Progress Journal: Would you please get off the scale

That moment where it's you, the scale, and some prayers that today you will receive a favorable outcome.

Readjusting to Real Life

Last Saturday I stepped on the scale and saw a  number that didn't make me leap for joy.  Since abandoning my fitness competition goal for this year I have tried to readjust to normalcy for me.  You know about GDay and over Labor Day Weekend I went to Chipotle and had some Coldstone with friends.  I even went out for dinner over Labor Day weekend and shared an entree and dessert.

After so many months of structured eating, I wanted to take a break and try to feel like I did before starting the competition training.  I liked healthy foods and would have a free meal (or sometimes two) during the week.

I'm happy to say that slowly but surely I'm getting there.  I've reincorporated a lot of the foods I was eating prior to starting competition training and it is all on plan.  

I have had a few slip ups with trail mix and Quest Bars, but I mean REALLY!!!!! WHy can't I slip up with Burgers, Fries, and Cheesecake?????

Needless to say I am up a few pounds.  I'm up 8 lbs to be exact from my lowest and frankly that 8 lbs has returned to places that I don't mind carrying extra.  

But anyway as  I saw that number I had a few moments of Insanity:

• You should just give up!  See you won't be able to compete if you gain this weight back.  You can't do it.
• Today 8 pounds up and next month you will have gained 20 pounds back
• FORGET IT!  Bring on the Brownies.
• I quit

After I put the scale away,  I proceeded to make my food for the next week and go about my business.  I just had a momentary lapse, but what if I had kept going like I know many people do.

At this point I am satisfied with how things are going.  I like how I look and how I feel.  I can see muscle definition in my arms and shoulders.  My workouts have been fantabulous and I'm really pushing myself harder.  Food hasn't been perfect but it has been about 80% to compliance which isn't horrible.

So what gives?

The scale has been hailed as the barometer of successful weight loss for so long that it's hard to abandon this mode of thinking.  

As my coach Roxie says, the scale is useful for determining caloric needs but beyond that it's your gravitational pull on the earth that day.  

Weight can fluctuate depending on so many factors so it really is a waste of time to let scale weight get you down.  It's much more important to focus on how you're feeling and to enjoy the process.

Weight is a number....it's not my life

Weight is a pretty tough subject for me and I have constantly to remind myself that it's just a number and not my label or my life.  

Besides as I learned earlier this year it really doesn't matter either way.  Whether I weigh 135 pounds or 160 pounds, some  are still here for it because I AM FABULOUS!  

Yeah that's right and I dare you to tell me otherwise.  

It's only a number.

Your weight is just a number.  It does not define who you are as an individual.  It does not make you more worthy of love and affection, and it should NOT rule your day.