Struggle Street Part 2!

Oh…the dreaded scale...a wonderful invention that torments us.  This little gadget can either fulfill our hopes and dreams…or crush us.  Okay…maybe that’s a bit dramatic.  Back in November, Weight Watchers changed their program and their tagline to Beyond the Scale. The new program emphasized other things related to a participant’s weightless journey such as increased energy, lower cholesterol, changes in your clothes, etc.  There are days when I agree with this change 100%. You know, on those days when I'm down on the scale, I've really learned to embrace the smaller clothes, better energy levels, higher level of confidence, being able to buy clothes in ANY store and so on.

A lot of the time though, especially when you're an accounting person, numbers say it all. I mean, after all, the first thing you do when you walk in to WW is step on the scale but I digress. My problem with the scale goes beyond WW. My first year at WW saw me weighing myself a couple of times a day- usually first thing in the morning and then again before going to bed. I heard many times at meetings how they recommend you to not step on a scale at home. I can understand both sides of this thought process, but for some people (like me), we need the reassurance of seeing the number on that dreaded scale go down. If it does, we’re doing things well and if it’s the same or up, we need to work harder.

I understand that everyone is different, and their body reacts to daily events differently. I also know how my body reacts at this point- so I can tell you exactly what will cause my weight to go up even if I’m nailing my eating and working out. It gives me a great deal of anxiety to try and not weigh myself at least once a week at home.  Past experience tells me that my scale won’t move down (or I'll gain) when I am feeling high levels of emotion/anxiety. So given the fact that only weighting myself once a week causes anxiety, I am not willing to fight that unnecessary battle by not weighing myself.  I do agree that people need to look at their successes beyond the scale as that can speak volumes and can DEFINITELY remind you how far you’ve come. When I look beyond my 90 pounds gone, I am so happy with the other things that are happening…

·         My pant size is 4-5 sizes smaller

·         My shirts about 3 sizes smaller

·         I can run further and faster, than ever before

·         I have enough energy to work, workout, socialize and play with my nieces and nephew (sometimes all of those things in one day)

·         and so much more.

I can’t even express to you how much better I feel since losing weight. I guess what I’m saying is, if you’re like me and you’re stuck on the number on the scale, take a second to think of all of the other positive things that you’ve done... I know it’s hard, but it’s worth it.  And if that scale still looks at you with a sparkle…don’t stress…step on it because we have enough stress on this journey without adding more to it.