Years ago some smart guy told me to forget about the scale. He said that weighing myself everyday was meaningless. After a while it finally sunk in and I realized he was correct…well sort of. You see I like many use the scale as a benchmark tool but the major difference for me today is I pay less attention to the “#of pounds” readout on a day to day basis. I’ll share with you a recent story that will show you why the scale can be SCARY and how to avoid letting it get you down.

     Day to day weight fluctuations occur for a number of reasons and it does not mean you are gaining or losing fat…WHICH SHOULD BE THE GOAL. The daily fluctuations mostly have to do with factors like those listed below:

1. Eating & drinking. It sounds simple, but why would you weigh yourself after finishing a meal? You may as well step up on the scale holding your dinner plate. I try to weigh myself the same time and under the same conditions, normally first thing after waking in the morning and last thing before going to bed…but not after I just finished a meal or a drink.
2. Water intake. Water is so essential, yet some people avoid it thinking it will help their result on the scale. In fact, just the opposite is true. If you are always in a state of dehydration when you finally do get your glass of water your body wants to hold onto it. DRINK WATER REGULARLY. IT IS VITAL TO YOUR HEALTH AND WILL ACTUALLY AID IN WEIGHT LOSS IF YOU ARE PROPERLY HYDRATED. A simple rule of thumb is to drink 2 glasses with each meal or about 10 glasses per day. A more specific amount would be half your body weight in ounces (ex. A 200 pound man would drink 100 ounces of water), and this amount would increase on workout days to keep you hydrated during the activity. RULE OF THUMB- IF YOU ARE THIRSTY YOU ARE BECOMING DEHYDRATED….drink before you become thirsty!
3. Glycogen Stores. Glycogen is stored energy in the body and to support this form of energy in your body it requires about 2 grams of water per gram of glycogen. What does this mean? Depending on the carbohydrate intake of your diet and your level of activity you can have some pretty large weight swings (see my personal story below). In the end it is all water weight swings. This does not mean carbohydrates are bad.
4. Exercise. It may seem obvious, but don’t weigh yourself after your activity… Yes, you may weigh less due to water loss during activity, but I assure you this is TEMPORARY.
5. Sodium intake. Watch your salt intake! Most doctors advise between 2000mg and 2300 mg per day…which is about a teaspoon of salt. Sodium makes you hold onto water.
6. Hormones. Woman may experience sudden weight gain that can occur prior to menstruation. This is the result of water retention caused by hormonal changes.

     GET THE POINT? The body can hold onto or expel water quickly based on the factors above and so you should not celebrate or be upset about the 2 pound gain or loss from yesterday. THIS IS NOT FAT LOSS, which is the real goal.

     A recent personal experience will make the point very clearly. I was away on a father & son weekend at a friend’s camp in upstate NY. Essentially the kids are off on their own to swim in the water hole, have paintball wars in the woods, kayak or ATV on the trails. The men essentially split wood and keep the fire going all day long and basically eat BBQ for 4 days while washing it down with beer. I essentially gave in and decided it was not worth worrying about how to get a thermogenic meal while at the camp and decided to go with the flow and enjoy myself…including pound cake and beer for dessert! I was also dehydrated since I had been having alcohol and less water than I normally would drink…so when I finally got hold of some water I stored it. Long story short is I got to camp at 227, four days later I was home weighing 236. I did not beat myself up or get dejected, I just went back to my routine, which included cardio almost everyday and resistance 3 to 4 times per week AND JUST AS IMPORTANT on the nutrition side I was eating thermogenic meals and snacks with lean proteins included. Four to 5 days later I was back to 227 pounds…ALL WATER WEIGHT!

     I would suggest to anyone that feels they need to use the scale regularly that you invest in a bio-impedance scale. I use a Tanita brand scale called Ironman, which essentially can store statistics for four people and sends a small electrical impulse through your feet while weighing you( The time it takes the impulse to travel through your body and out to the other sensor lets the machine approximate your body fat %, %water weight and other variables). I use this as a benchmark tool and I am not particularly concerned with any given readout and any given day…IT IS ABOUT THE LONG TERM TREND!

I will leave you with these thought:

• THINK LONG TERM
• SMALL STEPS LEAD TO BIG GAINS
• STAY FOCUSED ON YOUR LONG TERM GOALS
• WATCH YOUR BODY FAT % MOR ETHAN YOUR WEIGHT… body composition improvement is the REAL GOAL. You may not be losing weight on the scale, but you may be dropping sizes down on your clothing! That means more muscle, better body composition, higher metabolism!
• Do not celebrate or punish yourself over a daily measurement the constantly changes due to many factors… KEEP YOUR EYE ON THE PRIZE and think LONG TERM.