Not Looking At the Scale

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Liberty_7728
Liberty_7728 Posts: 52 Member
in Getting Started
I am a scale "monitor." It's the best way to describe it. I have to weigh myself twice a day (sometimes 3 time per day) when I am working hard at dropping weight. In the past I have found this to be both an encouragement and a self destruction mechanism. When the weight is coming off I feel good about the hard work and I want to keep going...mostly.

When I drop really big numbers I "allow" myself to slack a little because I obviously know what I am doing and deserve a "reward." <<insert eye roll here>> And when the scale doesn't move quickly enough (when I am working my behind off) then I tend to lighten up on my hard work, because it "obviously" isn't making a difference, which leads me to bad habits fast.

So basically if I am not seeing my numbers consistently drop according to the work I am putting in, then I don't allow myself to stay focused and keep a steady pace.

As life would have it I began MFP two years ago and lost my way but I never give up. I'm back and determined more than ever to make myself healthy inside and out. Since it's been so long and I'm truly at an ultimate high weight I felt this would be the best place to post.

This time around, I have decided to change my weight loss habits and view my scale numbers and measurements at the start, then walk away from the scale for one full month. I have even asked that my husband take my scale and put it away where I won't find it and request he DOES NOT give it to me no matter what I tell him until 30 days are up....seriously I have to do this for my own well being. Thirty days is going to be a big challenge for me, but I want my entire focus to be on how I feel and not what my number is!

Wondering how many of you are doing this or have done this? What do you think or what was the outcome for you? Did you do it for the same reasons or same period of time I am?

Thanks for any feed back and I wish you all well in achieving your goals!!

Replies

  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
    edited January 2015
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    I weigh every morning because then I don't think about it. I know that I am going to wobble up and down around 3 pounds - some day up, some days down. I only look at my new 'down' weights for logging. And I make sure my top numbers keep going down too.

    I've been doing this over 3 years and it works for me.

    If I did NOT log I would wonder about my weight all the time.

    If I weighed once a week or once a month, I'd start worrying a few days before hand and I would too much emphasis on the numbers. I would be disappointed if I hadn't lost and always wonder if it was a 'bad' day. Remember, you're probably only losing a pound a week and you can vary 3-5 pounds any given day.

    If I know what it is and I know it will wobble I simply don't think about it. Everyone seems to deal with this differently.
  • disasterman
    disasterman Posts: 746 Member
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    When I'm actively trying to lose weight I use the scale frequently because I've found it motivates me. I make graphs in Excel and plot trendlines because I'm geeky that way but, more importantly, it works for me. Find what motivates you and use it!

    I think you're on the right track by trying something different. If you're doing something that's not working for you then changing it is the best thing. Don't be afraid of change. What works to motivate one person might not be motivating for you. Do what works, change it if it doesn't. I know in the past I've remained committed to my bad ideas long after it was clear they were doing more harm than good :)
  • jellybeanpumba
    jellybeanpumba Posts: 24 Member
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    I have done it all! I get very crazy about the scale and want to weigh constantly! My husband hates this and has hidden it from me before. Another thing that always gets me is if i go to someone's house that has a scale I weigh on it and it says something totally different. That's a big no no!

    I have also done the going a whole month without weighing and I was highly upset after all my hard work I had only lost 10 pounds! I mean that's great in reality but I was thinking it was gonna be like 20! So I got very discouraged abd stopped.

    This time and I pray its the last time around, I am only focusing on small goals that will lead up to big goals. I weigh once in the morning and log and at the end of the week I find my average weight. It helps to see if I need to fix anything or not. I would love for you to add me! Let's do this together.

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