Tuesday, March 23, 2010

What Does the Scale Really Reflect?

Back in October I did a post about weighing yourself, and why I choose not to weigh myself often. In my opinion it's not good to focus on a number as a way to gauge your fitness and health (well, at least not the pounds number, other numbers may be helpful, such as blood pressure and cholesterol). Many people tell me that they weigh themselves everyday, and that it can have a major effect on their mood. But does the number on the scale really reflect what you think?


What does your weight (the number on the scale) reflect? Fat, muscle, fluid, skeletal tissue, and other tissues/organs

What changes when your weight changes? Fat, muscle, and fluid. The others do not change with weight, but they may change with age.

Body Fluid
  • Changes regularly, throughout the day.
  • Is effected by hormones, diet, heat, medications, and exercise.
  • If you weigh yourself in the morning, you may easily weigh 3-4 pounds less than you do later at night! Fluid can fluctuate tremendously throughout the day.
  • Women who are pre-menstrual can experience a 3-8 lb fluctuation in fluid weight.
Muscle
  • When you are losing weight, you will loose muscle. Help combat this loss by including a workout regimen, with weights, that lasts 60-90 minutes, 5 days a week.
  • People who are overweight actually have more muscle than people of normal weight. Why? They need to be able to support their extra weight.
  • When you exercise to loose weight, you may not see the weight loss right away because your energy from fat will be used to power your workouts. Working out will help your muscles grow larger in size (no increase in the number muscle cells, only muscle cell size). Muscle weighs more than fat, therefore the scale may not show that you have lost weight.
Fat
  • Fat loss is seen when you consume less calories than you burn.
  • Fat loss can be measured multiple ways, but the most common is via bioelectrical impedance. Your local gym's personal trainers should have a machine to do this, or you can buy a special scale.

Bottom Line: If you want to weigh yourself everyday, that's fine, but keep in mind the number may not accurately represent your efforts to maintain, loose, or even gain weight. If your mood or your diet for the day tends to change depending on the number you see on the scale each day, you may want to consider weighing yourself once every other week, in my opinion.

Healthy Body Fat Percentages

For Health
<55 yrs women: 20-35%
>55 yrs women: 25-38%
<55 yrs men: 8-22%
>55 yrs men: 10-25%

For Fitness
<55 yrs women: 16-28%
>55 yrs women: 20-33%
<55 yrs men: 5-15%
>55 yrs men: 7-18%

Source: ADA Sports Nutrition; A Practice Manual for Dietitians

Bottom Line: These body fat recommendations may not be as low as you thought, am I right? Fat is important for brain function, insulation, and nerve impulse transmission (to name a few). Don't ignore the value of fat!

Coming Up
Tomorrow I will share with you some new products that you will start to see in stores soon! Have a great day everyone, and thanks for reading.

32 comments :

  1. I hate the scale!! I don't even own one. When I would occasionally weigh myself at the gym, my weight would fluctuate 5-6 lbs a day from water/foods/etc. As usual, more great information, girl!

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  2. AMAZING post!! i hate the scale as well-i am gaining bc im gaining more muscle and ppl try to define themselves on a number and it is SO Wrong

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  3. Thank you for this- very timely post. I weigh myself every day (more of a compulsion than something I pay *too* much attention to...I have seen fluctuations and understand why they happen). I just had a full fitness assessment done at the gym though and have been trying to find out answers to some questions- maybe you can help?..

    Obviously too low a body fat percentage is unhealthy, but what are the actual risks? If you do have an unhealthy level of body fat (low, not high) and are working out, does that mean you are breaking down muscle? I guess my questions are pretty medical related since I know that things like the heart is a muscle and if you have little fat OR muscle to use for energy, am I correct in thinking this could be dangerous if workouts aren't fueled properly? I am still figuring out the best way to fuel before/after workouts (doing about 60-80 mins cardio + weight) but am concerned that I might be doing more harm than good. Ack. Sorry- feel free to delete this if it isn't appropriate!

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  4. Such a wise, insightful post... Gaining muscle from working out is a good weight gain! It's a pity ordinary scales haven't yet been designed to reflect body composition rather than just a single weight...

    Thank you for asking about comparison post's I'd like to see! Wow! I'm so excited! :-) I'd love a post about canola oil vs olive oil vs other oils that tend to be popular in blogland (coconut oil, grapeseed oil, etc)... Pretty please? :-) You rock, Gina!

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  5. Great post! I think there is so much emphasis put on what number pops up on the scale. There are so many other factors involved.
    When I was losing weight, I would track not only my weight but also my waist circumference. It can be so easy to get hung up on a number.

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  6. Great post! No wonder you are my favorite RD! I do think that observing trends (i.e increase over one month) may be helpful in evaluating one's health or habits depending on his or her goals.

    I weigh myself about once a week for this purpose- but each time is at night, so I recognize that I am also weighing several pounds of produce and water that found its way into my tummy!

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  7. I like to weigh myself daily, but I like to do it as a way to keep track... for me, it doesn't dictate how I FEEL that day; I'm just interested in numbers and I'm fascinated to see how they change or stay the same over time. I think if it affects our mood, then we need to step away from the scale.

    I also agree with you that everyone NEEDS fat on their bodies; it's vital to survive and to live comfortably, too! But at the same time, many ways of measuring body fat can be incredibly inaccurate, and I also think that different people *need* different amounts of fat on their body to be healthy and comfortable. It's a really individual thing.

