I quit

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shans34
shans34 Posts: 535 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Today, I asked to be moved out of the regular group of a weight loss challenge I have been in for months. The reason I quit is simple. I find I lose weight easier when I'm not dressing about the scale. Both times I've been hugely successful was when I quit weighing regularly. I packed up my scale and put it away. In time, I hope to drag it out months from now and see a difference. Anyone else get tired or feel like they can't make progress because they are too obsessed with the scale?

Replies

  • batorkin
    batorkin Posts: 281 Member
    edited December 2017
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    I am the exact opposite, I weigh myself daily because my weight loss is surprisingly very linear. I tend to maintain/slightly gain for 3 days, then see drops on the 4th and 5th day, and that cycle has repeated throughout my first 30 pounds.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
    edited December 2017
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    I don't personally, but a lot of people do benefit by not living and dying by that one number. You have to find what keeps you in the right head space to commit to and trust the process and stay on course. Good luck!
  • vingogly
    vingogly Posts: 1,785 Member
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    Sometimes I'll go a couple of weeks without weighing myself, usually it's once or twice a week. I made a rule for myself: I'll only record a weight change while losing if it's in a downward direction. That gives me the positive reinforcement of seeing a loss without the negative reinforcement of seeing a higher number due to water weight etc.
  • dsboohead
    dsboohead Posts: 1,900 Member
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    Every day would be too obsessive compulsive for me.
    Once a week at the same time ...same place...same condition and then logged...PERIOD! o:)
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,968 Member
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    I go back and forth. When I'm trying to lose I weigh myself daily and record it here and on my spreadsheet.

    When I'm maintaining (like now) I weigh 2/3 times a week and record it. I've been at this for many years so the number doesn't really affect me a whole lot one way or the other. I have a 5 pound +/- range. Eat a little more near the bottom and a little less near the top. Pretty simple.
  • wanzik
    wanzik Posts: 326 Member
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    Although I step on the scale at the gym almost every day, I usually do an "official" weigh-in once a week on Saturday morning on my own body composition scale. I like to track it. But don't really obsess over the results. If I don't see things trending in the right direction then I know I need to make adjustments.
  • OHFlamingo
    OHFlamingo Posts: 239 Member
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    I weigh every morning, first thing, but only record my Friday morning weight. I don't stress about the daily ups and downs or the not moving at all. I think we all need to just figure out what works best for us, and do that!
  • LilFoxtrot
    LilFoxtrot Posts: 91 Member
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    I am the same way. I used to weigh daily each morning and it put me in a REALLY unhealthy mental space. It was too much live-or-die by the numbers. I packed up my scale to focus on making changes and learning how to have a healthier relationship with food versus obsessing about a pound fluctuation. I am way better off stepping off the scale for a while. One day I am sure I'll be able to step on the scale and NOT obsess but I am not there right now.
  • lucerorojo
    lucerorojo Posts: 790 Member
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    I just weigh once a week. Daily would be too much. I didn't weigh myself at all for the last several years, which is how I got fat. So I have to face the music every week!
  • Philtex
    Philtex Posts: 887 Member
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    shans34 wrote: »
    Both times I've been hugely successful

    You have been 'hugely successful' two times but here you are again. Perhaps tracking your weight on a regular basis (be it daily or weekly) would help you keep the weight off this time. Try for weight management rather than some big loss just to gain it all back. Personally, I reached my goal weight over 5 years ago and have kept it off, all while weighing daily. The more information the better!
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,287 Member
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    Funny you post this.. i was just thinking the other day.. how i used to lose weight and get in shape..never stepping on a scale. I just looked in the mirror..and tried on my tight jeans every now and then to see how I was doing.
    it is more aobut doing the work and sticking to a plan..plugging away. Seeing the number on the scale means nothing.. it is just an excuse to quit when you don't see a loss.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
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    My experience is that I lose or maintain more consistantly when I weigh myself once a week. More often does bad things to my head, less often and I start letting things slide too much.
    My experience with group challenges is that I hate them so I don't do them. I don't like reporting on my progress. I don't like following someone else's plan. I get easily irritated by others instead of motivated by them. I just do better on my own.
  • spiriteagle99
    spiriteagle99 Posts: 3,676 Member
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    I have had scale issues when I was dieting. I can't weigh myself every day. When the scale said I lost weight, I'd say, "Yay, I can indulge a little extra." When I didn't lose or gained, I'd say, "Damn, this isn't working. What's the point? I think I'll eat something fattening." I do better to only weigh myself every week or 10 days. That is enough time to see some results, but not so long that errors can slip in without getting noticed. I've learned not to weigh myself after a hard workout or restaurant meal so water issues are minimized. I do the same thing now that I'm maintaining. I log what I eat, so I know what the scale should say. By checking in every week or two, I can find out whether what I am doing is working or not, but it isn't often enough that I get obsessed by the number. Nor do I get tempted to keep losing weight that I really shouldn't lose, just so I can see the number go down.

  • blambo61
    blambo61 Posts: 4,372 Member
    edited December 2017
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    I weigh daily in the morning and before I go to bed and usually after I work out. I want to know what is going on. I would be very afraid not weighing myself. I could easily gain 10-lbs and not even know it. When I'm just trying to maintain, I allow about a 5-lbs window that I stay in. If I hit the upper limit, I get busy and go into loss mode. I've maintained for a couple of years doing that and am within 2-lbs of my lowest weight for the last 27-months. SW 256, CW 197. 200lbs is my current upper limit that I don't want to go above. The lowest I've been in the last 27-months is 195. By all means though, do what works for you! Just be careful you don't gain and not notice.
  • shans34
    shans34 Posts: 535 Member
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    Philtex wrote: »
    shans34 wrote: »
    Both times I've been hugely successful

    You have been 'hugely successful' two times but here you are again. Perhaps tracking your weight on a regular basis (be it daily or weekly) would help you keep the weight off this time. Try for weight management rather than some big loss just to gain it all back. Personally, I reached my goal weight over 5 years ago and have kept it off, all while weighing daily. The more information the better!

    Each time, I would step on the scale at some point and then keep stepping on the scale and quickly got discouraged. Now that I recognize that pattern, I'm aiming to break it for steady progress without back tracking.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
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    I weigh frequently even in maintenance because I would prefer to lose 1 or 2lbs rather than 10lbs. It was not stepping on the scales that gave me the rose tinted glasses in regards to my weight gain, if I didn't see the number that meant I wasn't getting fat....but I was.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
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    i weight daily because a) it lets me see how different external variables affect weight (i.e. sleep, sodium, working out, fiber) - but I know that i'm more than the number on the scale

    and b) working with the nutrition guys i work with, they give me a weight goal (for maintenance) - if i'm below that when i measure, i get a small calorie bump (10g carbs and 1g fat) - so there is a reward for weighing myself daily/being honest with myself
  • kristen8000
    kristen8000 Posts: 747 Member
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    When I don't weigh daily, I backslide. Big time. Like 10-15lbs in 6 months.

    Libra (Trending App) helps boat loads and I have all that data (since Sept. 25th) to look at. Even when the scale goes up, it's nice to see the "trend" still goes down. And if it keeps going up, and the trend changes, then I do something about it, which can be corrected in 1-2 weeks instead of 2-3 months.

    The scale isn't evil. It's a data device.

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