One day I was about 250 pounds. Somewhere along the way I was 280 and then 310. I don't remember any of the interim steps, because for a long time I did not weigh myself.
Now part of that was that the scale my wife bought the last time around only went to 250. Not the best choice.
But the key is simple. If you monitor your weight (and record it) you are far more likely to keep that weight loss goal in mind. Now there are some pitfalls to doing this.
First thing to keep in mind is that your weight can vary from day to day for a variety of reasons, such as water intake, bowel buildup, time of day, etc.
I prefer to weigh myself once a week, and then on the same scale. In my case, I do it at the VA hospital as part of my MOVE Group. While I may occasionally get weighed at other times, I consider my Thursday 5PM weigh in to be my official weekly result, the one that matters.
This consistent, same time every week, event is also on the same scale. I swear that scales vary by as many as 2-3 pounds. So the key is to use the same scale consistently. Even if it's off a half pound or three, the goal is to lose weight over time as measured on the same scale. The actual number doesn't matter as much as the long term trend.
By keeping to the same time of day, you tend to balance off much of the day in day out variation. And again, it's the trend that counts. Now over the past year, I have had a number of up weigh ins. When done once a week these are typically anywhere from a few tenths of a pound to 2 or 3 pounds. This bad news serves to rededicate myself. Usually with some success the following week, although not always. Two successive bad weigh ins requires serious re-dedication. For me, I have usually been able to return to plan by the third week.
This is in my mind preferable to a daily weigh in. Although I know many people prefer to do so daily. When the news is bad, day after day, I fear that I might get discouraged and stop caring. Or stop weighing. So for me the idea of a weekly weigh in makes the most sense.
When the news is good, I find it encouraging. I love hitting new lows, after new lows, and the enjoyment of doing so contrasts sharply with the bad news events. This contrast is useful in stimulating corrective behavior in that first week after an uptick.
Now as I've written about before, when the news is bad, don't beat yourself up about it. Serious weight loss when you are trying to lose 50 pounds of more is a long terms journey. We are all human, and we will struggle along the way. Especially when we consider special events like birthdays, holidays, parties, etc.
So take the bad news in stride when it comes, but keep your weight in mind on a regular basis. Weigh yourself and log that weight in a journal, or if you can on a graph. That way you can not only enjoy the new lows as they come, but can map them out and recall the past progress you have made.
If you are not is a support group, where you weigh in regularly, set up your own time of day and time of week when you will monitor your weight.
If you do not already have a good scale, go to Amazon right now and buy one. It's important to monitor your weight.
The author lost 70 pounds in 10 months in 2011, and is writing a blog providing tips and tricks as well as reporting on his ongoing progress to lose an additional 60 pounds. He invites you to monitor his progress at How To Lose 50 Pounds blog.com.
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