Yesterday I spent the entire day re-creating many of my lost files, but I’m very much aware that many of them are gone for good, including all of my statistics from my research (if my adviser ever finds that out….I’m in trouble!!). Anyway, before I get started on my work for the day, I thought I would post the “Top Ten Reasons Not to Weigh Yourself”, as I know many people weigh themselves often and I truly believe it’s not the best idea. Why? I used to weigh myself all the time back when I had an eating disorder, and I really believe it made things worse. This is not to say that anyone who weighs themselves will get an eating disorder, but I do think that it puts the focus on the wrong issue and it causes one to become pre-occupied with a number, rather than an overall sense of health and well-being.
The Top Ten Reasons Not To Weigh Yourself
- Weight fluctuates from day to day, which is not a significant indication of overall weight change.
- Daily weight changes often are due to water weight, which naturally rises and falls.
- Seeing a change we don’t like on the scale may make us feel negative about ourselves and our bodies.
- Focusing on weight tends to correlate with other negative behaviors that we want to avoid.
- The scale will never say what we want it to say.
- How we feel about ourselves is more important than the number on the scale.
- The scale does not consider body composition (the ratio of muscle, fat, and other tissues). For example, as we exercise and gain muscle, we might look trimmer and more fit but actually weigh more, as muscle is heavier than fat.
- We should not let a machine determine how we feel about ourselves.
- Weight is not a measurement of self-worth
- YOUR reason
Source: NutriFit, Sport, Therapy Inc.
Bottom Line: I do think it’s ok to weigh yourself every once in a while to keep yourself on track and to prevent gradual weight gains/losses throughout your life. I usually weigh myself about once a month, just to keep myself on track (and also to make sure I have not LOST weight). I encourage you to take this list seriously and really think about how the scale effects your emotions.
Today I leave you with the only mountain view I had while in Colorado. This was the view from the convention center in downtown Denver!
HAVE A GREAT DAY!
