Can tracking your weight every day help you lose weight?

Recently we featured an article on writing for weight loss. This article focuses on how writing or “journaling” can help you recognize blind spots or emotional triggers that cause you to overeat.

More recently; a study by the University of Minnesota has claimed that daily weighing can help you lose more weight.

First let’s talk about the tools you will need to start journaling and weighing yourself every day. A journal can be as simple or as fancy as your tastes desire. Just make sure you have plenty of room to write for each day of the year. As you begin your journaling, you may find that you just don’t write a great amount - but as you continue you may find that your emotions and writers block are unleashed. I prefer a hard copy journal with an attached ribbon to keep my place as the year progresses. Some people prefer keeping their weight loss journal on their computer. Whatever you choose, keep it personal and private – this is your tool to help you grow. You can choose to share it in the future – but for now it is your private weight loss tool.

Preferably you will write as the day progresses. It is a good idea to write down everything you eat, the time you ate it, and what is going on with your day. Also write down how you are feeling that day and anything else that comes to mind. Did you have some conflict at work, at home? Write it all down. Did you eat a bag of chips? Write it down. Most of what you write may not make a bit of sense at all right now but it may help you uncover patterns that were unknown to you before.

Next let’s talk about your scale. It is very important that you weigh on the same scale each day. If you don’t own a scale then purchase a high quality, durable scale that can be located somewhere permanently in your home. The common bathroom scale is very affordable and some are very reliable. If you keep your scale in the bathroom you may want to consider keeping it somewhere that kids or others won’t mess with it.

It is very important to weigh the same time each day. Most people choose the morning because they feel that is when they will weigh the least. Whatever you choose – just try to do it the same time each day.

I think it is a great idea to write your weight down in your journal and how your weight for that day made you feel. However, this is not the only place you will record your weight – which leads us to our third tool:

A graph to plot your fluctuations in weight.  You will be recording your daily weight in your journal but I think it is a great idea to plot your weight on a weekly basis. Plotting your weight on a weekly basis is going to help you spot patterns that you can bookmark by date in order to easily reference in your journal. Also by plotting weekly you are not going to get overwhelmed with daily fluctuations and an abundance of data. Here is an example of how a simple plot of your weekly weight gains or losses will look:

This plot was done with Microsoft Excel but you could just as easily do one with a pencil and a ruler.

Keep in mind that journaling and plotting your weight is going to be of greater benefit as you gather more data. Once you have a years worth of data you may be able to easily spot some triggers that are causing you to overeat or stop exercising. At this point it also might be a good idea to let a very close friend or spouse look over your data to see if they recognize something that may be a blind spot to you. If you would like to learn more about blind spots – read this article on blind spots holding you back in your weight loss efforts.

Notice in the example above how our friend’s weight starts creeping up around mid December and peaking around January 1^st. Most of us would contribute this to the Holidays but a smart journaler might discover that she is very stressed during the holidays because of parties, guests, etc. She may find by reading her journal that she really did not indulge in that much holiday eating but did abandon her exercise program because of increased demands at home and at work. This revelation will let you know how important it will be to guard your healthy habits in stressful times. The important point to grasp here is that the lesson learned is very unique to you – it is probably not something you are going to learn in a book. It is a lesson that will stick with you for life.

You can also use your weight loss tools to discover your strengths and motivations for your success. For example you may find that you steadily drop weight during the summer months by eating healthier and exercising more. Upon reading your journal you discover that your main motivation is the family vacation to the beach. Going to the beach makes you feel good and want to look your best – you find it very easy to eat healthy and exercise during the months leading up to your vacation.

This discovery may lead a person to paste pictures of their summer vacation in front of their exercise bike and on their refrigerator.

As you can see – the possibilities of what you may learn are unlimited. One warning though – you will probably find journaling for weight loss difficult in times of weight gain and emotional turmoil. Stick with it – these times will likely be your greatest teachers.

A weight loss journal and tracking log is a very personal thing – but if you have experiences that you feel will help others and you would like to share them with our readers – feel free to send them in for inclusion on our site.

My wish is that you discover the secrets that will unleash the healthy, happy person inside.

Special offer for our visitors!