Are you afraid to weigh yourself?

I am afraid to weigh myself. I have been on this eating path for almost 3 weeks now. I feel leaner and my clothes fit better so I know that the scale should not matter. But I have been so good and usually eating under my calories. Sometimes really hungry too. Exercising a good deal. Not a lot because I have a bum knee so I walk...a lot. Plus some upper body weight stuff. I do feel better but I am so afraid that I have not lost as much as I hope with all of the effort I have put in. I don't want to be discouraged. Do any of you feel that way too?
«1

Replies

  • I got rid of my scale yesterday, because even though it wasn't showing any changes, I was noticing a lot of non-scale victories and better fitting with clothing that was once too tight. Trust me, the scale doesn't matter. Your main goal shouldn't be to lose weight, it should be to burn fat. Get a tape measure and judge by that.
  • I weigh myself at the same time every morning. I wait about 20 minutes after I have been up and moving. Weighing everyday for me is motivation to see I am either the same or less than the day before. Everyone has their own motivations. My best friend weighs on Saturday only because she likes to see a significant change to keep her going. I find weighing every morning helps me evaluate what I did the day before, on the rare occassion the scale is up instead of down, I can usually attribute it to something I ate the day before. Do what works for you, it is your journey to find the best path to success. good luck !
  • I am not afraid to weight myself. I am afraid of snakes.

    hahahahaha. now thats funny
  • Yes I'm scared to weigh myself!!!!!!! I know whether I've really stuck to my plan or not. It's an incentive to not weigh myself and keep going for me. I feel better, more energy, look leaner and I know that scale prob didn't budge so I'll b discouraged. U can't shake society's affirmation expectations from the scale. U have to train yourself to get affirmation from yourself. Thus avoiding the scale is a win win for me as I detox out society's hold on my confidence
  • No.

    Irrational fear is irrational.

    See a Doc. Get help.
  • Ok fine SergeantSausage. You're right. We can't avoid the scale or any reality in life. mama peach said it best above:
    I avoided the scale for years. I will not be making that mistake again.

    I weigh daily.

    Knowing that there are ups and downs to weight and that they are all normal and being at peace with them is part of the process. They are part of my long-term plans for managing my weight into maintenance.

    At some point, you have to make some kind of peace with the scale to keep your eye on your weight so that you can monitor it when you're maintaining. Remember your long-term goals and always keep them in mind.

  • I typically only weigh the first 10 days after my period then don't for 3 weeks, as I never lose during that time anyway... so it's always a bit stressful to step on the scale.

    It does help that I'm tracking as accurately as I can so I already have an idea of what the scale will say... and I'm usually pretty close. And if I'm not close, I know that I'm just retaining water weight and it will come off in a few days (I'm always right - I lost 2 pounds of water weight since yesterday, for example).

    So, trusting the numbers and the science has made it easier. Because I track, I haven't had a really bad surprise yet (or I knew that those extra 6 pounds were water weight after Christmas, for example, so it really didn't bother me that much, I lost it all in a few days).

    But I HAVE to weigh. For me not weighing myself is the first step of denial.
  • focus on the fact that you're losing inches - the BEST way to gauge progress :) i hardly weigh myself. think of it this way: pro body builders are huge on the scale but their body fat% is really low and they are super healthy/fit!. so the scale is not a good way to measure progress!!
  • I love to weigh myself. I look forward to it every morning. I even bought a special scale that talks over my home wifi network to post my weight automatically to MFP. I love data. I love seeing the weight loss. I keeps me focused on progress.
  • ugh...I hate to weigh myself. 1 of 2 things can happen. I can get frustrated that I haven't lost (or haven't lost what I thought/hoped I would) or I'll do well & reward myself with a false sense of entitlement allowing me to eat quantities of food that would make anyone fat. I knew it was going to be a long process so I just keep logging & buying smaller pants, weighing occasionally. I'm fine as long as I'm accountable to my food diary.

    It's a personal decision.
  • I'm never afraid. I like to know where I stand even if it's not good. It helps keep me accountable and motivates me to work harder if I need to.
  • The only times I'm afraid to weigh myself is after a bad few days of binging & around my period & during it.
  • I weigh myself most days but I only log it when the weight goes down. I know as long as I eat reasonably, then sometimes the scales might go up but they WILL go down again.
  • flippy1234 wrote: »
    I am afraid to weigh myself. I have been on this eating path for almost 3 weeks now. I feel leaner and my clothes fit better so I know that the scale should not matter. But I have been so good and usually eating under my calories. Sometimes really hungry too. Exercising a good deal. Not a lot because I have a bum knee so I walk...a lot. Plus some upper body weight stuff. I do feel better but I am so afraid that I have not lost as much as I hope with all of the effort I have put in. I don't want to be discouraged. Do any of you feel that way too?

    For me to be successful at this whole thing, I had to realize that weight loss/maintenance is mostly mindset, then calories and math. You have to get your head in the right place to make this work. One of the things that goes along with that is your relationship with the scale. Realize that it is simply a tool you can use, in order to get a better idea of your progress. It has no power over you, unless you let it. Remove all emotion from weighing yourself and you'll see how helpful the scale can be :)

    I've been a daily weigher for over 3 years now and I have absolutely no emotion attached to my weigh-ins. It's like brushing my teeth or combing my hair. I weight myself, record the data on a phone app I use, and then move on with my day.
  • campdawson wrote: »
    I weigh myself almost every morning and that keeps me on track. Not weighing for several years created a false sense that my burgeoning waistline was simply water weight, specifically around that time of the month. Next thing I knew I was 20 pounds overweight, then 30, 40, 50. I will always step on the scale daily. Don't be afraid.

    Exactly what she said. Now I weigh myself daily. Keeps me in check
  • I am not afraid to weight myself. I am afraid of snakes.

    Saw one yesterday in a client's yard......He ran after it...kids. They have no fear. Dummies.
  • why would i be afraid to weigh myself? its just a number.

    there are far scarier things in the world...
  • Not really to be honest. I weigh daily (naked, in the morning) and keep a record at WeightGrapher so I can see the general trend. But I know that there will be days where my weight won't move, or even go up, so I am not bothered. I also take measurements every Sunday, and take photos every now and then to compare. They all lead to the bigger picture. :smile:
  • Merkavar wrote: »
    Afraid to weigh yourself? That seems silly.

    Are you afraid to know how tall you are?
    It's a little different though. You can't really control how tall you are. You have great deal more control over how much you weigh. Which I think is what scares people - I know it does me - the number on the scale to a great degree depict our own successes or failures, which in turn can both make us complacent and make us discouraged, depending on the circumstance.

    What I think is important to understand is that the number on the scale is just one of many measures that depict our successes and failures. Other measures include body measurements/how well your clothes are fitting, whether you feel more energetic or lethargic, whether your level of physical fitness and mental sharpness has increased, etc.
  • Yep, and when it happens for more than two days, I know I'm on a bad track. At the moment I'm weighing daily to stay in control, and trying not to let little gains upset me as I can rationalise them. tbh at the start its good to weigh yourself right away, because in the first week you can lose quite a lot and I find that a boost to progress.