Continuing to do the right thing even though there are no results.
So for the past two weeks I've been on plan perfectly and yet, nada! Zip! I'm getting a little frustrated now. I keep on trying to remember it's not worth falling off the wagon for and that I have lost weight so far and definitely lost inches...
I feel this way pretty often, usually at least once a month! And in the past, I've let it lead me into cheating, which eventually led to me going off the rails and regaining all the weight I had worked so hard to lose.
But this time, each time I feel this way, I *know* that if I stick with my plan and keep on going, there's only one way for the scale to go, and that's down. It's worked every single time. Every time I stuck to my plan, the scale did eventually go down. Sometimes it took 2 weeks, sometimes 3, but I was always rewarded for my perseverance!
You can do this! You know that if you're on plan perfectly, your body is losing weight. The scale just doesn't want to give up the goods.
I've been dealing with this issue too lately. In fact, I just got a SparkPeople email about how to deal with disappointment and lack of motivation when the results of all of our hard work doesn't show quickly or in the way we hoped. The article said that it was more important to look at the intrinsic, or internal, rewards for our good eating and hard work. Perhaps the scale didn't tell you what you wanted or hoped for. Thinking about how you are able to bend a little further or go up a couple more steps without stopping is a reward. The point of the article was to remind us that though we might not see the rewards of our diet, it is happening and great things are taking place inside our bodies. What I do is journal about this whole experience. It helps me keep perspective, and though I've only been doing this a month, it helps to remind me where I came from.
I would suggest putting your scale away for a couple more weeks before weighing in again. Not all of our weight with be lost at the same rate, especially as we near our goals. So, give yourself a break and a little extra time to see the results that you want. I have also found it helpful during the "no scale movement times" to focus on NSVs.
Ask yourself one of these questions: Were you not as tired after your jog this week? Were you a little more flexible than normal after your yoga session? Were you able to increase your weight on a particular lifting exercise? Are you starting to see some toning on your body in places where there was none before? Does your body feel especially good today because you've made good food choices?
I'm sure that you can answer at least a couple in a way that will show your progress even if the scale doesn't!
To be honest, my experience with focusing on the NSV would only go so far when I was bummed about the scale number not budging. So it may work for lots of people and it may work in theory, but as long as I kept seeing the same number bouncing around each time I weighed myself, it just wasn't enough to cut it for me.
Now, when I've used a combination of what the chickies have already mentioned, that worked! I would record that last time of looking at the scale and then put it away for 2 weeks. In that time, I would focus on the NSVs, make sure I stuck to plan and worked out with a vengeance. I'd get more excited as I was approaching that 2 week date as I was absolutely positive that the number would be changed for the better. Worked for me!
And this is coming from someone who wants to see what her weight is at least 4 mornings a week.
Keep at 'er. Because you know the alternative and none of us want that.
To be honest, my experience with focusing on the NSV would only go so far when I was bummed about the scale number not budging. So it may work for lots of people and it may work in theory, but as long as I kept seeing the same number bouncing around each time I weighed myself, it just wasn't enough to cut it for me.
I understand entirely. That's the reason that my scale was taken away from me in the first place. The disappointment was heartbreaking every time the scale moved in the wrong direction or not at all. Perhaps I have just become too desensitized to the scale after having had it removed from my life for over 6 months now. *shrug* It's become easier to resist the siren call of the need to weigh in. I feel out of touch now. Lol! But I do still think it's important to remember your NSVs, even if it's not as helpful as I thought.
Last edited by Digging Deep; 05-06-2010 at 05:54 PM.
That was happening to me lately. I hadn't lost a single pound in 4 weeks which wasn't usual for me. I had even started a new intense running program and was diappointed when I didn't see any results. I had just made up my mind to be okay with not losing anything for awhile when I weighed in the next weeks and lost 5 pounds! In one week, after not losing for the 4 weeks prior. Just keep with it, it will move eventually. I just keep reminding myself that my body doesn't want to be overweight. It knows it's not healthy and wants to get to where it should be so I trust my body and keep eating healthy. It always works.
