Learn to Love Your Scale!

Learn to Love Your Scale!

I know we all hate the scale, many of us hear that scary music in our heads from horror movies as we slowly walk down the hall towards it.  I know personally I have a love/hate relationship with mine because when I am at my target weight I am so excited but then I don’t want to get on it again ever after that because it is such a magical feeling that happens only a few times a year.  The majority of the time I range from a few pounds over up to ten pounds over and my scale becomes a source of stress, anxiety, and depression.  

It is unbelievable how many feelings you can get from one little machine that we all have in our home lurking in its hidden location so it doesn’t look at us directly.  The thing is we need the scale, we need it to give us the information we need to make much needed adjustments to our lifestyle.  For instance, if you are trying to lose that stubborn five pounds then getting on the scale a few days a week can help you evaluate what you are doing that is working and what you are doing that isn’t working.  There may be a time you are working late nights and eating dinner after 8 pm every night and then going to bed, you may notice the next day you weigh a little more as opposed to when you have your dinner at 6:30 pm and are a little more active the next day your weight may go down.  

When I have an event coming up and I need to get back on track quickly I will weigh myself every day until the event because the scale is telling me what I did the day before is helping me to meet my goal which is to fit into a very fitted dress without looking offensive.  This may sound crazy but if I didn't see my results I wouldn't have been able to make the vital connections I needed to learn about how my body responded to my eating habits, workouts, and my day-to-day routines.  I notice there are days when I eat really salty foods so I have to take that into consideration when my numbers increase, or days that I want to splurge for birthdays, holidays, and my just because I feel like it days but if you get back on the scale you can see how your body reacts to that and how long it takes for you to work it off.  Knowing this information may prevent a splurge day from turning into a splurge couple of days or a week.   

Think about it, without your scale you can’t see your progress and all the scale is really doing is helping us to learn about our lifestyle so that we can make the changes necessary to meet our goals.  I recommend weighing yourself once a week, in the morning without clothes once you get close to your goal weight as a way to maintain all of your amazing work. However, if you are just starting to meet your weight goal and are unsure if what you are doing is actually working then weigh yourself a few times a week until you get into the groove.  The scale will help you become successful and once you see the results and make the changes to your lifestyle you will be able to get down to just your weekly or even biweekly check-ins depending on how you are maintaining.

Always set realistic goals for yourself and know its okay to fluctuate, it is more important to understand why then dwelling on the number itself.  You may have a goal of 140 lbs. but you like to lift heavy weights so even though you have very low body fat and are a size 4, you may weigh 145 lbs. and that may be your new goal or an even higher number, it all depends on how you want your body to look and everyone is different so please do not get caught up in the number.  The goal is a healthier more confident you and the more you check-in with yourself and learn about you the more in control you will feel!  I hope you and your scale grow a beautiful, positive relationship this year!  

New Year, New Scale Attitude, New You!