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  8. Ha, I lose weight (abt 3-5lbs) when I poop. Scale numbers aren't always so accurate.

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  9. Sigh-- I WANT to hate the scale...but the truth is, I weigh myself three or four times a week, and I just can't seem to break myself of this habit. I will say that I am getting better about not letting it dictate whether I have a bad day or a good one. But I still have a long way to go.

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  10. I never owned a scale until we got a puppy and wanted to weigh her. I have stepped on it maybe 2 times in the past 8 months? I don't like scales. And working out 5 days a week for 60-90 minutes seems like a lot! Is this just for weight loss? Or also for maintainence?

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  11. Great points! The scale should never dictate our mood, but way too often it does... Also, it's so important to keep track of other numbers that are much more important for our health.

    I weigh myself about once per week, just to keep track. I once went without weighing myself for a long time and gained a lot of weight... I of course should have known that I was gaining weight as none of my clothes fit anymore...

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  12. I think you read my post on the scale last week, but I tend to weigh myself every day and let it (slightly) dictate what I allow myself to eat that day haha. So it's not a good or a bad day, though extra ice cream can't be called a bad day haha.

    I think weight is an interesting thing. I look at pictures of myself when I was a sophomore in college and weighed the EXACT amount I do now, and how I hold the weight is just so different.

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  13. Great post! I've never owned a scale and always stayed within about 5 lb. range!

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  14. great post lady :) so many of my clients freak about the scale and weigh themselves everyday! i'm like relaaax people if your jeans are looser then you're on the right track!

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  15. hate the scale! when people ask how much I weigh and I say I have no idea they don't understand HOW i am in the health/fitness industry and don't know how much I weigh but its true, I dont!!! When I go to the DR office, I dont even care to look at the number..its just a number at the end of the day!

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  16. Yes! A lot of people are tied to their scale, and tiny fluctuations due to water gain/loss can have a negative impact on mood. For some people, this constant check works, but I know it doesn't work for me!

    GREAT info about muscle and how it weighs more than fat. I think it's hard for people to continue strength training when they don't lose weight as a result, even though they're actually losing fat and gaining muscle!

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  17. Great post Gina! So many people get way too caught up on the number on the scale. Also, congrats on the house!!! That is so exciting.

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  18. I used to be guilty of weighing myself multiple times a day - its so easy to get obsessive about it!

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  19. All wonderful points, Gina! I've seen several women for some fat GAIN for fertility problems as of late. So interesting what role fat plays in so many areas! Great post!

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  20. I weigh myself often, but it doesn't play a role in how I feel that day. I think by weighing myself frequently it is less of "an event" so it doesn't feel like a big deal. Also, for me, by weighing myself I know what my normal daily fluctuations are so I don't get overly excited when I see it go up or down slightly. Now, being pregnant, I am just really curious about how much weight I'm gaining (none yet) and making sure that it stay in the normal range.

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  21. I really like this post. I do very occasionally weigh myself out of curiosity. However, I realize that it's really about how I feel. Plus I see so many people grow attached to a number (I have been attached in the past) that I just can't do it myself.

    The number on the scale doesn't paint the full picture.

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  22. I completely agree with you that the number is not an indication of how you should value yourself. It is based upon so many factors (many of which are important) and fluctuates so frequently that it really shouldn't rattle you. I don't weigh myself, but I also don't really care what the number reads. If I know I'm living my best life and taking care of myself, the number is the number. It does not determine anything about how I perceive myself. Excellent post!

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  23. oh i love this! i do not own a scale and i am happy about this.....have a great day :)

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  24. I've lost over 100 pounds - and I must admit, seeing those numbers go down was HUGE for me. But I don't weigh myself anymore.

    For one, like you said, our weight fluctuates for a ton of reasons and it's just depressing to see the scale go up a few pounds - even if you know in your heart that it's fluid retention or muscle gain or whatever.

    So, I don't weigh.

    I have kept off over 100 pounds for a few years now and although I'd still like to lose the last bit of "fluffiness" I don't plan on doing it by gawking at the scale. I just take my time and pay attention to how clothes fit and how I feel.

    Great post!! :-D

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  25. I don't own a scale, but have been weighing myself once a week at the gym because I'm trying to gain weight. I don't plan on buying a scale once I reach my goal weight because I don't want to pick up the habit of weighing myself on the regular. As long as my clothes fit, I know I'm good.

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  26. Yes, don't be a slave to the scale. I used to weigh myself daily, all it does is put you in a bad mood. No Bueno. I'm happy that I have overcome the evil scale.

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  27. I love this post!! Thanks so much Gina!!

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  28. Great post! I barely ever get on the scale because I really hate seeing the number. Pants size are much better for me. I am giving away a scale now and can't believe how many people weigh themselves everyyy day.

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  29. Great post -- thanks for sharing the REAL recommendations for fat percentages!

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  30. I used to weigh myself every day but I recently stopped that...now I only weigh myself twice a month!

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  31. Great post, Gina!!

    I think, in many cases, weighing every day can be more harmful than helpful.

    And, love the body fat % recommendations!!

    Great job, as always!

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  32. Great post, Gina!!

    I think, in many cases, weighing every day can be more harmful than helpful.

    And, love the body fat % recommendations!!

    Great job, as always!

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