Ditching the Scale
Ever feel like you’re tied to the scale? Do you weigh yourself and find that the number dictates your mood for the rest of the day? Do you base your outfits, activities, food choices, or sense of worthiness on the number looking back at you?
If so, it might be time to ditch the scale.
Let’s first start with why. While you may fear that getting rid of the scale would lead to losing control, let’s consider the control the scale might actually have over you.
Medical providers often look at our weight and consider it in their assessment of our overall health, so it may surprise you that health does not have a size. The BMI (body mass index) has been proven to be inaccurate in predicting health in addition to being racist, sexist, and just plain irrelevant. What has been more accurate in determining our health is not JUST diet and exercise but also genetics, access to healthcare, stress, socioeconomic status, community, and the list continues (Strings, 2019).
With this data, we can logically say that weight is a number and you are not defined by a number. But emotionally? This is another story. What does that number mean to you? What beliefs do you associate so closely with the number on the scale? I encourage you to consider this with compassion and curiosity. You’re not alone in having deeply rooted beliefs about your body size.
So back to the WHY. Let’s consider ditching the scale because it may be causing a hyper-focus on your body in a critical way—or at the very least, you might just feel funky after weighing yourself.
My clients and I discuss this next part all the time—ditching the scale is HARD. It really is. So here are 4 tips to get started.
Chuck it. Just get rid of it. Having the scale out of sight can help shift your focus to other priorities and take away any temptation.
Give yourself a time out. Maybe quitting cold turkey doesn’t feel realistic. When you find the urge to weigh yourself, I encourage you to delay weighing yourself. Start with 5 minutes and extend as it feels doable. While you’re waiting, distract yourself. Find fun things to do. If at the end of 5 (or 15 or 30) minutes, you still want to weigh yourself, then go weigh yourself and try again tomorrow. When we delay that instant gratification, the pull can lose some of the power.
Write about it. Journaling can be a helpful tool when you’re feeling overwhelmed and are wanting to weigh yourself. Maybe even put your journal on top of your scale. Write affirmations. Write about how frustrated you are. Just write and see where it goes.
Last but certainly not least……SMASH IT! Obliterate that thing. Have some fun with this because it can be incredibly cathartic.
*For more information on Health At Every Size, the inaccuracy of the BMI, and related topics, check out this incredible book:
Strings, S. (2019). Fearing the Black Body. New York University Press.