Scale's a liar!

Hong Kong Yanpep International
the once-a-week weigh-in reduces frustration because the week averages out the daily fluctuations that have nothing to do with fat loss - water weight, digestion timing, salt intake, sleep quality all move the number in ways that can look like failure on a daily read. the weekly comparison tends to show the real direction while the daily one mostly shows noise
 
Really appreciate you saying that, it genuinely lit a fire under me to keep working on this, the scale just sitting still had me feeling pretty discouraged.
 
Honestly don't think OP's exaggerating at all. First off, she's comparing a scale at her doctor's office against her home one. Calibration differences happen easily between the two.

Second, maybe her digestive system had been backed up for days while eating very little, then things finally moved and the number on the scale shifted.

Third, could be fluid retention from salty food the day before that's now worked its way out.

Fourth, hormonal cycle timing.

Your logic makes sense on paper, but it skips over everything else that can swing a scale reading. Sunday I weighed 184, spent the whole day traveling, ate just one meal, a sub with fries on the side. Was parched from all that sodium, so drank a ton of water, that's literally all I had plus some cardio, and Monday morning the scale read 189! Back down to 184 again this morning. Looking at my actual calorie intake, there's no way that accounts for a genuine 5lb swing either direction in that window.

I'm confident something similar is going on with OP. Most likely that earlier reading just wasn't accurate. Also, starting from a higher weight tends to mean pounds drop off quicker, fortunately.

OP, grab a smart digital scale from any general retailer online. The companion app can build a log automatically for you
 
Thank you! I actually own a scale and I'm honestly a little surprised I haven't felt the pull to step on it. Clothes are fitting looser, I just feel lighter overall, and for whatever reason that's been plenty satisfying on its own for now!
 
Seriously, avoid comparing results to others.
Everyone probably falls into that trap eventually. Resist it. A rare few respond exceptionally well, most don't. Some lose everything at a small amount, others need a much higher level before anything shifts. Everybody's wired differently. Skip the comparisons, they just drain the joy out of this.
Take measurements and photos regularly. The scale tells only part of the story. Weight can drop without inches changing. Inches can shrink without the scale moving. For photos, a daily one-second video diary app works great for actually seeing how the face and body shift over time. Highly recommend.
Everything else tends to fall into place. Some people deal with heavy side effects. Others barely notice any. Personally, staying hydrated plus a fiber focus has been the real winning combination. Shifted toward lower calorie, lower carb, higher protein eating overall, tracked closely. Early on, had to make sure intake stayed high enough, above a certain minimum.
Don't fear calories or hunger. Expect hunger to creep back around days five through seven. That's completely normal. Nothing's wrong. Hunger isn't inherently a bad sensation. On those days, a sixteen-eight intermittent fasting window helped manage intake.
Exercise always helps, but the real focus should be building the habit. The body's being supported through a real transformation. Spend the first three months just showing up consistently, whatever that looks like...
 
Thank you, this comment stuck with me for a while. Scale progress wasn't great for a stretch, but reading this helped realize things were still going in the right direction overall.
 
So right! Im getting stronger every week, and hard workouts dont leave me ravenous anymore. The scale surely tells just a piece of the story. Thanks for the reminder!
 
Blame the scales, not yourself. Your reading shifts by the hour, by the day, by the week. No reading ever shows your true weight, since glycogen, meal volume, illness-related water, stress, poor sleep, muscle repair and so on constantly nudge it. So don't dwell on it. It's a tracking tool, and the real value is spotting patterns and dealing with causes promptly.
 
Your weight looks stuck probably since you're dropping fat and adding muscle, which is how it should go. Don't obsess over the scale, it says little compared with how your body actually looks. Some people reach goal weight and look awful, since the magic number is on the scale but muscle went along with the fat, leaving skin hanging off the bones. Which would you rather be? You seem to be getting most things right. That number simply isn't worth caring about.
 
if you actually read up on where the bmi scale came from, it's kind of wild we still rely on it so much. i've lost close to 150 lbs and i'm sitting around 221 now, but honestly i look great, solid and built, not flabby at all. according to bmi i'd still need to drop another 60, which would just leave me looking gaunt. i'm already getting some filler done next week since my face lost basically all its fat. anyway, figure out a number with your own doctor that actually makes sense for you, mine's fine with where i'm at and says i can move to maintenance whenever i want, my a1c went from 12.7 all the way to 4.3 and every other fat related issue i had has cleared up completely.
 
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