Weight tracking tools
Jeff asked me if had looked at using the Google 15 to track my weight.
The Google 15 encourages you to get on the scale every day by calculating a moving average from your daily weight. We then plot this average alongside your daily scale weight and a goal weight that you set–this gives you a better idea of your weight trend by masking most of the day to day noise that variances in water weight introduce.
I have had a look at it, but don’t actually use it as I use some other tools that do a similar job instead:
The first of these is Physics Diet.
With the physics diet you weigh yourself everyday and it works out a moving average similar to Google 15. To be more precise it uses an exponentially smoothed weighted average with a smoothing constant of .9. If you are more interested in the mathematics behind it you can look here.
One of the nice features is a fancy graph:
The Weight Chart lets you track your weight loss or gain. It shows you how many pounds you are losing or gaining per week, and it shows you what your calorie deficit or excess is.
The beauty of the Weight Chart is that it lets you focus on your overall progress rather than the individual readings on the scale. You will learn to watch, and appreciate the blue trend line that shows the moving average of your individual weight entries.
Daily Weight Entries
The points on the tips of the green and red shaded areas are your daily weight entries. The red area means that for that day, or period of days, your daily weight entries were above the blue trend line. The green area means that for that day, or period of days, your daily weight entries were below the blue trend line.
If you are trying to lose weight then you will want to keep most of your daily weight entries in the green shaded area. As long as your daily weight entries are green, the blue trend line will continue going down. Even when you hit a plateau, and your daily weights remain the same for several days or even a week or more, as long as those weights below the trend line they will continue to pull the trend line down.
The Trend Line
The blue trend line shows the moving average of all your weight entries. Because of the way the moving average is calculated, it emphasizes the weights in the recent past over those in the distant past. This makes the trend line the most valuable part of the Weight Chart.
If your weight changes and goes above the blue trend line you will see the trend line change immediately. If your weight stays above the trend line for very long, the trend line will change directions and show you that your weight is increasing. On the other hand, if you start losing weight at a faster rate the trend line will also show that change almost immediately.
The trend line is especially valuable when you hit a plateau.
The Black Best Fit Line
The black line is the best fit line. It shows you the straightest line that can be drawn through all of the points on the blue trend line. It is useful because it can show you the overall progress of your diet. But it can also be misleading. If your trend line is not moving in the same direction over time as your best fit line, then the best fit line should be ignored.
Another one that I use is Skinnyr:
Skinnyr is rather simple in that all it does is plot your last ten days weight on a graph. It’s a bit simplistic but it’s pretty and gives you a quick snapshot of how you are going. It doesn’t have any other advanced features. My graph for the last ten weigh-ins looks like this:
It’s a bit misleading as it doesn’t take time into account. You may notice that there is a spike between 4/24 and 4/27 but the time gap is the same as all the others which are single days. Having said that, it is pretty and easy to use.
The last tool that I use is Traineo:
I record my weight on Traineo only so that I can get the fancy buttons on the right. T could write a little plugin that would do it for me but I’m too lazy. I only use Traineo for that really but in reality Traineo is more than just a weight tracking tool, it is a weight loss and fitness community.
Traineo’s idea is simple: join traineo for free and pick up to 4 friends or members of your family (who will become your ‘traineo motivators’) to receive weekly email updates on your progress towards your weight loss and fitness goals. Our easy-to-use software allows you to choose what you’d like traineo to report to your motivators so they can give you the motivation, support and accountability you need to achieve your goals.
Overall, none of them is perfect but they all help me track my weight and keep accountable so they are all worth using to me. Has anyone else found something that they could recommend?
Comments
26 Responses to “Weight tracking tools”
Daily Mile
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RoadID
I have been using physicsdiet for the past five weeks — and since I have lost 7 pounds since starting I LOVE IT!
The graphs, reports, and weekly summaries on physicsdiet are great.
Yeah I like it a lot too.
I find the daily weighin requirement helps to keep me focused as well.
