Everyday Systems

Well, this morning I got on the scales for the first time since beginning No S, which was 17 days ago. My weight it up a bit (maybe three pounds from the last time I weighed myself, which was sometime before No S, and that's only a rough estimate), but it is actually about where I expected it to be. My intention is to weigh myself for the next two mornings also and take the average of the three for this month. Then I will not get on the scales again until June 1st.

I would like to lose around 40 pounds and I am willing (for now) to let this be a slow process. The benefits I am feeling from not wanting to binge and not being resentful of others and also not being afraid to eat are worth more than the thrill of rapidly losing weight.

Keep going and don't let the scales get you down. I didn't start losing until the end of my second month. I just knew I was feeling better and eating better. You can do it.

Just Jill,

I have loved your posts on other threads and it is good to hear you are going to keep on keeping on. Seventeen days is very soon!

I am in for the long haul too!

Blueskighs

I also got on my scale this morning since it is May 1 and nearly fell off because it showed I had lost five pounds. So I moved it to another part of the room and it showed I had gained five pounds. I'm taking the first weight and have marked very carefully where it was placed. I will not get on it again until the 1st of June

Congratulations on 17 days on habit! Almost to the magic 21...

Two things to keep in mind regarding the scale:

1) sustainable weight loss is VERY slow -- a very crude approximation is half a pound a week (just 2 pounds a month).

2) household scales are not terribly accurate AND your actual weight will fluctuate throughout the day. It is usually very hard to see "sustainable weight loss" on a time frame shorter than months.

Like it or not, these are the facts. There are two ways you can deal with them:

1) weigh regularly and track the moving average. That way isolated "outliers" won't turn you bipolar, and even small, slow trends will be visible. The cost? It's a bit of a pain, but the main problem is that most people are incapable of being sufficiently placid and scientific about their measurements. They'll still get elated or dejected with every random swing and the more they measure, the more often they'll feel this. Eventually their resolve breaks down.

2) ditch the scale altogether. You don't need it. This requires a bit of a leap of faith, but think about it, people were far skinnier before scales. The con? You might not have sufficient faith. You might start worrying. You might sneak a peak at the scale when no one is looking. That peak might not be so pleasant and unhinge you.

3) Try a hybrid approach: weigh just once a month, but then take several measurements over three days to smooth out outliers (maybe six measurements, AM/PM for each day). Don't pick the best or the worst number: take the average.

Reinhard

I'm for the hybrid approach. I think this will work well for me with building my No Scale Habit. The 1st 3 days of each month (beginning June 1st), will be yellow days. Any other days I step on the scale will be red. and when I don't, of course the square will be green

All these new Habits I'm developing are so great, easy and simple, although not always easy to build, certainly easy in concept.

I'm glad I came back and read tonight! I will take another measurement before going to bed. I will take the average of the 6 measurements and keep track of it on a graph somewhere. I am not the most computer-literate person, but there must be some way...

Thanks to everyone for responding and offering feedback. I will work hard at not letting the numbers de-rail me. I fully expect the weight loss to be slow. This is a lifetime change for me - not a "diet."

I'm going to do the exact same thing as you, Organic Gal, with keeping track of my scale activity on HabitCal!

I really like the idea of forgetting the scale. It ranks right down there with doing my accounts every month, going to the dentist and speaking in public. All high anxiety things. The habitcal is much more fun