Laying off the scale

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  • Every Monday I want to go back to the gym but quickly change my mind because exercising will make me retain water and eventually will show a gain on my scale.

    This Monday I made the desition to put away the scale for a month a d dedicate myself to work out and eat on plan. I put on my calendar to only weight myself once a month because once a week it's just driving me nuts. The scale is there and I jump in maybe twice a week to see if I'm losing... It's mentally exsauting to keep up with the darn thing!

    As of today I've to the gym everyday and plan to return on Monday. It feels great that I don't have to weight myself tomorrow and get moody all weekend because of the number...

    How do you guys deal with the scale?
  • I had to give it up too Cieloarge, I do weigh once a week or when ever I feel like it but the big obsession i had with the scale has gone and I feel so much better.
    It was effecting my mood for the day.Like controling my life.
    I too concentrate on what i eat more and focus on getting to the gym/moving everyday cause I know that if i just keep my mind focus on changing my Way of eating for life,the scale will take care of itself
  • I keep the scale next to my shower and have a calendar and pen on the wall. I weigh myself every day first thing in the morning and write it down. Whenever I have gone for periods without weighing myself (which has always been when I'm not eating so healthy) it has always bad consequences. Gaining weight is so easy and I can gain a lot really fast. I definitely have more control when I am keeping track. I am aware of the ups and downs and why they happen so they don't bother me.
  • It all depends on your personality and how you view the number on the scale. If you can realise it's not just about the number, and that fluctuations are normal, daily weighing is a great way to stay on track.

    But if it causes you so much stress that you stop working out, then you should put the scale away. I hope you take measurements as well, because it's how we look in the end, not about this magic number we've set up for ourselves
  • Quote: I had to give it up too Cieloarge, I do weigh once a week or when ever I feel like it but the big obsession i had with the scale has gone and I feel so much better.
    It was effecting my mood for the day.Like controling my life.
    I too concentrate on what i eat more and focus on getting to the gym/moving everyday cause I know that if i just keep my mind focus on changing my Way of eating for life,the scale will take care of itself
    It affects my mood too and in a bad way... If I see gain I say "F it, it's already up might as well eat what I want today" which I know it's stupid but that's the way it is for me. I haven't weight myself since last Wednesday and I'm not tempted either. I think the addiction is coming to an end. I will just use the scale as a tool only.
  • Quote: I keep the scale next to my shower and have a calendar and pen on the wall. I weigh myself every day first thing in the morning and write it down. Whenever I have gone for periods without weighing myself (which has always been when I'm not eating so healthy) it has always bad consequences. Gaining weight is so easy and I can gain a lot really fast. I definitely have more control when I am keeping track. I am aware of the ups and downs and why they happen so they don't bother me.

    It will drive me crazy but I'm glad it works for you I understand the ups and downs but I like the downs more I'm just too silly and it one of those things that I better put away
  • Quote: It all depends on your personality and how you view the number on the scale. If you can realise it's not just about the number, and that fluctuations are normal, daily weighing is a great way to stay on track.

    But if it causes you so much stress that you stop working out, then you should put the scale away. I hope you take measurements as well, because it's how we look in the end, not about this magic number we've set up for ourselves
    I'm not taking measurements but I'm going by clothes. I haven't buy nothing new really for a while because I keep saying "once I lose weight". I will still use the sce but just once a month and hopefully I will see a smaller number.
  • Quote: It affects my mood too and in a bad way... If I see gain I say "F it, it's already up might as well eat what I want today" which I know it's stupid but that's the way it is for me. I haven't weight myself since last Wednesday and I'm not tempted either. I think the addiction is coming to an end. I will just use the scale as a tool only.
    i am totally like this. i just took a 2 week scale break myself. it was hard, but it also sort of kept me on track because i wasnt basing my diet around what the scale told me that morning. good luck!
  • I've given up weighing myself before and put on 12 pounds. I'm trying to do it again, but with sticking to my diet this time. Sometimes I feel like I'm damned if I do, damned if I don't when it comes to weighing myself.
  • Quote: I keep the scale next to my shower and have a calendar and pen on the wall. I weigh myself every day first thing in the morning and write it down. Whenever I have gone for periods without weighing myself (which has always been when I'm not eating so healthy) it has always bad consequences. Gaining weight is so easy and I can gain a lot really fast. I definitely have more control when I am keeping track. I am aware of the ups and downs and why they happen so they don't bother me.

    I do this as well. At the end of the month, I take the calendar and my food and exercise tracker and take a look at the month as a whole.

    I do it for feedback to help me understand how my eating and exercise affect my body.

    I don't obsess about any weight on any given day, as long as the results at the end of the month are where I want them to be!
  • I don't use it either b/c of the bad moods it puts me in and plenty of times I have overeaten AFTER I see a number that I don't like on the scales! It is no good for me. I have exercised a lot, but have started heavy lifting within the past few months and I noticed water retention/weight gain b/c of this. It drove me nuts- so that is when I really stopped weighing about 2 months ago. I do use pants, 3 pair and how my bras fit to keep up with my progress.
  • Normally I weigh once a week, but I also tend to let the scale dictate my behavior too much. This month, I have decided not to weigh until the day before I leave for my vacation, just to see where I'm at.

    I'm not going to give up the scale completely but for now I can't really afford to let it negatively impact my mood!

    There are different periods we all go through in our lives and sometimes the scale is helpful while others it is not. Realizing what period you are in and what tools will work best for you in order to reach your goals is a definite skill!
  • I try to completely not think about it at all and set reminders in my calendar to weight every couple weeks.. So I do get on the scale but never have to think about it or obsess over it.
  • My scales are hidden away in a closet under some stuff. I promised myself that I would only be weighed when I see a dr and to just focus on calorie counting and exercise.

    I was completely obsessive about it and my entire attitude about the day and myself would turn cloudy.
  • Definitely "different strokes for different folks." I weigh myself several times a day and I WANT to know what it is, up or down.