Fit by 40, Week 9 – Who Cares What the Scale Says

What is your relationship with your scale? For most of my life, we have been acquaintances. Our relationship is neither good nor bad. It just simply is. We see each other a few times a year and that’s that. In fact, once I left for college I didn’t have regular access to a scale again until I was married.

My relationship with the scale changed recently because of the Fit by 40 challenge. For some reason (to track progress I think), I decided that weighing myself weekly was a great idea. I seemed to have forgotten the fact that the only time I have had regular encounters with the scale when I was pregnant and expected to gain weight.

Though weekly weigh ins were meant to show my progress and motivate me to keep working toward my goal, they were less helpful than I expected them to be, as I shared in Week 8. After several weekly weigh ins, I realized that disappointment sets in when I am feeling great about my progress and then see an unexpected number on the scale. Rather than basing my progress on the number staring back at me from the scale, I decided to go back to the metrics that worked for me throughout most of my life: how I am feeling and how my clothes fit.

This week I realized that my life is better because of this challenge. I feel better: I have more energy and I feel stronger. Healthier food choices are becoming the norm. I have had important conversations with my daughter about fitness and wellness. My clothes are fitting better. A number on a scale that is greater than what I was expecting distracted me from those accomplishments. And that is why I decided to say, “Who cares what the scale says!”

What Went Well, Week 9:

1. Exercise: Exercise continued to go well this week. The whole family even joined in, as we have started Disney training! I love feeling stronger and more fit each week!

2. Making Better Choices at Night: Because of our current schedule, Nick and I end up having a late dinner once a week. We also have our weekly date night. I have come to accept these as exceptions to limiting late night snacks, since they are actually just later meals. Other than these meals, we have been doing really well with eliminating late night snacks. We have been staying upstairs to work on the computer or read, which really helps. When the food is on a different floor, it’s hard to snack!

3. Brighter, Younger Looking Skin: I was told that I look younger two days in a row this week! My guess is that it is because my skin is looking brighter. Some of the redness in my face and chest area has diminished. Maybe I have better blood flow because of my exercise routine? Whatever the reason, I am liking it! This was an unexpected bonus!

Area That Needs Work, Week 9:

1. Eating Sweets: I have accepted this area as a weakness. Eliminating them is unlikely so I have decided to be more mindful of the sweets I eat. This past weekend we went to a graduation party and had a Father’s Day celebration. I ate dessert at both. Being mindful of my goals enabled me to only eat about half the dessert that I normally would.

I have been working on maintaining the areas that I have improved as I continue to work on others. This past week, things have seemed to fall into place. I was able to focus on maintaining the better habits I have created in the areas of sleeping, exercising, eating and drinking water. Once the pressure of a weekly weigh in was eliminated, I was better able to focus on my overall health and wellness. I wonder what other realizations will come in the remaining weeks of the challenge?And as for that pesky scale, it’s a weight off my mind!

Your chance to weigh in: Is having a scale beneficial or do you use another method to monitor your progress?