Twitter: AndrewENZ
Thanks for sharing these tools & your impressions of them. Very useful! And in my case, timely.
Andrew,
BTW, do you know of any tools out there that track both BF% & weight?
Thanks,
-C
Physics diet will record your bf% if you know what it is.
Twitter: AndrewENZ
Keeping track of my weight loss was important to me during the “loss” phase and is equally important now during the “maintenance” phase (which will never end). I had no idea all these things existed, I think I’ll stick to my weekly weigh-in and simple Excel spreadsheet though. You can see my graph here if you want;
http://ajhblog.wordpress.com/my-weight-and-bf/
Sometimes the tried and true is best.
Twitter: AndrewENZ
How many different places do you need for recording your weight?
Twitter: dtsnake
As many as possible!
AndrewEs last blog post..Quick update
Twitter: AndrewENZ
It doesn’t change your weight, eh! ^^;;;;
Twitter: dtsnake
Very nice, Andrew. Will have to give some of these a try. Like those Physics Diet charts.
Physics Diet is pretty much the best one overall I think.
AndrewEs last blog post..Mental note to self
Twitter: AndrewENZ
I must admit, Physics Diet looks impressive for the chart! I’ve got the Skinnyr graph (always looks quite the roller coaster) and a Traineo button, but I think I’m going to check out Physics Diet shortly… always up for trying new things! Sometimes you like ‘em better, sometimes not. If it records body fat… so much the better!
I do think the Traineo community is nice in case anyone is interested! But like Andrew, I mostly signed up there for the button.
I was searching for \’Diet Loss Weight\’ at google and got this your post (\’tracking tools | Andrew is getting fit\’) in search results. Not very relevant result, but still interesting to read
Wow the internet has pretty much got everything covered. I haven’t heard of these tools yet but I am sure going to check them out.
i love physics diet, and hadn’t seen it. thanks for sharing!
It is always a struggle to get the weight off and then it takes a conscious effort to keep it off.
Being over weight is an emotionally draining and physically draining situation to be in and many times your struggle is reduced to ridicule and insensitivity.
The exhilaration you feel when you look back 5 months before you made a conscious effort and see positive results is truly gratifying and often creates wide smiles and happy tears.
Losing weight can be accomplish but motivation must come from the inside to change the outside.
You can and will do it, just never give up hope.
Only give up the pounds and the inches.
Fat Butt No More
Interesting how people see somethings the same
Hi, you guys should check out this weight tracking website – http://www.bodytrace.com It is starting in 3-4 weeks, its free and also has time-lapse video of your progress…
Sarah
I may have to go check out the Physics Diet chart. I’ve seen you using it in newer posts, and I’ve been searching for something like this…
Gregs last blog post..Seeking Piriformis Relief
Twitter: livefitblog
Hi, I can?t understand how to add your site in my rss reader. Can you Help me, please
graphs are amazing! I should admit that Physics Diet really works! My wife doing this diet about a month and she’s really proud of herself! 4 weeks minus 12 pounds! Great results i should say!
.-= Arnold Schwarzenegger Bodybuilding´s last blog ..How to get an amazing bodybuilding results =-.
And one more thing – did you manage to write a Traineo plugin? Or you are still lazy lol?
Would be a great plugin in my opinion.
.-= Arnold Schwarzenegger Bodybuilding´s last blog ..How to get an amazing bodybuilding results =-.
You would be crazy to not use more Twitter marketing
Do you really think your right, but I really believe that Cal record at the low low. You should tell your intake of calories that you have planned for the day. If you intend to watch TV all day does not take in 2200 calories. However, if you can make a tiring day and practice the 2,200 calories needed. If you’re not enough, you hurt your weight loss effort. Your body will think they are hungry and starts, but the burning of fat. They are actually store more fat if you’re not quite Kalorien.Auch I would not advise you to follow the United States, proposals calories. Everyone is different. If your weight is 220, but 80 pounds is fat you do not have as many calories as someone who is 220 and only 40 kg of fat. Do not burn (fat, calories, make muscle-)
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