How often should you weigh yourself and what do the scales really tell you, asks nutritionist Sarah Di Lorenzo

The humble scale can make or break your day, something so small can have such a big impact on many of us but how often should you really weigh yourself?

To do a deep dive into this a lot on your personality type but also your health goals.

Daily weigh-ins can keep you on track and motivated when trying to lose weight but they can also backfire.

For some, weighing daily and not seeing results can lead to frustration, binge eating, bad moods and giving up.

Many people expect a weight loss program to lose weight daily which is not the case.

Weight loss done right is around 0.5 to 1.2kg per week depending on gender, age and stage of the weight loss journey hence the frustration.

My advice on the scales and weight loss depends on your personality type.

My general rule is weekly weighing and ideally every Wednesday which will give you a good steady reading.

Or for those who feel they need the scales more for motivation than Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

I don’t like the idea of weighing daily because the scales don’t move daily.

After consulting for many years there are those who see results on the scales and either do one of two things, reward themselves with something high fat or high sugar or relax a bit on the weight loss journey having bigger portions or picking.

Research shows regular weigh-ins equate to success. A minimum of weekly will show results and also be a guide if you need to change up the weight loss program.

Looking at some research on those who reach their goal weight, generally after two years around two-thirds will regain the weight lost.

Those who weighed more regularly once reaching their goal weight were more likely to keep the weight off than those less frequently.

For maintaining your weight this again comes down to personality type.

I know people who can feel it in their clothes, I know people who find daily weighting bad for their mental health, those who don’t even own a scale and those who have the latest scales with apps attached giving them a daily body composition that is graphed in an app all available on their watch.

It comes down to what works best for you to maintain your healthy weight.

If you are someone who hides from the scale then you need to at least once a week as a minimum.

The worst is where daily weighing will put you in a bad mood for the day and feel self-loathing, for this I suggest once a week.

Regular weigh-ins are also good to see how your body reacts to alcohol and eating out where the body is generally dehydrated by salty foods therefore the scales will show fluid retention.

When it comes to what time of day the research is first thing in the morning.

I call it the three w’s, wake, wee and weigh.

This time of day you will have a true and consistent reading.

Plus your stomach is empty first thing in the morning so you won’t get the fluctuations on the scale from food and beverages that are completely normal.

Plus when you weigh in the morning either weigh naked or in the same clothing daily, be sure the scale is on a flat hard surface.

I mention this as I have had patients weigh on the carpet with incorrect readings.

When it comes to the scale, my advice is to do what works best for you, your mental health, happiness and what keeps you at a healthy weight.