Should you weigh yourself on vacation?

To weigh yourself on vacation, or not to weigh yourself on vacation, that is the question. Get my thoughts here: How Using a Scale May Help You Avoid Weight Gain During Vacation published in Healthline.

The Journal of Obesity Medicine writes: "Research suggests adults often gain between 0.4 and 0.9 kilograms (or about one to two pounds) during the holiday season. People who are overweight or obese often gain even more weight during that time period.

This type of weight gain can be cumulative, rarely coming off but frequently going on. Over the course of years and decades, that “creeping obesity” increases a person’s risk for weight-related health conditions, like type 2 diabetes, stroke, and heart disease.

And while a vacation is typically a week or two at most, the winter holiday season stretches for several months. This means over a year there is a serious potential for the scale to sneak upward."

vacation weight gain

“Since the likelihood of indiscretions is higher on vacation, any way to increase accountability, i.e. making you think twice before eating that third cookie before bed since you know you need to step on the scale the next morning, is a good thing,” said Dr. Charlie Seltzer, a physician board-certified in obesity medicine based in Philadelphia, told Healthline. “That being said, it is important to understand that interscale variability is high, so it is not helpful to try to compare your weight on your home scale to your hotel scale.”

Seltzer notes you also need to account for some factors that are inherent with travel, things that can make the number on the scale creep higher even if you’ve not gained weight. 

“Flying often causes major water retention, which can impact the scale. So, with that in mind, use the scale on vacation as a means to increase accountability, exercise damage control, and to keep your head in the game,” he said.

Bottom line, if you're in the habit of weighing yourself already, continuing the habit while you’re on vacation - keeping the above in mind - might help you avoid the dreaded "vacation weight."

Or practice "mindful eating" ie. share dessert, drink 3 glasses of wine instead of 4, sub in some calorie saving crudite (good source of fiber!) for chips or nuts. Most importantly, enjoy yourself!

- Charlie

Do you have more questions about this blog post or Dr. Charlie Seltzer’s weight loss program? Contact Us, and we’ll get back to you within 24 hours.