Maintaining a healthy weight can improve your quality of life.  Weight gain can pose major medical risks such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke and joint pain. Weighing yourself regularly and keeping track of your weight loss can help you prepare for long term success

1. How to Create a Weight Loss Chart
Co-authored by Courtney Fose, RD, MS
Last Updated: October 8, 2020 References
Download Article
Maintaining a healthy weight can improve your quality of life. Weight gain can pose major
medical risks such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke and joint pain. Weighing yourself
regularly and keeping track of your weight loss can help you prepare for long term success.
[1]
[2]
[3]
1
2
Method
1 Weighing Yourself
Weigh yourself regularly. Studies have shown that weighing yourself on a daily
basis can help you maintain your weight loss goals. It gives you a regular method
for being accountable to yourself.
Try to weigh yourself every day so you can get a sense of which forms of exercise
and nutrition work best for you.
Another option is to weight yourself once a week, which is still effective if you don't
want to weigh yourself every day. Some studies have show that weighing yourself
daily is not an effective motivator for weight loss.You might become frustrated if you
do not see the results you wish to see at the rate you would prefer.
If you have a history of eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia, do not weigh
yourself daily as this can trigger a relapse of your disorder.
Weigh yourself at the same time every day. Most doctors recommend weighing
yourself in the morning as your weight is more likely to fluctuate over the course of
the day. Do it first thing, right after you use the bathroom.
Do not eat or drink anything before you weigh yourself. Even drinking a glass of
water can have an effect on your weight.
Wear the same thing when you weigh yourself. It's best if you can weigh yourself
while you are naked as heavy shoes, sweaters and other pieces of clothing can
contribute to an inaccurate number on the scale.
[4]
[5]
[6]
[7]
Learn why people trust wikiHow

2. 3
4
Buy a scale. If you want to weigh yourself every day at home, you need to own a
scale. The most common forms of scales are digital scales; these are scales that
will produce a numeric value on a tiny screen once you step on them.
There are also balance beam scales, but you will find that these are taller and
bulkier in nature. They might not be the most convenient choice for the average-
sized home bathroom.
You can purchase scales at most home good stores or from websites like Amazon.
If you do not want to purchase your own scale, you can also find them at a gym if
you have a membership and at some grocery store or drugstore pharmacies.
Weigh yourself. Step onto the scale. Stand tall with your feet placed parallel,
under your hips. After a few seconds, the scale will read the number that
represents your weight in pounds.
Record your weight immediately after weighing yourself so you remember it
accurately. You can plot it into your weight loss chart or simply write it down in a
nearby journal or piece of paper.
[8]
[9]
1
2
Method
2 Creating a Chart in Excel
Open a new Excel document. Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet program that is
compatible with PCs and Mac OSx computers and the mobile operating system
iOS. It has the ability to make calculations and form graphs and charts based on the
data you enter into the spreadsheet.
Move your cursor to the top two left columns in the spreadsheet. Name the first
column "Date" and the second column "Weight." Fill in the date and weight data
that you currently weigh. Don't worry if you only have information for one or two
days to add to the chart.
If you want to keep just a simple log of your weight and its corresponding date on
which you weighed yourself, you could just use these two columns here to record
your progress.
If you do not have Excel, you can also try using Google Sheets, which is available
for free online. You can find it if you type "Google Sheets" into the Google
search engine.
Create a line graph for your weight loss. If you want to take the data you have
entered into the date and weight columns and turn it into a line graph chart, you
can see the ups and downs in your weight loss journey.
Open the Excel Fluent Ribbon by going to the Insert tab and then selecting Charts.
A number of different chart templates will appear in the upper left corner of the
spreadsheet.
[10]
[11]
[12]

