When I started my new food-lifestyle, I made a conscience effort NOT to get on the scale. I wanted to get my starting point number (which I believe was 227lbs) but from then on, I didn't want the scale to dictate how well I was doing. It was difficult; we all want that immediate gratification. We want to get on the scale after a hard workout and show 5lbs lost!... or, even better, 10lbs lost!
The truth of the matter is this: that scale is not your be-all end-all. It's more than losing weight that you're trying to accomplish; your end goal should be to become healthy and when you have a long road ahead of you, the last thing you need is something telling you that you aren't good enough. You ARE good enough so don't worry about that little square trying to tell you otherwise. There are some important questions I asked myself whenever I got the itch to check the scale: Do I feel better today? Do I have more energy? Are my clothes feeling different? Do I LOOK different? These questions and positively responding to them helped get over that need to check my weight every day. Eventually I saw the difference that was happening and only then did I check the scale to see what the "numbers" were. I had started in mid-October and by mid-March I had lost about 20lbs. It definitely motivated me to keep going and was self-gratifying enough to keep me away from the scale (it had worked this long, might as well keep going!). By May, I was in the 190 range and by October I had managed to get rid of 60lbs. And quite honestly, seeing the difference in my clothes was much better than weighing myself all the time.
It was important for me to get into the right mindset at the beginning. All the other times I tried losing weight I would end up failing because results weren't happening fast enough. Even currently as I continue to tone and build muscle, I struggle critiquing myself too harshly. I want that six-pack now! I want strong arms now! I don't want jiggly thighs NOW! I'm trying to remember that the journey is just as important as the finish line. It took me years to put on the weight, so why would I think its going to come off easy? It's not. It's difficult and continues to be BUT when you can run that mile faster, wear that smaller size, and just feel awesome, it makes the fight all worth it.
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