I swear! I just want to break it...

[mothette]

I want to smash it into little tiny pieces and throw it off the planet!!! Argh I hate scales.

On one side of my mind I completely understand that this is a healthy lifestyle change... not a diet... not just about the number of pounds I lose... and not a race to get small enough to eat what I want... This is the reasonable side that understands that no matter what the scale says at the moment, I have not eaten any bad carbs, I've not eaten any sugar, and am eating less calories than I've ever had before and therefore I have to lose weight from this at some point. This is the side that realizes that weight loss is just the good by-product of doing things the right way.

And then there is this completely irrational-wants to jump on the scale every day and cry about what it says- side that can't seem to get the numbers off it's priority list.

Arrgh!!!

I want to quit weighing myself every week but if I do that I'm afraid that I lose some of the inspiration because it really is inspirational to see the numbers go down.

I seriously need to make a list of priorities and read them every day! Priorities that don't include the numbers on that machine.

Argh argh and double argh!

Any suggestions/advice is welcome.

[mystic]

Re: I swear! I just want to break it...

Ugh. This is such an issue for so many people. Sometimes I think there are correlations between addiction and wanting to step on the scale every morning. And for that reason, my suggestions would be these:

1. I don't know if anyone has set up a challenge like this, but if not, start a "no scales for a month" challenge. This leads nicely into my second suggestion.

2. Since wanting RESULTS!!! draws you to the scale like an addiction, then I would say that the addiction needs a replacement activity... personal challenges that show another kind of RESULT!!! rather than literal change of weight on a scale.

If you're an exerciser, then say for the next month, you're going to set a goal to raise your bench press max by 20 more pounds or raise your miles walked in an hour by X number.

If you're not an exerciser, then try to find other "measuers" that you can increase - bags of leaves raked in one day, steps walked at work.

It doesn't matter what you decide to do really, the point is to replace or redefine what you're calling RESULTS!!! for a while. Put the scale away. Continue your good eating and choose something logically acceptable to you that would give you that same fix as seeing a loss of weight on the scale.

I'm a firm believer that what you're thinking and feeling has everything to do with your success - that stands for anything, not just weight loss. So redirect your needs to something that WILL give you those ah-ha moments and let you continue to see success. People have written in other threads too, to measure your body instead. Many see success with measuerments even when the scale isn't moving.

[Evermind]

Re: I swear! I just want to break it...

No need to break it. You just need to develop a reasonable working relationship with it.

here's the deal: The lowest weight always counts as the official one. For example, yesterday I was at 204. Today I'm at 206.5. Now, I know I didn't gain fat yesterday. It's WATER. It happens a lot. I lose, then go up a couple of pounds for a few days, then drop again. I never sweat it. To me, I'm 204.

If you ever graph your weight loss on fitday, you will see that you have a pattern of loss. For me, it's about 9 days of losing, 10 days of plateau, and then another 9 days of losing, and so on. I expect it. Within the 9 days of losing, I'll be up and down, as I am now. But I'm losing.

[mothette]

Re: I swear! I just want to break it...

Thank you both so much for replying. I have been very proud of my other successes. I am walking more, drinking more water, and the mere fact that I've gone this long without sugar/starches etc is amazing for me... but yesterday was just one of those days where I really wanted to see some number reassurance. At least I was able to get on here and rant about it.

At work last night during my lunch break the three girls that I sit with all complimented me for doing so well with my eating choices. I was stunned (in a happy way) that they said something like that. It made me feel really good that other people are noticing a difference in me and my habits and when I passed the scale on my way back to work, we have one in the lunch room, I just pushed my nose up and trotted right past it with a smile on my face.

[mystic]

Re: I swear! I just want to break it...

Yippee! Good for you - that's what I'm talking about! What a great feeling to have others admire your efforts!

[Promise]

Re: I swear! I just want to break it...

At work last night during my lunch break the three girls that I sit with all complimented me for doing so well with my eating choices. I was stunned (in a happy way) that they said something like that. It made me feel really good that other people are noticing a difference in me and my habits and when I passed the scale on my way back to work, we have one in the lunch room, I just pushed my nose up and trotted right past it with a smile on my face.

good for you Mothette! dont worry about that scale!!!

[sallyseachange]

Re: I swear! I just want to break it...

My recommendation would be, of course, to weigh no more than once a week... but I have a "second best" recommendation too, for those who simply can't avoid the scales daily.

If you must weigh daily, then weigh at the same time (same clothes, or without). Write your weight down in a diary and don't stress the number. At the end of the week, total the daily weighs up and divide by seven... so that you get an average weight. That's the number that's important... and when you get a few averages, you really can see what's happening better than with simple daily weighs. You get the trend.

This worked for me, when I was a scaleaholic, and I have to admit, I still do it. I put my daily weighs into fitday (I have the PC version, not sure about the online version) and get a neat graphic line showing the trend. It's the trend that's important, not the daily number.

Just a suggestion.

[deec73]

Re: I swear! I just want to break it...

I saw the title to this thread and knew exactly what you was gonna say. SCALES!!!!!!!!!!!!! lol.


Dont give up. Keep doing what you are doing and eventually you will get the results you want. If you arent getting the results you expect, drink more water and exercise even more and it WILL work out, im sure of it.

[mothette]

Re: I swear! I just want to break it...

I love the average weight thing. I'm going to stay off the scale as much as possible but if I do lose my ability to stay off of it I'm gonna do it that way, average it out for the week. It seems like a much better way than hinging what I'm doing by it's daily fluctuations.

[deec73]

Re: I swear! I just want to break it...

I usually weigh on Tuesday mornings at the same time every week. I get out of the bed at 5:30, go pee, then weigh, lol.