My little man wasn't feeling too great yesterday, so I didn't have time to post yesterday's Think Kit post.
So today is a double whammy - two blog posts!
Yesterday I asked my FB friends this question:
Today's blog post requires me to take a poll! With my recent weight loss top of mind, I am curious - do you weigh yourself daily, weekly, monthly, or never (measure success in other ways)?! Don't forget to share why!
I have struggled with my weight for as long as I can remember. And seeing that number on the scale is usually more discouraging than encouraging. So I wanted to see what other people had to say!
The majority of people who responded said that they weigh themselves daily! The people who weigh daily seem to be a weight maintenance phase - not a weight loss phase. The daily check in helps ensure they are on the right path! But a few notes they see their weight shift within a 5 lb window - so I was glad to hear I am not the only one who sees a slightly big fluctuation day by day.
Sarah said, "When I was ' losing' weight I weighed myself once a week. I loved ( sometimes not) looking at the scale once a week to know what I had accomplished!! It really helped me not get discouraged if i had a bad day/night and i was able to jump right back on my weight loss journey! Now that I am maintaining... I step on it every single day to know and keep myself mindful of what goes into my mouth daily ( I want the scale to read in a range of two lbs:) so if it goes even a couple of oz above I know to watch those portions! Xoxo"
My friend Brittany said, "Daily. Partially for curiosity/fascination because my weight swings 5 pounds on a day to day basis. But also for awareness. If I start to let things get away from me I can catch it sooner than if I only weighed once a week. My goal is maintenance, however, not weight loss."
Weekly was a close second. Weekly seems like a good idea for someone who is trying to lose weight, but doesn't want to commit to a daily weigh in! Seeing he results after a week can be inspiring and push you forward! And it also helps some people get upset over a few lbs here and there!
My friend Steph does weekly weigh ins, but I love that she takes her measurements monthly too! Measurements are a HUGE sign of success that many people overlook because they are so caught up on the scale!
Jenny said, "Same time, same place weekly. Especially when I was trying to shed a few lbs, I know what a healthy pace is for me in a weeks time. Daily can be very frustrating for me because it fluctuates day to day, but weekly seemed to be a good consistent amount of time to see the change."
Others said it depends on their current goals or approach. For example, my friend Lindsay shared, "Normally monthly but when I am trying to lose weight it is weekly."
And others said monthly, yearly, and a few never weigh themselves!
I cracked up when my friend Tim said, "Surely you're not looking for males in this poll, but a couple times a year because there is a scale next to the toilet at Ashley's parents house haha!"
And my friend Chelsea shared, "When I was younger I would weigh myself multiple times daily. not ideal. a year ago or whenever that was that I was working out like a healthy person, I never weighed myself, my clothes fit well a could feel the muscle tone. (even my chiropractor made a comment on how strong I felt) after a year of living healthier and exercising I weighed myself to see where I was after a year...Of course it wasn't a negative number so I felt really down, like all that work for what? so then I started slacking....now I'm a bum again because after a year of working hard does not stick around. they mean it when they say you don't use it you lose it, I became less fit with the quickness. SO moral of the story...I don't weigh myself because I'm a big debbie downer and the number is never where I think it should be, which is an unrealistic number. lol"
I loved hearing that other people measure their fitness and health in other ways beyond the scale!
My friend Sonia said, "my trainer makes me weigh in every week and we are doing a biggest loser challenge at work that requires a weekly weigh-in. i kind of think its a poor estimate of health, so i pay attention to other things: 1) how do my clothes fit? if they are getting looser, i know something is working. 2) how is my stamina in power walking to starbucks or taking the stairs? this to me is a huge indicator of where i am in terms of getting in better shape. 3) comments/compliments. are people saying things like "oh are you working out?" etc. because if other people notice, then yes things are definitely working for the better."
And my cousin Rebecca said, "Never!!! I used to obsess over the numbers on the scale and then I threw it away. I am a crossfitter and I measure success by my performance in the gym. There came a point when the weight loss stopped and I started packing on the pounds (muscle weighs more!!) and because the number was rising I began eating the "low fat" nutrient deprived way to get back on the downward slope. What I was really doing was hurting myself. I was sucking wind in my workouts and light headed and grumpy. Once I tossed the scale and ate to fuel my body instead of lose weight, I dropped another whole pant size. I do check my whole body bmi/bp/hydration levels/fat to lean mass weights on occasion and a scale is part of it... but if I show a "gain" in weight usually I can see where I lost 3 pounds of fat and gained 5 in muscle and it's worth it."
