going to the bathroom but before food is eaten. This will give the greatest consistency. More
detailed suggestions for the best use of the scale on each of the three diets appears below.
Please note that very few individuals will make constant linear changes in body weight and
plateaus are frequent. Women will frequently gain or lose water weight during different phases of
their menstrual cycle. For these reasons, regular weighing is NOT recommended for most
individuals. While weekly weighing may give some indication of changes, weighing every two to
four weeks may give a better indication of long term changes.
The scale on the SKD/TKD
On a SKD, there is an initial drop in body weight due to a loss of glycogen and water,
especially if an individual is exercising. After the initial weight loss, individuals can use the scale
as a rough guide of overall changes by measuring at a consistent time each week, such as every
Monday morning after awakening. Keep in mind that the consumption of even moderate
amounts of carbs can cause a rapid jump in scale weight. This increase is temporary only and
will disappear once ketogenic dieting is resumed.
Individuals on a TKD will only see shifts in scale weight if they weigh themselves around
their workouts, when carbohydrates are being consumed. As long as scale measurements are
taken at the same time each week, there should be no large scale changes in body weight from
the consumption of pre- and/or post-workout carbs.
The scale on the CKD
Use of the scale is the most problematic on the CKD. Over the course of a one to two day
carbohydrate loading phase, individuals have reported weight gains from one pound to fifteen
pounds. In general, women seem to gain less overall weight (most likely due to lower amounts of
lean body mass) during the carb-load than men but this is highly variable.
The scale can be used on the CKD as long as the measurement is made at consistent
times of the week. Initial measurements should be taken the morning before the carb-up, when
the dieter is the most depleted/lightest, and again after the carb-up when they are the heaviest.
This should give a rough idea of overall changes in body composition. If weight increases by 7 lbs
from the morning of the carb-load to the morning after the carb-load, the dieter know that they
need to lose more than 7 lbs prior to the next carb-load for ‘true’ fat loss to have occurred. Most of
the weight gained will disappear quickly as glycogen levels are depleted early in the week and
trainees typically experience a large weight drop by the third day following the carb-load. A
typical pattern of weight gain/loss on a CKD appears below.
Monday: 150 lbs
Friday: 143 lbs
Monday: 149 lbs
Friday: 142 lbs
Monday: 148 lbs
Friday: 141 lbs