Don’t Let The Scale Control Your Life, Take A Break From The Scale, And Take Control Over Your Health!
For many people stepping on the scale first thing in the morning has become a daily or weekly routine…but what is this really doing for you?
Sure it tells you if you have lost or gained weight, but what else is it doing for you? Does it make you feel good or does it make you feel bad? Why is our focus on weight, rather than how we feel physically, how we are able to move our bodies, how our clothing fits, or how we feel about ourselves mentally?
I know, stepping on the scale after working so hard towards a goal and seeing that number drop is a great feeling! Trust me, I know that feeling! But that’s just it, it only feels good when we see those drastic changes.
So why not put the scale away until we know we are going to see those drastic changes? Why torture ourselves every day with the tiny little swings in weight changes, both up and down?
Why You Should Take A Break From The Scale:
1. Many Factors Affect The Scale That Are Out Of Your Control:
- Hydration: The amount of water we drink, the amount we pee, and the amount of water we retain
- Hormones: These fluctuate throughout the month which can cause all sorts of fluid shifts.
- Muscle: Muscle weighs more than fat so as you are working out to lose weight, you are also likely to be gaining weight from the increased muscle.
- Stool: Yup, poop, the number of times we go to the bathroom in a day, the amount of time it takes to digest food, and there is no way of knowing how much waste is actually in our bodies.
- Adjustments to your workout: if you are doing more strength training this week or had a really hard workout your body will hold onto more water for your muscles to repair themselves.
- Stress, simply stressing over the scale is enough for your body to hold onto more water weight.
- The amount of sodium you’ve consumed. Sodium is necessary but if you’ve consumed more this week than normal then your body is going to absorb more water and hold onto it.
- Sleep: If you’re not sleeping 7-8 hours per night this can also make you gain weight
2. It’s An Emotional Trigger:
The number on the scale is just a number. However, for many people, it is much more than that. Many people give that number too much control over their lives, over their self-worth, over how they look at their bodies. It’s time to change that, it’s time to take back control and build a healthier mindset around your weight.
This emotional trigger does not help you to get thinner or healthier, but can cause real harm:
- Obsessions about food and weight
- An unhealthy relationship with food
- Eating disorders
- Lower Self-esteem
- Negative body Image
- Yo-Yo dieting with repeated weight loss and regain
3. The Scale Is Not A Good Measure Of Health
A scale is an external tool causing you to lose sight of your hunger, fullness, satisfaction, how you feel physically, and how you feel emotionally.
A scale is just a number, only one small piece of the puzzle, it is not an accurate measure of your overall health. Your overall health is based on your behaviors: eating right, including exercise as a daily activity, getting off the sofa, practicing mental strengthening. All of these measures your overall health.
You can be overweight and run a marathon…does this mean you’re not healthy because you don’t weigh a certain number? No, it does not.
When was the last time you had blood work done, how were your numbers? Did everything come back healthy? How was your blood pressure, how is your cholesterol, how about your electrolyte levels, and organ function? If all of this comes back positive but you don’t weigh the number you think you should weigh, does that mean you are not healthy? Nope!
Yes, there is a weight for each person that is considered unhealthy. A weight that starts to prevent your body from functioning properly. However, this does vary from person to person. While a BMI chart can give you a good idea, it is not the end all be all either.
Take A Break From The Scale
Take some time to listen to your own body, your own instincts.
If you are trying to lose weight, that is awesome! Are you trying to build lean muscle, Fantastic! Are you just wanting to live a healthier life, Even better! Focus on:
- Making better decisions in the kitchen
- Exercise
- How your clothing is fitting
- How your energy levels change
- On your sleep
- Reducing stress
- Drinking more water
But put the scale away, hide it from yourself, or throw it away completely. By focusing on the things above you will hit your goal and you will hit it with a better attitude, building a better relationship with your body and your food.
If You Can’t Toss The Scale Out, If You Must Keep It, Then Do This:
Hide it, put it somewhere out of site and commit to NOT stepping on it until you FEEL Happy with your progress, until you feel good about your energy level, about how you are sleeping, about the weight that you are lifting, about the work that you are putting in.
Then and only then should you step on the scale. But don’t be surprised by that number, you may have lost a ton of weight, you may not have lost any. Shoot you could have gained some weight if you are trying to build muscle. But the important thing to think about is, that prior to stepping on that scale you felt good! So when you get off the scale forget the number and go right back to making those healthy choices. Share those healthy choices and win with your friends, family, and on social media. You will get nothing but support for the people that matter most in your life!
