New research shows stepping on the scale daily can help you lose more weight and body fat than weighing yourself less frequently.

The Duke University Obesity Prevention Program published a study in The Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics wherein participants who stepped on the scale every day lost around three times as much weight and body fat, compared to participants who weighed themselves less frequently. The 51 percent of participants who weighed themselves daily lost an average of 20 pounds while those who weighed themselves about five days a week lost an average of only seven pounds.

Mindy Probst, a registered dietitian with Intermountain Healthcare, agrees the study has a point. “Frequent self-monitoring is essential to help you assess whether your current behaviors are helping you achieve your weight loss goals or not,” she said. “Weighing daily enables you to be aware of slight weight increases and allows appropriate changes to diet or physical activity levels to be made early on.”

Although daily weigh-ins may be a good idea for some people, Probst pointed out that others may find it discouraging. “There are those individuals who let any discrepancy between their efforts toward weight loss and the number they see on the scale have a negative impact on their motivation,” Probst said. In these cases, she recommends weighing once every week.

Probst said other important components of self-monitoring include recording daily food intake and physical activity. These records can help you stay focused and assess your progress toward weight loss goals and the development of healthy lifestyle habits.