Did you know that muscle and fat weigh differently? Did you know that your weight will rarely be the same at the beginning and end of the day? Did you know that consuming too much salt or having an overload of hormones surge through your body can all change that pesky little number on a scale?
Scales do serve a purpose: How else will you know how much meat to order at the deli or how much you can pack in your carry-on luggage? Unfortunately, society has led us to believe that how much our bodies weigh is reflective of our health and self-worth. And that is simply not true! We think one of the best things you can do for your physical and mental health is to ditch the scale altogether. Here’s why.
Your Weight Isn’t Indicative of How Healthy You Are
As you work to get in shape and build muscle, you are making your body healthier – but you also might weigh more. This is just one example of how weight is not indicative of a person’s health. You can be “skinny” and unhealthy and “fat” and healthy. So ignore the scale; think instead about how your body feels.
Scales Can Create Mental Obstacles
Think about this: Your body is primarily water, meaning your weight fluctuates daily – even hourly – depending on how hydrated you are. Unfortunately, seeing that number tick up or down may cause alternative effects. For example, if you’re on a weight-loss journey, any jump on the scale could discourage you, making you want to throw in the towel. On the other hand, a drop in weight could excite you, giving you “permission” to snack or indulge in those “bad” foods you’ve been limiting. Pay more attention to how your body feels and think less about the number.
Scales Can Trigger Obsessive Behaviors and Eating Disorders
Regularly weighing yourself can be particularly dangerous to a person with OCD, anxiety, or an eating disorder. The last thing you want is to become obsessed with staying at or reaching a certain weight. Ditching the scale can help prevent this from happening since you will have less temptation to weigh yourself.
Scales Don’t Take Delayed Results Into Consideration
Weight changes don’t occur overnight; for most of us, it takes several weeks of dieting and exercising to see a noticeable difference. Even still, there will be fluctuations. Scales don’t consider these delayed results, making the process seem pointless.
A scale will never be your friend. So do yourself a favor and ditch it for good!