3. 3
Select the Line option from the different graph options in the menu. As you click on
that, a series of different line options to use will appear. Choose the "marked line"
graph option.
Then name the X and Y axis. Find the "Select Option" in the menu bar. You can
also right click on the graph and click the "Select Data" option. This will allow you to
define the columns you want to include in the chart. It will also allow you to name
the X and Y axis.
Customize your chart. The advantage to creating your own chart is that you can
add extra values to it. If you want to measure things such as your heart rate, waist
measurement in inches, blood pressure or mood, you can also add these to the
chart.[13]
1
2
3
Method
3 Downloading a Weight Loss Chart
Run a Google search for "weight loss spreadsheet." If you don't want to design
your own chart in Excel, you can download some pre-designed Excel templates
that will chart your progress.
Type "weight loss spreadsheet" into your favorite search engine and hit the
"search" button. A variety of options will come up.
You can download these Excel spreadsheets directly onto your computer. All you
will need to do is plug in your data (such as height, weight, and the dates) into their
corresponding columns.
If you do not want to fill in your spreadsheets digitally, you can download pre-
printed sheets and then manually write in each piece of data.
Update your spreadsheet regularly. After you have downloaded the spreadsheet,
make sure that you continue to use it after you first open it. Set a reminder on your
phone or computer to remind you to complete it.
Save your work. If you are working from a download, you will need to save your
work regularly. You might also want to save the spreadsheet to a cloud service
such as Dropbox or Google Cloud. Saving it on a cloud will preserve it in case anything
happens to your computer.
1
Method
4 Tracking Your Weight Loss Online and On Mobile Devices
Check out This Effective Way of Losing Weight

4. 2
3
Find an online website where you can track your progress. Many websites allow
you to track not only your weight, but the calories in your food, your mood, your
exercise and eating habits.
Fit Day, MyFitnessPal, and Loseit! are popular options.
Weight loss websites often have other communal aspects, such as message
boards and blog posts where you can find support and motivation from other users.
Use a weight loss app on your mobile phone. You might find that you use your
phone more regularly than your computer or a hand-written journal. Studies have
shown that weight loss apps have had moderate success in helping participants
maintain weight loss.
Depending on your phone's operating system (Apple or Android), you can use
iTunes or Google Playstore to search for weight loss apps. Popular options include
My Fitness App, Locavore, and Endomondo.
Streamline your needs. The advantage to on-line websites and apps is that they
can track multiple aspects of your weight loss, not just the pounds that you lose or
gain. You are more likely to hold yourself accountable if you have just one place where
you can keep all of your information.
[14]
[15]
[16]
Community Q&A
Question
How can I make a spreadsheet if I don't have Excel?
Khinelay
Community Answer
You can use Google Sheets if you have a Google account. You can use it with your
email account.
Tips
Although some studies suggest that regularly keeping track of your weight can help you
maintain your weight loss over the long term, not all of the research comes to this
conclusion.[17]
CLICK HERE TO SEE MY RECOMMENDED WEIGHT LOSS TRICK

5. If you have an older version of Excel, you can use the Chart Wizard to create a graph.
You can open it by clicking on the graph icon in the tool bar. Once it is open, it is a self-
guided tool, so follow the instructions carefully.
Support wikiHow's Educational Mission
Every day at wikiHow, we work hard to give you access to instructions and information that will help you
live a better life, whether it's keeping you safer, healthier, or improving your well-being. Amid the current
public health and economic crises, when the world is shifting dramatically and we are all learning and
adapting to changes in daily life, people need wikiHow more than ever. Your support helps wikiHow to
create more in-depth illustrated articles and videos and to share our trusted brand of instructional content
with millions of people all over the world. Please consider making a contribution to wikiHow today.
References
1. http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html
2. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/obe/risks
3. http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/losing_weight/keepingitoff.html
4. http://www.hindawi.com/journals/jobe/2015/763680/
5. http://www.hindawi.com/journals/jobe/2015/763680/
6. http://www.ijbnpa.org/content/12/1/104
7. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/hunger-artist/201505/weigh-or-not-weigh
8. http://www.webmd.com/diet/weighing-in-on-scales-find-your-true-weight
9. http://www.webmd.com/diet/weighing-in-on-scales-find-your-true-weight?page=1
10. http://www.pcworld.com/article/2986360/software-productivity/microsoft-excel-vs-google-
sheets-the-4-key-ways-sheets-beats-excel.html
11. https://www.google.com/sheets/about/
12. https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Create-a-chart-0baf399e-dd61-4e18-8a73-
b3fd5d5680c2
13. https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Create-a-chart-0baf399e-dd61-4e18-8a73-
b3fd5d5680c2
14. http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/chi-ugc-article-12-best-medical-website-for-
different-medic-2013-10-04-story.html
15. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3636323/
16. http://www.forbes.com/sites/jennifercohen/2012/08/21/the-8-best-smart-phone-apps-for-
weight-loss/

6. 17. http://www.andjrnl.org/article/S2212-2672(12)00634-X/abstract