Zen and the scale. My New Year's message to all
VSG on 06/12/13
I was originally posting this as a reply to a scale-related conversation but I think it's important enough to post for all to see and it is probably the biggest lesson I have learned in this WLS game. Here is the gist: we have a love-hate relationship with our scales. We weigh daily, and are terrified when it doesn't move. But, we're missing the point by not looking at the bigger picture.
I have found peace with the scale insofar as I use it to track trends and patterns. Here is what I mean. I still weigh frequently - every day or every other day, but I use it to plot data points on MFP. If I go 3 or 4 days, no big deal either. You see, I am a stairstepper with no discernible pattern except that I will hold steady for a period of time and then drop a couple of pounds, rinse, and repeat. There seems to be little rhyme or reason, and doesn't appear to be at all related to a single day's calorie/carb/water/protein intake or a single day's gym routine. It just seems like it's based on what my body feels like doing that day, but I have faith that the scale will move again when my body decides to drop those pounds. I have created an album of screen shots from 7, 30, 90, 180, and 365 day views that I have linked to below. What I want you to notice is how inconsistent it is on the "zoomed in" views of 7, 30, and 90 days and how consistent it is on the 180 and 365 day views.
The lesson I learned here was that if I use this to try to figure absolutes or formulas it simply doesn't work. But, if I use this to reinforce my OVERALL progress over a longer term, it reinforces my overall behavior over that same longer term.
My advice to all: weigh daily if it works for you, but don't obsess on the number. Instead, use it to adopt a longer range view. It is the cumulative effects of your careful diet consumption and tracking, water intake, and workouts that = weight loss. Be at peace with the fact that nobody ever guaranteed you a loss every day, and that some days you will lose, some will be steady, and some you will gain. BUT, if you see that downward trend over the longer term, you are still winning. If you don't see the longer term trend you want, re-evaluate and make changes. So, instead of focusing your mental and emotional energy on losing every single day, focus your energy on sticking on plan, and the odds will be greatly in your favor that you will have a beautifully consistent loss line when you look further out.
Happy New Year to all,
Laurie
(edited to fix links to images - let's see if this works)
http://www.obesityhelp.com/photos/album/127618/
I have found peace with the scale insofar as I use it to track trends and patterns. Here is what I mean. I still weigh frequently - every day or every other day, but I use it to plot data points on MFP. If I go 3 or 4 days, no big deal either. You see, I am a stairstepper with no discernible pattern except that I will hold steady for a period of time and then drop a couple of pounds, rinse, and repeat. There seems to be little rhyme or reason, and doesn't appear to be at all related to a single day's calorie/carb/water/protein intake or a single day's gym routine. It just seems like it's based on what my body feels like doing that day, but I have faith that the scale will move again when my body decides to drop those pounds. I have created an album of screen shots from 7, 30, 90, 180, and 365 day views that I have linked to below. What I want you to notice is how inconsistent it is on the "zoomed in" views of 7, 30, and 90 days and how consistent it is on the 180 and 365 day views.
The lesson I learned here was that if I use this to try to figure absolutes or formulas it simply doesn't work. But, if I use this to reinforce my OVERALL progress over a longer term, it reinforces my overall behavior over that same longer term.
My advice to all: weigh daily if it works for you, but don't obsess on the number. Instead, use it to adopt a longer range view. It is the cumulative effects of your careful diet consumption and tracking, water intake, and workouts that = weight loss. Be at peace with the fact that nobody ever guaranteed you a loss every day, and that some days you will lose, some will be steady, and some you will gain. BUT, if you see that downward trend over the longer term, you are still winning. If you don't see the longer term trend you want, re-evaluate and make changes. So, instead of focusing your mental and emotional energy on losing every single day, focus your energy on sticking on plan, and the odds will be greatly in your favor that you will have a beautifully consistent loss line when you look further out.
Happy New Year to all,
Laurie
(edited to fix links to images - let's see if this works)
http://www.obesityhelp.com/photos/album/127618/
Sleeved 6/12/13 - 100 pounds lost to get to goal!
Great post, Laurie. I tend to look at my weird weight patterns with scientific interest, except when I get close to a new decade/milestone (then I get impatient and a bit batty, haha). But I agree with you that obsessing about the scale is a bad use of resources.
Lindsay ~ 5'4" ~ HW (5/6/13): 280 ~ SW (5/17/13): 273 ~ CW: 140
Losses by month: pre-op: -8 M1: -18 M2: -12 M3: -13 M4: -9 M5: -10 M6: -12 M7: -14 M8: -12 M9: -2 M10: -8 M11: -9 M12: -2 M13: -6 M14: -7
What a great post!! It is SO HARD not to obsess over the daily ups & downs on the scale. I also stair step my weight loss and looking at the 3 month WLS graph on MFP helps. Also, it's so hard not to compare weight loss with everybody on this board as I read how much weight people lose each month on their signature line!
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