I know I post little random things but this board keeps me motivated.
I came today to say the water weight from TOM has disappeared BUT I am still up 1 pound from last Friday and I have been sticking to my calories. I'm hoping more falls off but I'm not going to get my hopes up.
Even factoring out TOM, the scale will frequently be up or down a few pounds without regard for your actual weight loss. Even if I'm perfectly on program, I can't *count* on weighing less than I did a month ago every day. BUT, the weight *does* trend lower, and I see new lows every once in a while, despite the setbacks.
Here's one trick I use to avoid getting psyched out by the scale...
I keep a "fat effigy" that represents a half pound for every consecutive week I've been on program. I'm willing to guarantee myself that much weight loss (on average, I seem to be losing closer to 1 lb a week). The "fat effigy" is something that weighs as much as my "guaranteed" weight loss (currently a bag of rice plus a block of suet). I add 1/2 lb to my fat effigy every week I am on program, no matter what the scale says. My fat effigy is significantly behind in terms of my scale loss, but I love the fact that I can always add to it.