Adios Scale!! :)

marykate_1203
marykate_1203 Posts: 164 Member
edited November 14 in Health and Weight Loss
I recently took a leave of absence from my scale. I kept an eye on my food intake and logged. I made better choices. I did this for about two weeks. I was super nervous about getting on the scale, because it sort of took over my emotions with weight loss.

So, I did it. I lost 5 pounds! I was so happy and learned not to be so dependent on my scale. I knew that I had lost weight because I was listening to my body and answering with what I felt that my body needed. This power is so easy to gain and much better than feeling sorry for myself and emotionally eating (which I all too often do!).

I hope others learn to have a leave of absence from the scale. :)

Replies

  • sweetpea03b
    sweetpea03b Posts: 1,123 Member
    I so need to do this. I feel I've really become a slave to my scale. It's so ridiculously sad. It's just a beacon that I can't ignore every morning... calling to me to weigh and then making me depressed when I see it still hasn't moved and mentally beating myself up for not losing weight yet again. I am making a pact today that I will go 2 weeks without looking at the scale!
  • esjones12
    esjones12 Posts: 1,363 Member
    .....one of the reasons I only weigh once a week. You really have to be in this for more than just a number on the scale...
  • Altagracia220
    Altagracia220 Posts: 876 Member
    Well that's very big of you. I started feeling like I was obsessing over the weight loss too much and obsessing over the number on the scale every day so I kind of had to force myself to just weigh once a week and boy am I more stress free for that. Even now I kind of want to 'take a leave of absence from the scale'. Maybe weigh once a month or every two weeks to make sure things are going right.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    i only log once a week, though i weigh daily. when i start getting too preoccupied with it, i stop weighing except on log days.
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
    Good for you. Its important to use in the way that suits you and your personality. I prefer daily weighing and the advantages are greater this way for me.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
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  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    edited March 2015
    GuitarJerry wrote: »
    I truly don't understand this line of thinking, and while kind of a popular thing to do, because even trainers tell people to do this, I think it's wrong. There is power in information. Understanding how body weight works is not scary and depressing, but rather interesting and informative. Also, it gets you closer to understanding how your diet and exercise impacts body weight. I agree that body weight is probably the least reliable source, and yet, it's the most popular. But, again, it's just information for you to use.

    However, if it depresses you. Then, don't weigh. I don't know why something like that would depress you. But, whatever. I just get more aggressive and more attentive to what I eat if I am not getting results. There's nothing to get depressed about.

    oftentimes, women have a different mindset/perception than men. this is one of those times. weighing every day works for you. awesome. weighing once a month for some people works. awesome. weighing once a week for some people works. awesome.

    its not a once size fits all world.
  • Hippychick5983
    Hippychick5983 Posts: 130 Member
    First. Congrats on loosing! You are doing an awesome job! Keep it up!

    I think this is a great idea. I am waiting for my new scale to come to get a more accurate measure. Once I have it though I am definitely going to limit my weigh ins. I feel like this will make the success all the sweeter then
  • _Waffle_
    _Waffle_ Posts: 13,049 Member
    callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »
    GuitarJerry wrote: »
    I truly don't understand this line of thinking, and while kind of a popular thing to do, because even trainers tell people to do this, I think it's wrong. There is power in information. Understanding how body weight works is not scary and depressing, but rather interesting and informative. Also, it gets you closer to understanding how your diet and exercise impacts body weight. I agree that body weight is probably the least reliable source, and yet, it's the most popular. But, again, it's just information for you to use.

    However, if it depresses you. Then, don't weigh. I don't know why something like that would depress you. But, whatever. I just get more aggressive and more attentive to what I eat if I am not getting results. There's nothing to get depressed about.

    oftentimes, women have a different mindset/perception than men. this is one of those times. weighing every day works for you. awesome. weighing once a month for some people works. awesome. weighing once a week for some people works. awesome.

    its not a once size fits all world.

    What does this have to do with being a man or a woman?

    He's saying that information is information. If you choose not to look at information that doesn't change reality. Putting duct tape over the gas gauge in your car won't change how soon you run out of gas unless you're paranoid about running out of gas so you drive less. Perhaps this is what the OP is doing. If it works then fine but success or failure is not from looking or not looking at facts. It's from logging your calories accurately and staying within your calorie budget.
  • Vune
    Vune Posts: 674 Member
    callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »
    GuitarJerry wrote: »
    I truly don't understand this line of thinking, and while kind of a popular thing to do, because even trainers tell people to do this, I think it's wrong. There is power in information. Understanding how body weight works is not scary and depressing, but rather interesting and informative. Also, it gets you closer to understanding how your diet and exercise impacts body weight. I agree that body weight is probably the least reliable source, and yet, it's the most popular. But, again, it's just information for you to use.

    However, if it depresses you. Then, don't weigh. I don't know why something like that would depress you. But, whatever. I just get more aggressive and more attentive to what I eat if I am not getting results. There's nothing to get depressed about.

    oftentimes, women have a different mindset/perception than men. this is one of those times. weighing every day works for you. awesome. weighing once a month for some people works. awesome. weighing once a week for some people works. awesome.

    its not a once size fits all world.

