When it comes to the weight loss game, the focus tends to be just that \u2013 weight loss. I know that sounds silly and kind of like a \u201cduh!\u201d moment, but hear me out. There are so many reasons people want to lose weight \u2013 aesthetic goals, health concerns, self-confidence, etc. None of these are \u201cbad\u201d reasons, but at the heart of any program geared for change should be a love of self. Now, I hear rationale that if you really love yourself, who cares how much you weigh, what size jeans you wear, etc. But, the thing is, while you can love yourself regardless of your physical appearance, you\u2019re not really \u201cloving\u201d yourself, in the most active sense, if you aren\u2019t taking care of yourself. This doesn\u2019t mean you need to weigh a particular amount, squeeze into a specific size, look a certain way, or anything like that, it just means that you recognize the value of your body, your health, your \u201cself\u201d and you are making protecting and caring for all of that a high priority in your life. You don\u2019t have to hate yourself to be motivated to change, in fact, I would argue that the best motivation for true, lasting change is truly loving yourself and wanting to do what\u2019s best for you.<\/p>\n
With that in mind, no number on the scale can tell you whether you\u2019re truly \u201csucceeding\u201d in doing what\u2019s best for you and your body. Yes, if you\u2019re drastically overweight or obese, weight loss is a key component to improving your health and preventing or improving health conditions like heart disease, diabetes, joint injuries, and more. But, it shouldn\u2019t be the deciding factor in your success. How are your clothes fitting? How are your energy levels? How are your blood results? How do YOU feel about your new nutrition and exercise? For some, the scale will move quickly and frequently when they enter upon a new diet or exercise regimen. For others, it will seem achingly slow. Gaging your progress by simply the numbers on the scale is likely to give you a false sense of success (or failure) and tell only a small piece of the story. Perhaps you\u2019re shedding pounds left and right. But if you\u2019re severely restricting calories to do so, working out hours a day, exhausted, constantly achey, headachey, etc, this isn\u2019t \u201csuccess\u201d and it\u2019s not sustainable. On the other side of the spectrum, if you\u2019re finding the scale is barely budging, but you\u2019re able to run faster or longer, lift more, do an extra few push-ups, climb a full set of stairs without getting winded, and find that cloudy, post-lunch fatigue has gone away, you\u2019re definitely doing something right, even if the scale isn\u2019t \u201cshowing\u201d it.<\/p>\n
The point? You shouldn\u2019t be striving to lose weight just because you believe some magical number on the scale will make you feel \u201cbetter\u201d, look \u201cbetter\u201d, be \u201cbetter\u201d, and you shouldn\u2019t be avoiding a change to your diet and exercise because you \u201cdon\u2019t mind\u201d that you\u2019re overweight. Loving yourself and wanting the best for yourself can\u2019t possibly be contained in a number on a scale. Pursue a healthier lifestyle because it\u2019s what\u2019s best for you. Typically, the scale will follow, but if it doesn\u2019t and your health improves, you feel better, you are capable of more, then you\u2019ve still succeeded.<\/p>\n
Aubrey Phelps MS RDN<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When it comes to the weight loss game, the focus tends to be just that \u2013 weight loss. I know that sounds silly and kind of like a \u201cduh!\u201d moment,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":1652,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n