So, I haven't weighed myself in a week and I don't know how to feel about it...
No, seriously. I don't know how to feel about myself because I don't know how much I weigh. I don't know if I should feel good and happy and like my stomach is flatter or if I should feel flat and bloated and like a shapeless blob so I can get frustrated and down on myself...
How messed up is that?? 7 days without the scale and I don't know how I'm supposed to feel about my body. Any other scale addicts experience this? How long does it take to go away?
The scale is a tool, the data it gives us is only one of many ways we can measure where we are.
We like the scale, because it gives us immediate gratification. Immediate gratification is nice, but sometimes we forget, that this a journey of health!
There are a lot of other "numbers", that are important. For instance, cholesterol, glucose, blood pressure. The thing about these numbers, is it takes *time* to see those numbers change. However, they are the more important numbers.
For myself, I have figured out, that what my scale says, and where my health numbers, and my workouts are, are related. Because, to keep my health numbers where they need to be, and to fuel my body to lift, I have to be considerate of how my food helps me fuel and take care of my body.
So, it's all very intertwined, but it takes time and patience, to find the balance.
The scale is a tool, the data it gives us is only one of many ways we can measure where we are.
We like the scale, because it gives us immediate gratification. Immediate gratification is nice, but sometimes we forget, that this a journey of health!
There are a lot of other "numbers", that are important. For instance, cholesterol, glucose, blood pressure. The thing about these numbers, is it takes *time* to see those numbers change. However, they are the more important numbers.
For myself, I have figured out, that what my scale says, and where my health numbers, and my workouts are, are related. Because, to keep my health numbers where they need to be, and to fuel my body to lift, I have to be considerate of how my food helps me fuel and take care of my body.
So, it's all very intertwined, but it takes time and patience, to find the balance.
I totally agree and hope I can one day reach a place of balance as well.
I'm in the process of quitting the scale myself. I felt the same way initially, that I needed the scale to tell me how to feel that day and at first it was very confusing. Like I didn't know how to look at myself objectively. It's like taking away one of your senses; all the other senses have to heighten and take over the job and this is a good thing I promise. I still reach for the scale, but I notice I do it only during times of heightened stress and it's more of an indicator of my internal struggle than it is of my weight. Generally I feel more peace of mind without the scale, and I've learned to accept that sometimes I just feel skinny without any validation from the scale.
There are women who feel like the number gives them important information. For me, there is nothing the scale can do for me that I can't feel within my own body anyway.
The scale is unfortunately the easiest way that I can track progress. I do weigh myself daily but don't take much stock in daily weights. If I see a new low several times then I accept it as real. I used to graph my weight but I stopped doing that (however it was a great way to show progress over time.)
Look at the graph in my signature, below.
The lighter line is a trend line calculated automatically, based on all those ups and downs. But one thing that may not be obvious is that some of those ups that are more recent are equal to the downs from a month ago or more.
Weight fluctuates a lot. I understand that it's nice to see a change on the scale, and it can make you feel motivated about continuing... But you can find other ways to track your progress, so the number on the scale isn't everything.
I love data, and I am collecting as much of it as I can as I lose weight. But I'm not rewarding myself or judging my progress based on the scale, because I'd be disappointed in myself too often, for something I don't have much control over. So instead, I reward myself just for logging my calories regularly. By judging my progress based on how well I stick to the plan, I'm giving myself realistic and achievable goals. I have complete control over what I eat and whether I log my calories (that is not to say I don't overeat sometimes, but I know it was a decision if I do, since I always log my calories and stay aware of this).
I still pay attention to my weight because, of course, I need to know which way it is trending so I can adjust my plan accordingly. As long as I reevaluate regularly though, I do not need to use my weight as a direct guide for how well I am doing. Sticking to the plan is good enough.
My method might not work for you. But I want you to know, it's possible to like your scale, and not rely on it to tell you how you feel.
I too have found that the scale influences me in some ways. If my weight is down, I get a slight mood upswing, and if it's up a tiny downswing (More like a, "Oh well. Water fluctuation, etc."). Nothing that influences my overall day, though.
I have recently found out that the number on the scale doesn't really influence how I feel (shapeless and blobby, or slimmer and healthier). What does is what I've been eating and if I've been exercising. That has a TREMENDOUS influence on how comfortable, at ease, and good I feel. Sadly, I have deeply ingrained, ancient habits that make me resist exercise, even though I feel great afterward.
I used to be more affected by the scale. Then I regained a bunch of weight, and knew that if I got upset or felt icky every time I saw the bigger number, it would be a long, emotionally exhausting several months to re-losing it. Though seeing the number go down so slowly drives me batty sometimes. It's an impatience thing, I think.
Data point: Today I got up and "felt" lighter, this was confirmed by the scale reading, the lowest ever. So I guess there is something to this feeling thin.
FWIW, I put my lowest weight on the board here, not to be dishonest to myself (technically it's not dishonest) but to encourage me to keep going.
Deep philosophical scale thoughts...
