Yeah, I admit it. I move my ticker down when the scale shows loss, but I NEVER move it back up if the scale shows gain. It's so much more discouraging if I actually have to backtrack on my ticker... Ack! It's bad enough I have to see a 2 pound gain on the scale, right?

I can only take that two pound gain so hard though, since it was a two pound gain from... Yesterday. I SO didn't eat two pounds of food yesterday. There's probably just some normal fluctuation, and probably a little actual gain since I've not been going to the gym... Ugh. I SHOULD go today. But I just don't want to!

Is anyone else a ticker cheater? Or am I the only one who wont own my gains along with my losses?

I used to do that. I gained a little and didn't move the ticker. I promised to re-commit. I gained a little more and didn't move the ticker. I promised to really re-commit. I gained a little more and didn't move the ticker. Eventually I ended up nearly 10lbs heavier than my ticker weight showed, and I disappeared from 3FC and the get-healthy initiative.

I think what happened (for me) is that it played into a larger attitude of denial on my part - denial that there was a problem, denial that I was in control of finding the solution. And when it got to be too much of a problem to ignore (fudging on a pound is easy to ignore, on ten? not so much), I stopped coming here so I wouldn't have to face the reality anymore. It's good to be honest with yourself and OWN your progress, even if that means recognizing a gain now and again. Forgiveness is integral. Patience is necessary. No one here is going to judge you for gaining 2lbs, I bet there's nary a single person here who hasn't experienced that. You're only trying to hide it from yourself!

Those are my feelings on the matter, but perhaps others don't take it so seriously. I just found it to be symptomatic of a greater problem I had with my WL efforts in the past.



PS: GO TO THE GYM! Your body will love you for it

How often are you weighing yourself? Change your ticker only on your official weigh in day - whether that is up or down.
Honestly, you are only cheating yourself by not owning the gains. They are still there whether you acknowledge them or not

It is hard to change the ticker up, but being accountable for *all* of your actions is what will make you successful at losing weight and keeping it off long term.

Now get to the gym!!

I tend to weight myself daily . I really shouldn't do that, because it can change SO much in one or two days and it's infuriating! Ugh... I really should stop doing that. I'm going to give myself a scale complex...

For what it is worth, here's my method. I weigh myself every day, but my offical day is Saturday. That is the day I update my stats (ticker, weight thread, etc). I give myself a one week grace period for gains. So if I show a gain on my weighin, I won't move my ticker back, unless it shows the following week. But if I'm able to bring it back down by the next weighin, then I forget about it. It seems to work for me.

I weigh daily, but update the ticker once a week (Sunday). Daily weighing can be a good thing as it lets you look at the fluctuations and not worry about them. We all know you don't lose or gain two pounds in one day (unless you've eaten 7000 calories). Having said that, some people don't do well with daily weigh ins. You'll have to decide if you can deal with it or not.

Lots of people play little mind games with themselves about the accuracy of their ticker, only ever moving it down to show a loss, keeping it there even when they have gained. You aren't alone! I've read many threads or posts just like this one.

This is my system too (except that my official weigh-in day is Thursday).

Yup, yup, yup.

i change it if its more than one pound or if its been more than at that higher weight. i moved it up several weeks ago and haven't gotten to push it back down yet. oh, and i do not weigh everyday.

I weigh myself daily but only adjust my ticker once a week. Mostly I'm accurate, but if I know that my current weight is mostly water retention, I tend not to adjust it. For example, today I weighed in at 166.4 and since today is my "official" weigh-in day, I should adjust my ticker, but I'm gonna leave it at 165, since I know mostly this is from a 4th of July weekend of eating some not-so-good for me foods.

I'll wait until Wednesday and see what has happened after 2 days of eating on plan, restricting salt, and working out.

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I have a system for adjusting the ticker that gives me a little bit of slack in the case of "innocent" gains like water weight.

First, I always round up when I record my weight (if it's at a new low). For example, if my scale reads 207.5, I record my official weight as 208. I don't change it to 207 until I'm at 207.0 or below. But if I gain some weight that puts me back at 208.6, I keep my ticker at 208 until my scale actually hits 209, at which point I'll change the ticker to 209. I don't round up if I gain weight unless I'm certain that it's not due to water retention.

I've used and updated my ticker in a variety of ways since I've joined. Right now the only "rule" I have for myself is not to update my ticker when my rings are tight (a sure sign of water retention, and I can gain up to 10 lbs in water weight).

The important thing to remember with the ticker is that it is primarily for your benefit. I think most people are generally, relatively honest, so it can be motivating to see people with large weight losses on their tickers. But ultimately, as an online medium no one knows how accurate another person's ticker is, so it's for you. Use it as you need to.

You've got to be honest with yourself and use it in the way that is best for you. That perfect balance between accountability and unhealthy obsession.

Whether that's daily, weekly, or monthy; or whether you give yourself a bit of leeway or not before moving the ticker upward (or even if you decide whether to ever move the ticker upward) - it's all about you. You decide what is best for your success. If you're not sure, then try it different ways.

More than weekly would personally drive me nuts, but everyone has their own method and there really isn't any answer that will be right for everyone.

I only move my ticker once a week. If I flux up a pound or so I don't bother changing it because I know it's just a body thing, and I'm continuing on the way down no mater what the next week. If it's a matter two or more weeks and it's not moving down again then I will change it to reflect my current weight.

I don't see not moving it as cheating... because the ticker is there for your own motivation not to announce to the public. To me I NEVER plan on going back where I was so it seems silly to change it just because I'm retaining TOM water or whatever. Moving it would get me down, and there is no reason to be down for something that is beyond my control. If I royally screwed up then yes, it moves up.

I'm another who weighs daily, sometimes both in the morning and at night. It helps keep me on track. I don't adjust the ticker for gains since I am 100% staying on plan. It's rare that my daily AM weight is over my lowest recorded ticker weight (not including the 10ths of a pound after that number) anyway, unless it's TOM and I'm retaining a few pounds of water.