Anorexia recovery involves both physical and psychological changes, with the former being primarily assessed by regular weigh-ins and other examinations, such as blood tests. However, it is important to not allow the scale to take over and weigh more frequently than once a week, or twice a week during inpatient treatment.
Benefits of Weekly Weigh-ins in Anorexia Recovery
Regardless of whether a sufferer is in the weight restoration or weight maintenance phase of anorexia recovery, there are multiple advantages to engaging in weekly weigh-ins. Without knowing whether one has lost, maintained or gained weight, it is very difficult to guage whether or not calories need to be adjusted or remain the same. Weekly weight recordings can be plotted on a graph, helping the patient to see progress and understand how weight fluctuations are absolutely normal and not something to be feared. In Beating Your Eating Disorder, Waller et al. (2010) highlight that how a person feels about their body and how their clothes fit are poor predictiors of changes in weight, making it important to not rely on such indicators during the recovery process. For those who are in the weight maintenance phase, knowing what their weight is each week will help make it easier to spot if things are slipping, thus providing the opportunity to adjust the menu plan sooner rather than later and minimising the chances of a slip turning into a full blown relapse.
Practical Implications of Weekly Weigh-ins
The best way to get an accurate weight recording is to weigh oneself at the same time and in the same clothing each week. First thing in the morning is typically a good time and wearing either one's nightwear or underwear. Using the same set of scales is important, as weight can vary significantly on different scales, causing unnecessary stress. In a small study carried out by Dr. Jaffa et al. at the Cambridge and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, both ex-patients and eating disorder professionals were more concerned with accuracy than privacy, highlighting how weighing in underwear is preferred to get the mosty accurate reading. It is also important to recognise that factors such as menstruation can have a significant impact upon weight, as a result of water retention. Therefore, it is useful to look for changes over a period of a few weeks, rather than allowing a red herring to cause panic.
As highlighted above, weekly weigh-ins help keep track of progress and thus provide a useful factual basis for adjusting one's menu plan or calorific intake. The key to accuracy is to always weigh oneself at the same time, in the same clothing and on the same scale.
Sources:
Jaffa et al. Eur. Eating Disorder Review 2011 19;368
Waller et al. (2010) Beating Your Eating Disorder Cambridge University Press
Kate Le Page - Kate Henning-Le Page writes about eating disorders, body image and recovery issues. She specializes in anorexia recovery.
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