I thought this would be a good question to ask for some reaction. What the scale says SHOULDNT make us have a good day or a bad day, unfortunately for a lot of us it does. Even for people maintaining our weight, when we see those numbers go up...it can mean obcessing about it. There has been lots of on the news lately about how we should just "throw out the scales" but I dont see that as any answer. Most of us need to keep track on a daily, weekly or monthly basis to see just where we stand. And of course we all realize too that our weight changes daily..just a fact of life. So why then, when we see the scale jump up a bit, do some of us feel miserable and bad about ourselves?

I can wake up in the morning, feeling good, thinking I look good, look slimmer, look sexy, then jump on the scales and have it all go to CRAP! Had I not hopped on the scale, I would have had a great day, felt confident, in control. But jumping on the scale and seeing a two pound gain can put my day in the crapper!!

Note to self: weigh in only once a week and never, NEVER, when experiencing PMS!!!

Janice

I fall prey to this often, but not in the way you would think! If the scale is up in the morning I tell myself not to worry, but wait until the weekly average (since I'm supposed to compare those). That doesn't bother me so much, but if the scale is DOWN then I'm more tempted to cheat! I think-it's working, I can have that muffin/bagel etc JUST THIS ONCE.

Silly me! I was one of the big proponents of throwing out the scale and going on how clothes fit and such until I gained weight. Because of my large frame (big boned, no kidding!) I gain weight everywhere and can wear most of my clothes even when I'm at the upper end of my weight range. I find it really helps me if I weigh daily and compare my weekly averages. It keeps me on track, and it's nice to see the numbers drop!

-animaldoc

Good question!

well....I'm certainly guilty of this over-reacting to the scale. I dont mind seeing the scale jump if I've gone off plan, I don't mind a daily fluctuation, and I don't mind a week or two stall, but now, in an eight-week stall that includes no cheats and trying a few experiments to see if some particular food is stalling me, I have to admit, it's frustrating that nothing works to budge the scale. I think I simply get pouty about life being "unfair!" I exercise daily, I eat moderate calories of about 1500/day (I have to--I know from experience if I ate 2200 calories a day, even LC, I'd gain six pounds a month) and low carb, I stay away from fake/processed foods, and still...nothing but a slight gain on that dratted scale for weeks at a time. So I guess it's either a normal human reaction or a weak and childish one on my part to feel frustrated, just part of that little-kid mentality that still believes that if you do things "right," you should get the promised reward. Perhaps I even immediately recall those conversations with doctors who told me I was not doing what they told me or what I was reported, or I'd be losing more weight, when in fact I was following whatever plan to a "T".

For me, I think the answer to these feelings really WILL be not changing something within myself, but getting rid of the scale. I imagine a world with no scales, no fat calipers, even no mirrors!, a world where we'd have to judge how good of a day it was or how good of a person we were only by how we felt or acted, not by how we guessed others were judging us on the basis of some surface issue like our body size or the value of our clothes. To me, that imaginary world seems ideal. The scale is part of the more troubling real world, fixated on minor details that can be counted in numbers. One of these days I'll be strong enough to get rid of it, i hope! If I can just throw it out early in the morning on some trash day, it'll be gone before I can change my mind!

Yes in the sense that I frequently weigh myself when I think I've gained. So there's inevitable disappointment when I find out I'm right. BUT, I've learned to think it through now. Okay I cheated so of course its changed. Or if I didn't cheat, how can I tweak things? It also helps to recognize that I do have to choice to keep or lose the scale. For the first 5 months, my husband hid the scale and would pull it out if requested. That really helped break my scale "addiction". Now, I keep it in the basement which makes it an effort to get to...plus, out of sight, out of mind.

These days its frustrating not to see the big changes. I may have to come to terms with 140 being impossible for me. My goals have almost totally switched now from weightloss to fitness. I could be 150 but totally reshaped. These things are harder to measure.

Lisa

Who else will get off the scale, and back on it like 5 times to get the number you want? I know i do that occasionally. What really bugs me the most is when i have done really well for a week, didnt cheat once, worked out every day, and then get on teh scale....and didnt lose a pound...its enough to send a weaker person into a nosedive. luckily, Atkins has tought me well

I was very obsessive the first three months of LCing. But recently I bought a scale and I weigh ever day. I look at the scale more as a judgement on weither or not I drank enough water. I find when I gain two to three pounds when I am dehydrated. So early warning helps!