Day #21...Get Ready to Weigh in....

Ok, is today the day you weigh in ? These weigh ins can help you in the following ways...
1. They allow us to celebrate and build up our confidence when we've lost weight.
2. They keep us honest and if we've gained weight. (If you have gained weight, then you know that you need to follow your program completely, not just parts of it...)
3. They help us stay committed to the program. When we lose weight, it motivates us to keep on going...We need to pat ourselves on the back for that is a great accomplishment.... If we don't lose weight, that should be enough to motivate us to make sure we are following the plan all the way. Are we sticking to our eating plan? Are we getting in the exercise we should be doing? The weigh ins motivate you to keep going or to get you back on track..Don't feel so dissappointed that you give up or give in...Don't use it for an excuse....Do you remember those Reponse Cards you made out on the first day, the reasons YOU would like to lose weight?..Don't forget to read them everyday...you need to see where you want to go. The scale is meant to make us stronger, not to make us feel bad...When you do get on the scale you have to remember that any day you could be up or down and still be doing your program 100%..


When you step on the scale, try not to think that you should weigh a certain amount..Just think about what you weighed last week. If the numbers on the scale doesn't go down, or doesn't go down much and you suspect your've been eating to much, don't waste time blaming yourself and having negative thoughts..Think about what you might be doing wrong and do something positive to solve the problem.. Maybe you've become lax about measuring food or counting calories, drinking enough water or exercising enough.
If the scale doesn't go down and you've been following your diet and exercise plans faithfully, don't panic. You can easily go up or down 2 pounds on any given day due to hormonal or other physiological reasons. If so, you'll probaby lose weight next week if you continue to follow your plan.
The book suggest we make a graph for a period of 10 weeks or so..This would show with a line on the graph when you go up or down, even if it's a very small amt. All dieters have weeks in which their weight either stays the same or increases a little. In the study that was conducted, most dieters said by making a chart and seeing their gradual progress, it helped them stay focused and more determined to reach their goal.
Ok, everyone, we know we have to weigh ourselves either weekly or daily to keep us motivated and to check our progress. Lets use the scale as a positive way to motivate us to continue on our journey..


Ok, next will be Day #22...Say, "Oh, Well" to Disappointment....

Hey Patty,

Ahh, the scale, or as I call the stupid thing, the mechanical monster lurking in the bathroom. For years I have had a 'hate' relationship with it. I KNOW it tells me 'the fact' of what is stepping onto it at that moment in time. I also know that it can't report any of the factors that result in the number I see. But, I still hate weighing in.

Primarily because I am afraid of my reaction to what I might see. Like many of us, not all but a bunch of us, I allow the number I see to affect my emotions. I can't tell you how many times when, after seeing a weight higher than I felt I deserved, I would allow self-sabotaging thoughts to overwhelm me. Before I could give myself time to talk back to those negative thoughts, I'd find myself diving head first into my fridge. Because of this fear, I only weigh once per week. I know a lot of you guys are daily weighers, and that is just fine. For me, the once per week weigh-in seems to work out so much better.

I think the idea of charting our own little progress graphs is a really good one. I am very influenced by visual aids, and seeing a steadily declining line would be quite motivating. Almost as motivating as getting into jeans that have been hanging at the back of the closet for DECADES. I did that.... the jeans thing.... this past week, and it was soooo exciting. It was an old pair of Chic jeans, with stovepipe legs. Now, stovepipe legs are NOT my personal style, (don't know why I bought them in the first place, lol), but they FIT, and I can still breathe!

Thanks to Beck, though, (back to the scale), I am finding myself better armed and prepared to TALK BACK to those negative thoughts when they hit me. I have the book now, but I am not hurrying through it. I feel pretty secure with my food plan at the moment, so I am taking the time to really THINK about how I think about me, food, my personal goals and desires and all that stuff.

You know Patty, so many of these steps seem so simplistic, but really, they aren't. They are just 101 principles that we MUST understand and utilize if we want to, ultimately, achieve and maintain our personal goals.

Thanks again for making this available for everyone here. I think this 'cognitive' approach pairs up nicely with WW.

cheers all

pattyjo