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Step right up and step right on - over and over

Is it best to weigh in daily or weekly? How about if you just hop onto every scale you see?

By JOHN C. COTEY
Published August 23, 2005

	[Times photo: Michael Rondou]
	John Cotey 20 lbs. later.

Weighing In, John C. Cotey's column about his effort to lose weight, appears Tuesdays in Floridian. His starting weight on July 1 was 250 pounds. To read previous columns and his Web log, The Skinny, please go to www.sptimes.com/skinny

WEIGHING IN: 231

When it comes to advice, the use of scale has elicited more than any other.

There are two camps, each making a strong argument: weigh yourself once a week vs. weigh yourself daily.

The weekly group is the stronger of the two. Their mantra is that the body fluctuates too much and a daily measurement will only discourage.

Those who encourage the daily, just-once-when-you-wake-up weigh-in say it keeps you focused.

Me, I'm in another camp altogether, one I think is a secret society: the weigh yourself every darn time you walk by a scale camp.

I'm not sure if it's a habit or a disease. But I do know if you aren't mentally strong, it's a a bad idea.

Back in the day, I'd gain 2 pounds and shock myself into a day or two of low-carbing. After I dropped the 2 pounds, I'd reward myself with a trip to Panera Bread for breakfast . . . and Taco Bell for lunch.

The next day, I had gained 3 pounds back.

I'd low-carb for a day or two and drop 2 pounds again, and so the cycle went.

But if you were reading closely and are good at math, -2 plus 3 equals 1.

Over seven years, that equals, ohhhhh, 50 pounds.

Score one for the weekly weighers.

Or should we call them the scale blamers? You see, the scale can be a great friend and motivator if you are doing the right things off the scale.

Now, I can't weight - er, wait - to weigh myself every morning. Doing so has kept me honest more than anything else.

When I lose a pound these days, I'm encouraged to lose another. I set goals, like breaking into the 240s (been there), the 230s (done that), the 220s (right around the corner).

And yes, some of my old habits still creep up. Maybe I have a little extra rice, a heartier helping of peas or corn when I'm down another pound. But fear of that number on the scale going up keeps me straight.

By the same token, if my weight stays the same, or is up a pound, it emboldens me to bear down and have a better day. The helpings become smaller, the workouts a little longer.

Score one for the daily weighers.

Constant weighing, that one I can't explain. It's neurotic. It's addictive. It's stupid.

But I can't stop. I can tell you I hate the scale at the Winn-Dixie near my house, and though the Publix scale nearby seems accurate, the other one just a mile away isn't even close.

The scale at the YMCA? Perfect. The one at the GNC store at University Mall? Not so much. The one in the bathroom in the cafeteria at work? Puh-lease.

You name a scale in the greater Tampa Bay area, and it has my footprints on it.

My obsession does have some benefits. Last week, I weighed myself before bed, and the scale told me 234. I woke up at 4 a.m. to go to the bathroom, and the scale told me 233.

After going back to bed and waking up four hours later, another trip to the bathroom told me I weighed 231.5. I weighed myself at various times during the day to make sure that wasn't a fluke, and the number wavered just slightly.

About 20 weighings later, the next morning, I hit 231.

Score one for the weigh yourself every darn time you walk by a scale crowd.

Now if you'll excuse me, I hear the vitamin store down the street just put in a new scale.

[Last modified August 22, 2005, 17:20:50]