When should you weigh after...

[Mandie]

Your period? I just got over mine yesterday and I usually weigh tomorrow. Will it effect my weight?

[tearhsong2]

Weighing yourself a day or two after your period is best because you're body isn't retaining as much water as it can before and during your period. Weighing yourself when you first wake up in the morning, after your morning urination/bowel movement, and before you eat or drink anything is your best bet. It will give you the most accurate number.

[Mandie]

Ok, thanks! :up:

[clickman]

Or throw out the scale.

[tearhsong2]

Or throw out the scale.

That works, too. :)

[Mandie]

I lost a pound and a half! The first time I went on the scale it said 131.5, I went on again and it said 131. I was 132.5 the last time. :nana:

[Descentia]

You'd be happier and healthier if you threw the damn thing away. I go up and down 1-4 pounds a day sometimes! Just forget about numbers and calories and target weights - eat healthily when you are hungry, excercise and try to enjoy life without obsessing about your weight. You seem to be dangerously concerned about it at the moment, and as I am sure some of our members here with long term eating disorders will tell you - it isn't a nice path to travel.

I know how you feel - I've fallen into the trap of becoming over obsessed by my weight in the past and being happy only if the scale went down. But seriously, at your weight and height you are perfect. What weight are you hoping to get to?

[Mandie]

I want to be around 118.

[Descentia]

I understand your desire to reach a goal weight - but my previous post still stands, you are a perfect weight for 5'5"! Post a piccie so we can see you! :)

Trust me, you do NOT necessarily feel magically slim and beautiful once you reach your goal weight!

[Jennifer]

I understand your desire to reach a goal weight - but my previous post still stands, you are a perfect weight for 5'5"! Post a piccie so we can see you! :)

Trust me, you do NOT necessarily feel magically slim and beautiful once you reach your goal weight!

I agree, You will be much happier when you quit worring about you're weight. I think if you weighed 118 you would be underweight.
No matter how much weight I loose I'm still not happy, so I quit weighing myself and quit worring about it and I just eat really healthy and Exercise....

[zoebird]

it might. i gain 4 lbs each month before my period and loose them by the end of my period.

but, i don't know about your body, what it does, or what it "should" weigh before or after menstruation. that's something you're going to have to chart and figure out over time.

also, have you noticed how many of your posts have to do with weight? do you think you might have an unhealthy obcession with it?

[spehlbaund]

I've noticed this as well.. I read that you're sick of people saying this but I think there might be a reason so many people are noticing... just worry about being healthy and at a healthy weight, not looking sickly skinny :)

[tearhsong2]

I want to be around 118.

Mandie, dear, almost every thread and post you make is about how much you want to weigh and how to reach your desired weight. It looks like to me (and a lot of others here) that you're developing a very unhealthy obsession. Please stop doing this to yourself. What you weigh now is a perfectly healthy, normal weight.

[Mandie]

Some posts I make like this one, I just made because I want to know at the time. I don't have an obsession with my weight.

I'm crying right now because everyone keeps going off on me. I've had two other people (not from here) go off on me in the past two days.

[zoebird]

ok, but you do have goals and everything seems to be focused in that direction, even though everyone tells you that your weight is fine.

why did you choose 118 lbs? it's an unusual number. why that number? and what does 118 lbs look like?

[Mandie]

I usually fluctuate with my weight a lot so if I was that weight and I gained a couple pounds I would be 120.

[DannyKass]

I try to weigh myself at the same time every day under the same cirumstances, so that any loss or gain wont be because of me just drinking a big glass of water or whatever.
I didn't know your period could affect your weight. Thats an interesting thing to learn.

[zoebird]

ok, so the questions still stand. Why 120? why 118? what does that look like and why do you want to weigh that number? why is it more important than say, 105 or 135? or 155?

[Mandie]

I just want to lose the fat off of my stomach and legs and it's not just a little fat.

[Descentia]

I think a lot of us understand how it feels to want to get rid of a few extra pounds that are bothering us! And no-one is critizising you either - I know I'm not - as I said, I have had an unhealthy fixation on my weight before and relate completely. What I am trying to say is that you seem to think and worry about your weight a LOT - to the point where it seems to be directly impacting on how happy you are. If this is the case we are worried and just letting you know how it seems from the outside.

[zoebird]

ok, but what does fat have to do with a number on the scale? a lb of fat and a lb of muscle are different. They take up different amounts of space. so, while you may gain muscle and loose fat, your actual weight on the scale may not change.

a better measure, then, would be your body fat percentage. A fitness center, like the YMCA, can do a caliper test for you that gives you a basic idea of your body fat percentage. if you're between 18% and 22%, you're considered "average" for a woman. if you're under 18% and above 14%, you're considered "atheltic/lean" and if you're below 14%, you're in an area that's considered "very lean." and for many women, it's considered "too lean."

there are some body types that hold more fat than the "normal" 18-22%--and for those body types, 24% or so may be very healthy. that just depends on the body type.

so, go and get the caliper test and then make a reasonable goal for "leanness"--depending upon what you want to look like. So, take ideas too about wht you want to look like. for instance, one of my clients wants to "be in better shape, be not so lean that you see a lot of muscles, so a bit soft and feminine looking." we did her first caliper test and she was at 24%. We then decided that she would work toward 20% as her goal.

Another aspect of her goal was to have smaller measurements in her hips and thighs. So, taking into account her body type (which shows the kind of muscle that she will have as she begins to lift weights), we measured her thighs now, and have put a couple of goals into place to loose a few inches.

her fitness plans are tailor made for her. using ayurvedic body typing, we set up an appropriate whole-foods diet, weight training system, cardio regime, and yoga practice. Then, we added in other personal goals such as spiritual goals and mental/intellectual goals.

if you'd like me to help you out a bit, then take an online ayurvedic body typing test, have someone measure you (calves, thighs, hips, waist, bust, chest, shoulders, arms), get a caliper test done for body fat percentage, and then i can help you out with the rest.

ok? this advice could cost you a fortune! :)

[Shadowlee]

:hug: Mandie, please don't cry. The people on this board are concerned about you, because it's obvious that your body image is troubling you.

I'm not sure how old you are, but if you are at school, maybe you should consider talking to your school counsellor. I know my eating habits and how I view my body is tied up with my emotional and mental state. If I'm sad I'll "feel fat" and when I'm in a good mood I'll look in the mirror and like what I see - my emotions have nothing to do with the shape of my body, it's just the way I channel them. Talking to someone might help you sort out your feelings.

[Mandie]

I measured my waist and it's about 33 inches. I went on this site and put in my gender, weight, and waist size and this it what it said:

Body fat percentage: 38%
Total body fat 49 pounds
Lean body mass: 82 pounds

http://www.prescriptible.com/bodyfat.html

[DannyKass]

Where is your waist?
Is that at your belly button?

[annabanana]

I think your natural waist is just above your belly button, between the hips and rib cage.

ETA: Yep.

Q. How do I determine my waist-hip ratio?
A. Using a tape measure, measure your waist below your rib-cage but above your belly button.
http://www.annecollins.com/weight-loss/waist_hip_ratio.htm
There was a hip part too, but all I was looking for was how to measure the waist :)