The biggest reason that I am thinking of ditching the scale is this: I lost 1.3 pounds last week.
Good news, right?
I thought so too, until I was trying on some jeans on Sunday, and found out that they are too tight for comfort. These are the size 12's that had been fitting me like a glove recently... but now I've gained a bit of stomach fat, despite losing 1.3 pounds and am back up to size 14's fitting like a glove and size 12's being zip-able but uncomfortable.
So, the scale can definately be misleading.
I'd rather focus on how my clothes fit than the scale, since I have obviously lost some muscle and gained some fat over the last few weeks (less exercise than normal, more comfort foods than normal, etc.).
I'm not quite ready to give up on the scale completely yet. I am going to do this in baby steps, since I've spent 15 years being preoccupied with the number on the scale.
My 12 month plan for
getting rid of the scale-
1) From now until October 7 (my 27th birthday), continue weighing in weekly. Keep on trying to get down to 138-142.
2) Starting October 7, switch from weekly weigh-ins to every other week for 12 weeks. Keep on trying to get down to 138-142 if not yet there.
3) Starting at the beginning of 2012, drop back to monthly weigh-ins with monthly tape measurements, focusing more closely on the tape measure and how my jeans fit than the number on the scale. Work to maintain the weight of 138-142.
4) July 2012 - final scheduled monthly weigh-in. Keep up with the monthly tape measuring, but no more mandatory weigh-ins. Place scale in closet.
5) August 2012 - I will be free from the scale!!! Hopefully I will have been maintaining a healthy weight for at least a year at this point, and am in the size jeans that makes me feel great (10 or 12). Weigh in only if I really feel that I need to (after a vacation or if my jeans start feeling tight! If that happens and I've gained, go back to weekly or bi-monthly weigh-ins until back at my goal weight range of 138-142).
 |
| jumping for joy! |
Have you ever thought about ditching the scale?
P.S. New diet plan is going great so far!!! I'm loving how healthy and yet how flexible it is!
10 comments:
This is such a great idea! I have a slave to the scale myself and I realize how happy I am when I leave it alone for awhile. Good luck! Sidebar... you are incredibly organized for making a step-by-step plan for freeing yourself from the scale. :)
I hope you do get rid of it. I'd hate to think if I lost a lot of weight I'd still be a slave to it.
My ideal weight loss would be going through the years of obsessing over calories and pounds, followed by the freedom of being a "normal" thinner person.
This makes me smile a little because I'm going from not owning a scale or using a scale ever to now owning a scale. I'm hoping it doesn't become an issue, but if it does, my husband's got a nice big hammer to solve the problem with. :)
I've been thinking about getting rid of the scale for weeks! I'm just at a point where it isn't going to move much from week to week. There's no point in losing motivation because of the stupid thing.
Great plan! I'll join you!
@StaceyMarie- Thanks for calling me organized! LOL, I honestly don't think I've ever heard that. (don't tell my boss)
@Jety- thanks for that thought! I hadn't even thought about myself as a "slave to the scale" but I guess that I am if I let the number bother me.
@jennifer- good luck with having a scale around! I have always been able to limit my weigh-ins to weekly, even with the scale right there, so I'm sure you'll be fine! LOL at the hammer!
@Marie- YAY!!! I'm glad that you are with me on this. :-)
I LOVE your plan!!! You know about my relationship with the scale- so I don't need to fill you in on that! You are doing great. Baby steps over time equals BIG CHANGE when you look back!!! I am proud of you!!!
@Jill- Thanks so much for your support! I am proud of you, too. :-)
I'm really excited for you for this! I hope I can be in the same mindset as you once I get to goal!
I am excited that you can perhaps wean off the scale. Go Leah!!!
Awesome post and great mindset! :-) Yes, the scale does lie! The number doesn't tell us much at all, except for giving us an approximate guideline for calculating our BMR.
I got rid of my scale at the beginning of this month, and haven't missed it AT ALL. Then again, prior to that, I only weighed myself once a month, so it wasn't too difficult for me to let it go. Good that you're doing it in stages, to make it easier for you. :-)
Being 'scaleless' has motivated me to work harder to reach my health and fitness goals and to keep up with a healthy lifestyle -- if you are doing things the right way, results WILL following both in inches lost and in weight loss - that's a given.
I love how going by how your clothes fit and how you feel. I think it allows you to focus more on the process than the end result. I also feel that it gets you more 'in tune' with how your body is doing as well.
If this is the kind of lifestyle we are wanting to live *permanently,* what do we really need the scale for? It's not something we're going to stop doing once we reach a certain weight, right?
Post a Comment