As for me? I find myself stepping on the scale daily because I am in weight loss mode! But after hearing these tips from everyone, I might switch to weekly or even monthly! Justin always threatens to lock up the scale anyway - he can always tell when I am upset over a silly number. He told me to focus on my workouts and focus on my inches lost. He encourages me to make new goals for the gym...do the elliptical for 30 minutes one week and try to hit 35 or 40 the next week! Once I listened to him (see honey, I do listen to you sometimes), I found myself having the best results! Setting fitness goals is way more fun and keeps me inspired to try do workouts!
I am now down 10 lbs within the last month (and down 37 lbs post baby)- thanks to the combination of the Advocare products and hardwork at the gym! I've tried my best to eat clean and avoid dairy (it makes my stomach upset anyway), fried foods, processed foods, and sweet drinks / alcohol!
So what about you!? What's your relationship like with the scale!?
PS Thanks to everyone who commented on yesterday's post! I wanted to share all of the responses, but I have a sick baby to snuggle with this evening!
Much love,
Ashley
I cracked up when my friend Tim said, "Surely you're not looking for males in this poll, but a couple times a year because there is a scale next to the toilet at Ashley's parents house haha!"
And my friend Chelsea shared, "When I was younger I would weigh myself multiple times daily. not ideal. a year ago or whenever that was that I was working out like a healthy person, I never weighed myself, my clothes fit well a could feel the muscle tone. (even my chiropractor made a comment on how strong I felt) after a year of living healthier and exercising I weighed myself to see where I was after a year...Of course it wasn't a negative number so I felt really down, like all that work for what? so then I started slacking....now I'm a bum again because after a year of working hard does not stick around. they mean it when they say you don't use it you lose it, I became less fit with the quickness. SO moral of the story...I don't weigh myself because I'm a big debbie downer and the number is never where I think it should be, which is an unrealistic number. lol"
I loved hearing that other people measure their fitness and health in other ways beyond the scale!
My friend Sonia said, "my trainer makes me weigh in every week and we are doing a biggest loser challenge at work that requires a weekly weigh-in. i kind of think its a poor estimate of health, so i pay attention to other things: 1) how do my clothes fit? if they are getting looser, i know something is working. 2) how is my stamina in power walking to starbucks or taking the stairs? this to me is a huge indicator of where i am in terms of getting in better shape. 3) comments/compliments. are people saying things like "oh are you working out?" etc. because if other people notice, then yes things are definitely working for the better."
And my cousin Rebecca said, "Never!!! I used to obsess over the numbers on the scale and then I threw it away. I am a crossfitter and I measure success by my performance in the gym. There came a point when the weight loss stopped and I started packing on the pounds (muscle weighs more!!) and because the number was rising I began eating the "low fat" nutrient deprived way to get back on the downward slope. What I was really doing was hurting myself. I was sucking wind in my workouts and light headed and grumpy. Once I tossed the scale and ate to fuel my body instead of lose weight, I dropped another whole pant size. I do check my whole body bmi/bp/hydration levels/fat to lean mass weights on occasion and a scale is part of it... but if I show a "gain" in weight usually I can see where I lost 3 pounds of fat and gained 5 in muscle and it's worth it."
As for me? I find myself stepping on the scale daily because I am in weight loss mode! But after hearing these tips from everyone, I might switch to weekly or even monthly! Justin always threatens to lock up the scale anyway - he can always tell when I am upset over a silly number. He told me to focus on my workouts and focus on my inches lost. He encourages me to make new goals for the gym...do the elliptical for 30 minutes one week and try to hit 35 or 40 the next week! Once I listened to him (see honey, I do listen to you sometimes), I found myself having the best results! Setting fitness goals is way more fun and keeps me inspired to try do workouts!
I am now down 10 lbs within the last month (and down 37 lbs post baby)- thanks to the combination of the Advocare products and hardwork at the gym! I've tried my best to eat clean and avoid dairy (it makes my stomach upset anyway), fried foods, processed foods, and sweet drinks / alcohol!
So what about you!? What's your relationship like with the scale!?
PS Thanks to everyone who commented on yesterday's post! I wanted to share all of the responses, but I have a sick baby to snuggle with this evening!
Much love,
Ashley
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