicious cake/dish/pie/snack/soup which I cannot resist.
November 14th, 2007 at 9:50 pm
Wow. I had no idea that the scale truly had such sway over people! I weigh myself a few times a week. If I weigh heavy, it doesn’t ruin my day. If I weigh light, it doesn’t automatically make my day amazingly better. I’m not phobic, nor do I think the scale is out to get me. What I DO think is that we all need to realize that if you are fabulous and super fantastic, a number on a scale doesn’t change it.
BTW, today it was 207
November 14th, 2007 at 10:26 pm
Uh…I think I weighed last at the doctor’s office. Oh, no, wait: it was at work, just out of curiosity. About three weeks ago, I think. Not sure.
I don’t own a scale.
As for the 15 lbs creeping up, honey, I had **30** creep up, because I’m always in scrubs. They’re too forgiving.
November 14th, 2007 at 10:59 pm
Only at the doctor’s office because they make me…
November 14th, 2007 at 11:32 pm
Once a month, on the anniversary of me starting to work out again (only been three months). I need to get healthier for my own heart…and the babies to be coming next year!
November 15th, 2007 at 12:37 am
Once every couple of days or so — mostly to see that it’s still around the same general number withing a couple of pounds either direction.
November 15th, 2007 at 1:59 am
never at home. i’m at the doctor’s fairly regularly thanks to a few different health issues and they sometimes weigh me but i look away and ask them not to tell me.
like others who have replied, i tend to go more on how clothes are fitting. i find that if i think about weight too much i just get depressed and anxious which only makes me eat more anyway!
great blog by the way.
November 15th, 2007 at 4:25 am
every day. *shrug*
November 15th, 2007 at 4:35 am
Every morning. It helps me keep my weight in check, and add more exercise if possible. I eat more when I’m stressed – like munch on whatever when deadlines are close, so knowing that my weight has gone up, helps me stop.
November 15th, 2007 at 9:04 am
Every couple of days. I’ve lost 40-45 lbs in the last 2 years and have slacked off on the gym recently due to craziness at work so I want to make sure that none of the weight creeps back on.
November 15th, 2007 at 12:10 pm
Never. I had to be weighed for a lung capacity medical test 2 years ago but other than that I just say no thank you at the doctor’s office.
November 15th, 2007 at 2:29 pm
Never. I do better if I don’t know “the number.” Then at the doctor’s office, during the obligatory weigh in, I am alternately delighted or horrified.
November 15th, 2007 at 2:39 pm
A couple of times a year, maybe. I get weighed at the doctor’s office, and every once in a while I get curious and set on my husband’s scale. I was raised to weigh myself every day and use the information to beat myself up. I never bought a scale after I left home, and it was great for my mental health not to have one.
November 15th, 2007 at 3:49 pm
Wow, it never occured to me that you could refuse at the doctor’s office. Makes sense but I guess I’ve always just been a slave to the medical authority. I do weigh myself just about everyday before my shower. I find for me that it takes the stress off knowing that there are daily fluctuations and that each day doesn’t mean a whole lot. I recently gained quite a bit due to stress and lack of sleep and I wasn’t weighing myself during that time. I wonder if I had been if I would have been more cognizant of it because although I noticed that my clothes weren’t fitting well, I way underestimated how much I had put on. When I finally stepped on the scale I was shocked! I started stepping on every day and now I’m maintaining again though I haven’t tried to get into loss mode (have to wait for this stress to come to an end since I know I’ll never lose in this mental state!)
~Kim
November 15th, 2007 at 5:15 pm
After a bout with anorexia in college, I don’t weigh myself EVER. At the doctor’s office, I turn around on the scale and ask the clinician not to say my weight out loud.
November 15th, 2007 at 5:55 pm
Rarely. My weight has hovered around the same number for the last ten years, and I just started going and buying new clothes because the old ones were starting to look *worn* – the thing about having the doctors know your weight is that, when you’re sick and you’re saying “This is REALLY bad” having lost twenty pounds in a matter of days raises the level of concern.
November 15th, 2007 at 11:08 pm
It depends. Sometimes, I’ll go for weeks without weighing. I usually start feeling icky, hop on the scale, and freak out at the number I see (much higher than I’d expected, even with feeling ‘icky’). Then, I’ll weigh obsessively – every single morning between 8 and 9 am. I’ve gotten as bad as weighing myself every single time – before and after – I went to the bathroom. It’s all very cyclical for me. However, I don’t let the number get to me too much because I do understand weight fluctuates throughout the day, so I try to only “officially” weigh myself once a week.
November 15th, 2007 at 11:50 pm
Never
November 16th, 2007 at 3:15 pm
Never and that includes the my annual OB-GYN festivities. They know I’m fat.
November 18th, 2007 at 9:30 am
Never. And I ask medics to keep the number to themselves, should they feel the need to weigh me.
For the first half of my life, I predicated my entire self-worth on the number on the scale. 3lbs over some arbitrary figure and I was a worthless ugly freak; 3 lbs under and I was a paragon of svelte virtue. Then I discovered the liberating concept of self acceptance. It took many years of dedicated hard work to learn how to give myself a break and banishing scales from my life was a conscious part of that process. A couple of years went by before I was able to resist the temptaion to jump on other people’s bathroom scales but I eventually kicked the habit – and my life has improved immeasurably.
November 18th, 2007 at 11:29 pm
Once a week or two, at the gym. We don’t have a scale at home.
December 1st, 2007 at 5:15 am
Every three days or so in the morning. I weigh just about what I want to now and so I usually find it to be a pleasant experience. I usually won’t weigh in if I feel a bit bloated or if my eating habits have slipped in the past couple days. I’ll make the necessary dietary adjustments and try again a couple of days later to make sure any weight I thought I may have gained didn’t stick.