Success BEYOND The Scale
Most of my clients come to me for help with weight loss.
I know how to help them lose weight, but I don’t base our success on pounds lost.
Progress & health are NOT defined by a number on the SCALE.
Instead, I ask my clients to pick NON-SCALE MEASURES we can TRACK every week. These are QUALITY OF LIFE factors a scale can’t possibly measure.
Just like a weekly scale “weigh-in,” we do a weekly NON-SCALE “weigh-in” to record changes & assess progress. Here are some examples of what we may track BEYOND THE SCALE:
Morning energy
Afternoon energy
Sleep quality
Confidence
Overall mood
Mood getting dressed
Cravings
Mental focus
Bloating
Regularity
Stress
Pick one of these quality-of-life factors that’s important to you and start doing a WEEKLY NON-SCALE “weigh-in.” Reminding yourself of weekly progress is motivating! xoxo
If a client wants to use the scale, I support it ONLY if they agree to my “SCALE TERMS OF USE” below. If you like using the scale, I encourage you to agree to these terms, too:
✅I want to use the scale as one measure of success, but understand it’s not the only one.
✅I will record the scale number in a non-judgmental way and it will not affect my mood positively or negatively.
✅If the number affects my mood or motivation level, I will discontinue and rely solely on my other non-scale measures of success.
PS: If you choose to use the scale, don’t focus on specific week-to-week numbers, instead reflect on the “trend” (are the numbers generally going down-ISH or up-ISH.)
PPS: Remember scale fluctuations may not be because you are eating more or exercising less, it may just be a water. There are 9 factors that cause water/scale fluctuations:
1) Time of Day: You are likely to weigh less right when you wake up because you are dehydrated after a nights’ sleep.
2) Beverages: When you’re overly hydrated you’ll weigh more, dehydrated you’ll weigh less.
3) Exercise: You will weigh less after exercise if you don’t drink enough water before, during, and after your workout.
4) Carbohydrates: You will weigh more after eating even healthy carbohydrates because they help your muscles hold water.
5) Sodium: You will weigh more after eating salty foods since salt causes water retention.
6) Alcohol: You will typically weigh less after drinking alcohol since it is dehydrating.
7) Caffeine: Same as alcohol, caffeine dehydrates.
8) Bladder: No shocker here, if you weigh with a full bladder you will weigh more.
9) Menstruation: You will weigh more before (and usually during) your period due to hormones that cause water retention.
Originally published at https://dawnjacksonblatner.com on September 16, 2019.
