Evil Numbers, You Will Fall!

Numbers really are evil.   Well, okay, maybe I’m a little biased, seeing as I was an English major, but don’t we all dread numbers when it comes to losing weight?    Who really enjoys jumping on the scale and seeing those blinking digits pop up on the screen?

I dreaded the scale, that is, until I started trying to lose weight.   Then I started making excuses to go weigh myself several times a day to see if there was any change.   It became a game;  I’d get all amped up about the possibility of losing a pound in an hour, and bam, the numbers appeared and my mood would crash.   Oh, come on, I know some of you out there do the same thing.  :)

At WW meetings I learned that we often give numbers more power than they deserve.    Numbers have a place.  They tell us where we have been, and they help us make adjustments along the way.   The problem comes when we tie our emotions up in the numbers, and let them be the end-all,  be-all for our weight loss.   Remember, we aren’t fighting the number on the scale.   After all, the number has no control.   We are in control of the choices we make, and those numbers will eventually be forced to fall in to place if we make the right choices.

Here are a few problems with looking to the scale as our only barometer of success:

• Weight loss doesn’t always match the amount of work you put in.   You can do everything right, and for whatever reason your body might not respond that particular week.   Don’t give up hope!   If you stick with it, next week you will lose and then some.  

• Weight fluctuates daily based on water retention, hormone fluctuation, time of day, and what you eat.   You will always weigh less in the morning then you do at night, sometimes by a few pounds.   That’s a huge difference, especially if you are tempted to eat some chocolate if you see a higher number.    Did you eat something high in salt last night?    Your body will retain a lot of extra water which equals more weight.   Girls, time of the month always plays a role, too!  

• Sometimes we are making progress, even when the scale doesn’t move.   You might stay the same number-wise, but your clothes are fitting better because you are losing inches.   If you have more energy, your noticing faster recovery times during exercise, and you can start to feel some muscle under that flab, then rejoice!   Those numbers will come.    Those gains might be even better then a number some weeks!

If you look to numbers as your only affirmation,  I can almost guarantee that you will fall back into old habits and end up gaining again.   The scale is an important tool, one we must use in moderation.   WW says to weigh once a week only, at the same time of day each week.   That way, you will have an accurate record of progress, and you won’t see all of those daily fluctuations that can be depressing.

When you get your weekly result, try not to let your emotions get involved.   Use it as a means to examine the choices you made over the last week and whether or not you need to make any changes.    

I know, easier said then done.   Remember, its just one step at a time.  You will conquer that evil scale.   Its powerless against the new, healthy you.