Why Throwing Out Your Scale Is a Good Idea
Hi friends! In today’s episode, I wanted to share a quick tip with you that is guaranteed to have a positive effect on your health - throw out your bathroom scale! For real.
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Okay, maybe you don’t have to throw it away but do get it out of your bathroom. Maybe put in the back of your closet or under your dresser - somewhere where you won’t see it every day.
This topic has been coming up often in my coaching sessions lately. Almost everyone I’ve talked to recently has been frustrated because they’ve gained a few pounds over the past few months and don’t see it coming back off, and I’m going to tell you some of the same things that I shared with them.
These past few months have been strange for everyone. COVID = stress, and when we are stressed our bodies go into “fight or flight mode”. Losing weight is not a priority for your body when it’s stressed - surviving is. Our bodies can’t tell the difference between being stressed about a pandemic and being chased by a wild animal. It just produces stress hormones and acts accordingly, which often leads to our bodies holding onto weight for protection. This will likely resolve once the stress has calmed down or we learn how to manage it and our bodies can return to a more relaxed state.
Weighing every day will only frustrate you! Our weight fluctuates for many different reasons throughout the day, week, and month. For example, hormones, salt or water intake, and inflammation can all make our weight shift up or down a bit and that is completely normal. Most of us would never even notice it, but if you are weighing every day, you will likely see that fluctuation and think that it’s due to something you did or didn’t do.
Weighing every day will make you focus on the wrong things. It is not emotionally or physically healthy to obsess about our weight or every single thing we eat, but if you find yourself continually worrying about the number on the scale, that is likely what you will do. This can lead to an unhealthy obsession and more stress (read - more weight gain).
Weighing every day will most likely sabotage your weight loss goals.
If you are going to weigh yourself or wanting to use your weight as a measurement for progress, I personally recommend only weighing yourself 1 x per month or at the very most every 2 weeks (When you do weigh yourself, make sure you are weighing at the same time of day, day of the month, wearing the same amount of clothing, etc.)
Ultimately focus on non-scale victories to track success and progress. A few examples are:
The way your clothes fit
The way your rings fit
The condition/growth of your skin, hair, and nails
Your energy level
Your mental/emotional state
Your amount of cravings for sweet/greasy foods
If you are consistently doing things that help you to feel good
Remember, you could reach your goal weight and still be miserable and not feel good. A number is not the goal. A number doesn’t define health. You get to define that for yourself. You are worth far more than a number.
Listen to your body. Appreciate your body and the gift of health. Go throw out your scale!