    And it's not a men vs. women world, either! I weigh twice a day, every day. It allows me to be in tune with my water weight fluctuations and it's the easiest way to keep track of kidney function when you have a transplant, which I do. I still need to lose weight, but I don't put as much stock in day to day weighing because I know exactly what my body is doing. Women can learn to compartmentalize, too.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    yall are touchy today!
  • _Waffle_
    _Waffle_ Posts: 13,049 Member
    edited March 2015
    sweetpea03b wrote: »
    I so need to do this. I feel I've really become a slave to my scale. It's so ridiculously sad. It's just a beacon that I can't ignore every morning... calling to me to weigh and then making me depressed when I see it still hasn't moved and mentally beating myself up for not losing weight yet again. I am making a pact today that I will go 2 weeks without looking at the scale!

    I hope you're not making this pact with the devil. :laugh:

    Good luck resisting the beacon.
  • monrizz90
    monrizz90 Posts: 26 Member
    Weight can fluctuate daily due to a number of things. Biological women especially experience more changes during the month that might affect weight. It makes sense that some people wouldn't want to weigh themselves daily when these little changes occur. It can start to really bum people out. I know that I personally feel better when I don't weigh myself often.

    And in weight loss, I think it is acceptable to put men and women in different categories. Our bodies are built differently. I don't have the facts to back it up, but I'm pretty sure weight comes off easier for men.
  • Vune
    Vune Posts: 674 Member
    callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »
    yall are touchy today!

    Mrph? I thought my post was informative. Not touchy, but different and sharing.
  • Vune
    Vune Posts: 674 Member
    monrizz90 wrote: »
    And in weight loss, I think it is acceptable to put men and women in different categories. Our bodies are built differently. I don't have the facts to back it up, but I'm pretty sure weight comes off easier for men.

    I don't disagree with that. I was talking more about the psychological response to weighing every day.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    I don't think it's a man vs. woman thing. I'm a woman, and I find daily weigh-ins work the best for me, because they give me data that I can use, and I'm a data geek.

    Also, I find that waiting for weekly or monthly weigh-ins is counterproductive for me because I build up all this (unrealistic) anticipation around the weigh-in number, and it can be very demotivating if the actual loss fails to live up to my expectations. Whereas with daily weigh-ins, each data point is much less important in the grand scheme of things, and it helps me put those fluctuations in context.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    edited March 2015
    I weigh in daily too. In fact it's the first thing I do in the morning after my bathroom visit every single day for the past 2 years for the sake of weight trend tracking. I started doing that after reading how people who maintain their weight successfully tend to track their weight often. I wanted to build that habit now so by the time I reach maintenance it would already be a natural habit. More studies came in later associating daily use of the scale with better weight loss, so I was happy I chose to do the right thing. You can find some of them listed here: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/minding-the-body/201312/daily-weighing-may-help-manage-your-weight

    If you have problems with the scale I think you will find this to be an interesting read. Although I don't agree with ditching the scale, I find the part about your relationship with the scale to be interesting:
    http://www.fitocracy.com/knowledge/taming-the-scale-why-do-we-get-emotional-about-our-weight/
  • Asher_Ethan
    Asher_Ethan Posts: 2,430 Member
    I tried the daily weigh in thing and it made me depressed and I found myself giving up more often when I was weighing in daily. Even if I gained a pound in one day it would upset me so much because I felt all my hard work was being done for nothing and I would always end up binge eating. Now I weigh in when I feel like it. Sometimes it's every other day... Sometimes it's every 10 days.
  • ShellyBell999
    ShellyBell999 Posts: 1,482 Member
    Someone stole my scale during a break-in.

    so, if my pants get too loose, I eat extra calories for a few days /weeks until their comfortable again.

    If too snug, then I don't put them in the dryer any more.
  • Rogstar
    Rogstar Posts: 216 Member
    Very awesome for you! Definitely do what works for you, and I hope you keep with it! Only you know how best to keep yourself accountable and keep motivated.

    Put me in the "Give me all the data points!" camp. I tried weighing myself once a week but I felt that I wasn't getting all the information. One week was up, one week was down, sometimes it was even. Sure, overall I was going down, 40lbs over 18 months, and eventually I just stopped weighing all together because I figured I had it down pat. I stepped on the scale after six months (and several holidays later), and I was staring at a 20lb weight gain. That was a problem.

    I found this time around that weighing myself once a day (sometimes more during a weekday) gave me a reason why one week will be different from the next. My weight would often spike up two lbs after a hard workout day, or a high (delicious!) sodium day. I would go up 3 pounds two days before my first period day and ovulation day, but drop 6lbs overall in the days after. I'm just about back to my previous weight (with still another 40-50to go) but I'm having more fun this time. Graphs are pretty!

    Heck, one of my new favorite things to do is weigh immediately after waking up, weigh after going to the bathroom, and weigh after working out to see how much fluid I've lost. OK, I love numbers probably too much, but I've found once I realized how my weight fluctuated throughout the month that I've come to accept the gains as a natural part of life.

    Good luck and congratulations!
  • marykate_1203
    marykate_1203 Posts: 164 Member
    Whoa guys! I'm just sharing a positive experience I had. I know a lot of women who are ditching the scale and wanted to show off my accomplishment. Get your undies out of a bunch!
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