Wondering if ditching the scale works well for others

mopond9
mopond9 Posts: 1 Member
edited December 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey guys. So I've been overweight for most of my life, and after having my child, I decided it's time to look how I feel inside. For about a year; I watched the scale weekly and never saw progress. I think I was living for seeing that number go down (at the time 212lb) Every week I didn't hit my goal seemed to be a massive blow to my self-esteem, and I eventually gave up. I've been going again for a few months now, and have stopped worrying about the scale altogether. I did an initial weigh in, but haven't looked since. This being said, without the pressure of a weekly goal, I have seen significant weight loss. Clothes fit better, and can finally wear pieces I saved for "when i dropped some weight."

Was just wondering if this way has worked with others as well, or other ways people have found around the pressure of the numbers?

Replies

  • michelleepotter
    michelleepotter Posts: 800 Member
    Some people obsess over the scale and it's not good for them. You might try doing measurements instead if you're interested, but if your clothes are fitting better then you're making progress! :)
  • vespiquenn
    vespiquenn Posts: 1,455 Member
    Do what works best for you in this case. The scale is only one of many methods of measurement for success. Clearly clothing fitting better is another. Chose what you can commit to.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    I don't get on the scale very often either...I used to weigh weekly but eh.

    I don't care that much about scale weight...I prefer to use clothing size, how I feel/look, the measuring tape and how fast I walk or run or how much weight I can lift to be my gauge.

    and pics like these nailed it home for me.

    6mikor27op1c.jpg


  • DaniCanadian
    DaniCanadian Posts: 261 Member
    Me for sure! I've had to readjust how I think of weightloss, we get bombarded so much with you have to be below this number and it has to be done fast and to an extreme. I'm definitely more successful when I change that view point.
    Right now I'm giving myself 6 months (so Christmas pretty much) to lose the last 15 lbs of baby weight. I gained 40lbs, my baby is 4 months old Thursday and I'm pretty proud of myself that I'm doing so well already! But I'm focusing on body weight exercises and getting more efficient at moving myself around (being able to do a full push up, then 2, then 5, etc). And I'm still eating around 2000/day, but currently breastfeeding. This time will be slow and steady right off the hop!
  • Gamliela
    Gamliela Posts: 2,468 Member
    Its better that I don't weigh. I can tell by my clothes getting looser and from my measurements over time (once a week in the morning) that I am steadily losing.
    I have lost 5 and a half inches off my waist and about the same off my hips. Several inches off my thighs etc. since last December.

    There are a few reasons why weighing isnt good for me. One thing is that I will excersize and naturally that will cause some water retention in muscles. So the next day I weigh, and even though I ate proper calorie amounts, I see th scale number go up. Yikes, I think I have gained fat.

    Or I eat some salty chips or something on the weekend, still keeping in my calorie amounts, but I see the scale number go up, again, my reaction is yikes, I'm gaining. Next I may even go to a place of "This isn't even working for me, maybe I should try some other way of eating, or maybe start doing a lot more excersize, or maybe I should cut more calories."
    This can, for me, snowball my efforts in that I see more in those numbers on the scale than Is really there. It stops me from just going ahead with the plan I have chosen and let it work over time.

    For others the scale is a real necessity and maybe its a motivation too, idk, but for me, its better just sticking with the plan of eating and doing some moderate excersize.
  • heatherheyns
    heatherheyns Posts: 144 Member
    Like anything, different things work for different people. For me, the scale is an important data point. I use it as such (especially when using weight trend instead of specific weight). For other people, it's a form of stress which derails their efforts.

    Basically, use what works for you. =D
  • mommazach
    mommazach Posts: 384 Member
    I was all about the not getting on the scale, and seeing how clothes fit. Then I went to measurements, then... I hit a wall. Now I weigh daily, but don't log it until I see a loss. Keeps me on my toes as I know if the crap I did yesterday was worth it. BTW, the gluten free cake on Sunday... Not so much worth it later.
  • azulvioleta6
    azulvioleta6 Posts: 4,195 Member
    tiffanifair wrote: »
    I'm a daily weigher...if I stop weighing I find that I hold myself less accountable. When I've overeaten or eat out several times in a row and I see the number jump up on the scale it keeps me in check:)

    Yep--there is nothing wrong with a daily reality check.
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 15,692 Member
    Just as with calorie counting as opposed to other methods of creating and maintaining a caloric deficit.... whatever works for you and keeps you mindful and motivated without being counter productively obsessive!

    I weight daily to provide data points for my trending weight chart... and consider my trending weight to be my actual weight.

    I am also aware that body composition is a significant factor and that we do not only lose or gain fat when the scale number changes.

    I am also aware that I was not getting on a scale while I was closer to 300 than 200...
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