My relationship with the scale has been ever changing.
I used to be obsessed. Daily weigher, like clockwork every single morning.
Then, I forced myself to only weigh weekly because that was more accurate & less emotional than stressing each day over what I did or could do to reflect the number I wanted to see.
Then, when I started to fully do Beachbody programs (including following the nutrition guidelines) last year, I started to go by my measurements & progress pictures.
I stashed my scale on top of a cupboard & forgot all about my weekly weigh in day. And the rituals that went along with it...... wake up, use the bathroom, brush my teeth, strip! Because without doing those things first, my pooh or night mouth or clothes would add a few ounces & ruin my whole week of hard work because the scale wouldn't show me those much anticipated lower numbers. Sigh. (I still brush my teeth upon waking because well, gross. LOL)
Being without the scale was VERY freeing for me!!
Before vacation, I stepped on just to get an idea where I was at. High number as usual, nothing new. I carried on. No emotional response! Success! :)
Back from vacation, I stepped on again to see 'the damage' .... up 4 pounds. Awesome! We were gone for 11 days, I didn't even pretend to try aside from getting my workouts in -- I drank booze instead of water & we ate out for most meals. #keepitreal
I had a doctor appointment the day after we got back. I had buttery salty popcorn for breakfast, wore my coat, boots & purse for my weight check because I thought I had gotten over my fear of the scale. In the past, I would have complained that I couldn't step on it naked. I NEVER would have stepped on fully clothed with all my stuff!
I saw the nurse entering my information in the computer as we did the routine check in. She entered info about my BMI & counseling me about weight loss. I thought, 'I was JUST here in November & they didn't enter any of that'. As I was leaving, they handed me a stack of papers stapled together with my BMI on it (32 = OBESE) & directions for how to lose weight. As a beachbody coach & simply a woman, this was SO EMBARRASSING! It took me a few days to mentally recover from that experience.
I was already planning to get back on track the following Monday so I admit, I didn't even read through the papers. Just tossed them aside & pretended like it hadn't happened. I've been thinking about it ever since though & how or IF I would write this post. I decided to share it because that's what this is all about, sharing & helping each other along this journey. Everyone doesn't just flip the healthy switch & move in a downward line.
After 1 week of using my containers for portion control, eating clean (no booze, consistently had my shakeology & water daily, I did keep my coffee with milk & sugar) & hitting all of my workouts, I checked the scale again. DOWN those same 4 pounds! I'm also seeing a physical difference in the mirror & in how my clothes are fitting.
Moral of the story? FUCK THE SCALE!!!!!!!
(Except, I won't lie that I am excited for my next appointment so I can have my medical records correctly reflect my weight! lol :-O)
** disclaimer: this is my journey & everyone is different. If the scale works for you, great! If it doesn't, ditch it! There is NO right or wrong, just what works for each of us. **