Yeh cuz I've been having that problem lately. I'm so frustated w/ the whole thing but I don't wanna give up on my wrkouts of diet plan. Maybe I need to up my wrkout to a hr instead of 30 mins a day? Or add in more cardio? I haven't lost a lb @ all this wk and I've been perfect. I only have 27 lbs 2 lose.
its definitely tough when you are putting in a lot of effort and not seeing anything in return. I have been exercising about 5-6 days a week for 45 mins to 2 hours at a time, and while I have had a few days where I wasn't totally on plan diet-wise it was never over by more than 300 calories (its always tough to transition back into healthy eating! I'm working on it). The scale has been reading exactly the same as it did 2.5 weeks ago.
That said, my pants are fitting looser (or should I say they fit comfortably now, compared to when I had to stuff myself in!) and I can feel the difference in my body, there are muscle bumps on my legs and arms and I just look...smoother I guess. ha! My stomach seems flatter, I'm less flabby looking, less cellulite, less jiggle when I move.
While its frustrating to tell people when they ask how its been going that the scale hasn't budged, I am staying positive. I keep pushing myself to work harder in my workouts, always doing a few more reps or use heavier weights or ride my bike farther or faster.... I am focusing on my accomplishments fitness-wise and trying not to think so much about the scale. I am doing things at the gym now that would have probably killed me a month ago!
I would get kind of frustrated when I would step on the scale every morning and things wouldn't say what I want them to say. But it's my own fault for expecting miracles every morning I wake up!
I used to tell myself that stepping on the scale every morning was a way of knowing if I was doing good or not, but deep down I know more than the scale does how I'm doing. I know when I eat and workout everyday, but the scale doesn't. I know when I mess up and binge, but the scale doesn't. It's so cold and heartless and the worst way to start a beautiful day!
So I don't torture myself any longer and instead weigh myself once a week. Or at least I'm trying to. It's tough! I need to have my boyfriend put a lock on it or something so I'm not tempted to peek.
I took it at face value, if no loss that means I'm not doing it right. What did I do? I'd increase my exercise even more and eat less. Eventually, I was doing 90 minutes of cardio and eating 1400 calories a day. Guess what? It worked and I never had a day without positive results. Honestly its a simple equation that if you burn more calories than you eat you will lose weight. If the weight doesn't come off then that means you didn't follow the equation and you need to work harder or eat less or both (I personally recomend both). Good Luck
While I do think benchmarkman has an excellent point that applies 95% of the time, just because the scale isn't moving doesn't mean you're not getting results.
For the past 6 months my weight loss has been very very slow - I average about 10 lbs every 3 months, if I'm lucky. However, looking at pictures and doing measurements, I've shrunk a LOT. I'm not going with the whole "muscle weighs more than fat" adage (because really, the muscle just doesn't replace fat that quickly) but there are other ways to measure weight loss other than the scale number.
You could also re-evaluate WHAT you are eating. While weight loss is a simple equation of calories in vs calories out, sometimes our bodies don't react well to certain foods. Processed foods are not my friends, and when I eat a diet of mainly processed foods instead of something that I've cooked myself from good ingredients, my body flips the **** out and retains lbs of water. Also, stress is a killer and can cause your body to hold onto excess water.
Agh! I stepped up my workout time and intensity, and I "gained" two lbs. I wonder how this is even possible since I barely eat 1300 cals a day and I work out seven days a week!
Sometimes I really do just need to step off the scale. I spent a whole summer not stepping on the scale- just running my butt off, walking everywhere, and eating well. I weighed at the end of the summer and was the exact same weight, but had dropped a dress size (and I was smokin', too).
Sometimes you really can do all you can do and if you really are doing it right, why waste all that energy fighting the scale? I know we all look for success in numbers and it is important, but I'm just saying that isn't *always* the case. Maybe this is just one of those scenarios? And if you are following your plan, the scale WILL move... eventually.
Agh! I stepped up my workout time and intensity, and I "gained" two lbs. I wonder how this is even possible since I barely eat 1300 cals a day and I work out seven days a week!
Ok, that might be why. Also, you've lost a LOT of weight! I had 5 lb stalls when I was working my way down. It FLEW off me for about 60 pounds and then BAM. Nada. I really fought for those last 15 pounds. That wild ride turned into a slow crawl.
1300 calories and 7 days a week? I don't think it's unreasonable to think that in this wild ride to the finish your body is just trying to keep up. Give it some time.
Continuing to do the right thing even though there are no results.
