Achieved athletes or beginners who wish to regain control, many profiles allow themselves to be seduced by the purchase of a connected balance. What are the benefits and risks of such an accessory? A sports doctor and a psychologist give us their advice and a manual for balanced management of your health.
Grasse, muscle mass, BMI … increasingly perfected, this accessory is more and more invited in bathrooms. But how to use this effectively connected balance? Does the use of detailed measures of your state of form constitute a motivation element? On the contrary, can this not lead to an obsession and lead to drifts? A psychologist and a sports doctor share their opinion on connected scales and reveal the guide for a healthy and efficient weighing.
Connected balance: increasingly perfected monitoring
Since 2010, connected scales have been able to follow your weight from a mobile or tablet application. In addition to guaranteeing very precise weighings, they display many data: BMI (body mass index, etc.), fat mass, muscle mass … and this instantly! The recorded data is then translated in the form of graphics in order to allow you to follow the evolution of your state of form.
Among the many models offered, it is possible to opt for a basic balance with limited functions (but generally of quality), or for a more evolved model (and rather dedicated to intensive sport). A more advanced balance will then give the possibility of performing more measures, such as muscle mass, hydration rate, biological age, basic metabolism, water mass …
Be careful while purchasing your purchase because some tests have revealed that the most sophisticated scales are not necessarily those that get the best grades.
What do the measures given by connected scales mean?
- The weight represents the mass of your whole body (skeleton, muscles, fat, organs …).
- L’Body mass index (BMI) is an index that assesses your build and any risks for your health. It is simply calculated by dividing the weight (in kg) by the square of the height (m).
- The body fat mass Correct the number of pounds of fat in the body.
- The body fat rate corresponds to the share of the fat mass compared to the total weight of your body. It is a very interesting indicator to follow if you want to lose weight!
- The visceral fat is the one that surrounds your abdominal organs and which requires monitoring to avoid possible health problems.
- The lean (or muscle) mass represents the weight of your body muscles.
- The bone mass is simply the weight of your skeleton.
- The water mass corresponds to the amount of total water contained in your body.
- The Basic metabolic rate (BMR) Allows you to know the minimum energy needs that your body requires when it is at rest.
- L’Metabolic age is an estimate of your average age associated with basic metabolism. If it is superior to your real age, then your organism is aging faster than normal. A good lifestyle and better diet can reduce it.
But moreover, what do professionals think of this connected tool?
Dr Frédéric DEPESSE, Sports doctor: “an interesting intelligent tool”
According to the sports doctor Frédéric DEPESSE, the connected scale is a rather useful tool when used to follow its physical evolution. He estimates that “It is an interesting tool because it allows people to become aware of their capacity and the state of their bodies. It helps to better manage its physical activity, its health and to prevent potential risks”.
For athletes, this tool can be a real motivation tool. “It also makes it possible to assess your state of form and to follow its evolution according to the lifestyle measures that you adopt“Specifies our expert. By allowing everyone to follow the evolution of their results, the connected balance helps them to achieve their objectives more easily.
However, the sports doctor emphasizes the potential lacks reliability of this type of balance. He indicates that for consistent results, it would be necessary to weigh each day at the same time and under the same conditions as the day before (before eating, after having gone to the toilet …).
Johanna Rozenblum, psychologist: “Be careful not to fall into addiction”
Source of motivation for some, it can also increase the risks of hyper control and lead to a form of addiction, as well as to eating disorders.
“As soon as a person is excessively concerned with their weight, adopts restrictive eating behaviors and doubts their self -esteem. There are reasons to rise “ specifies the psychologist Johanna Rozenblum. In the event that we let this balance dictate our way of acting and thinking, the benefits of this object are then less important than the risks involved.
The psychologist evokes three signs which must alert a toxic relationship to her scale:
- A direct impact on your emotional balance: “This weighing plays a role on your emotional balance and your mental health. For example, you do not have a good day if your results are not better than the time before”.
- A comparison that generates stress : “You compare your data to that of others. It also becomes a challenge to have certain results. If you do not achieve it, you do not feel up to the task and it generates stress and anxiety at home “.
- An addiction to weighing : “Your dependence on this object increases, you weigh yourself more and more, the results lead to food restrictions”.
The psychologist underlines that this balance should only remain a tool and never constitute an indicator of the value of a person. “Indeed, the balance should in no case tell you what you should be. You have to take care not to fall into addiction ” explains Johanna Rozenblum.
According to the sports doctor Frédéric Depepiess: “Addiction is a very present phenomenon in the world of sport: we are talking about bigorexie“Note Dr. Frédéric DEPESSE. For this expert, priority is elsewhere: “We must better educate people with health and teach them to take this kind of data into account while detaching themselves, so that this does not alter their balance”.
5 tips for good use of your connected scale
- Determine your goal to choose the suitable scale (basic for a simple health monitoring, or more advanced in the context of sporting follow -up requiring certain performance), and always use the same balance.
- Set weighing conditions (in the morning before eating, after being in the toilet, without clothes …) and respect them each time you go up on the scale.
- Don't weigh yourself every day In order to avoid falling into addiction and above all do not make these measures an indicator of your success or your value!
- Choose a model in accordance with your objectives. Depending on your budget, your sports practice and your budget, discover the best connected scales screened by digital.
- Pay attention to the alert signs. If your balance data organizes your entire life, lead you to adopt problematic eating behaviors, have a direct impact on your mental health, you isolate socially … React and do not hesitate to consult if you do not can't regulate your behavior yourself.
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