You NEED to step on the scale at least once a week and preferably the same day, same time. The scale doesn't and shouldn't define you BUT it gives you an indication of where you are at. I didn't step on a scale for years. I figured if my clothes were fitting, I was good but I wasn't good. My clothes were "still sort" of fitting, I could zip up my jeans if I sucked it in. I had a serious muffin top but hey I could still wear my clothes so I kept with that mantra for a long time. And the clothes that were getting uncomfortable I stuck in the back of the closet. I took to wearing leggings which worked well for a long time with a big shirt until the waistband cut in and my shirt was clinging to my back side roll (kind of like a muffin top but on the side of your back). So one day I stepped on the scale . . . . WOW, WOW, WOW!!! How was that number correct? Maybe our scale wasn't correctly working? How did I let it get to that number? I knew I was gaining weight BUT if I stepped on the scale then that would make it all real and that was something I didn't want to face.
If you know your number on the scale than you can stop the madness before it becomes overwhelming or daunting. It's about taking responsibility and not closing your eyes. Maybe if I had just stepped on that scale 6 months earlier I would have seen the upward trend and done something. Maybe I won't have BUT I what I learned that day was I HAD to do something and I realized that I couldn't ignore the scale any longer. We may never become friends but that scale kept me accountable every week. It was an unbiased observer on my weight loss journey. It had nothing to lose or gain by my success. It told me the truth each week even if it wasn't what I wanted to hear.
I stepped on the scale twice a week, always the same day, always about the same time. I learned stepping on it too often could be discouraging or unmotivating. By weighing myself once or twice a week on same day and time I was controlling what I could control!
There were days I was bummed but more often there was happy dancing in the bathroom. Knowing my numbers each week allowed me to tweak what I was eating and that's what it really comes down to . . . what you are eating! I was able to see the effects of over indulging and not sticking to my plan as well as the effects of all my hard work.
Yes, I could feel it in my clothes as things got looser and I could take my measurements and see inches lost but seeing a number on the scale gave me something more tangible.
I still get on the scale once a week just to make sure I am keeping withing a range. I'm not married to a number, I am married to a range because as women we can go up and down a pound or two just depending on many outside factors. I am about maintaining a healthy weight and getting stronger. The number on the scale can't tell you how strong you are getting, the confidence you are building, the increased energy you have BUT it can be one other tool to keep you accountable and on track.
My job as a fitness coach is to help support and motivate people so they can reach their goals. Having the support of others is key to keeping them on track but so if they want to lose weight the scale is one adding component. I ask my challengers to weigh themselves each Friday and/or Monday depending what their goals are. We can tweak their eating if they aren't seeing results and celebrate if they are and use that to motivate them to keep on track.
You have to own your number to move forward and it may not be what you want to do but it is just one more thing than can ma
ke a difference in reaching your goals and maintaining your weight long term.
These are some of the fun posts I got to read today!
"Happy to report that I'm starting the second round 5.4 lbs lighter (yay!!). This morning's weigh-in was a surprise . . ."
"down a little over a pound this morning, which put me just under my new goal weight."
"Down 5 pounds so far!!"
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