Have you ever had that feeling in the morning, where you feel kind of bloated, heavier than you were yesterday, but you know that you stuck to your macros; you WERE within range.
Friend...... that was me yesterday, a pound and a half up from the day before. If you read my previous post, How to plan for the weekend, you know that your body can fluctuate 2-5lbs/per day. That does not mean that you actually gained 2-5 lbs overnight, but your body is usually holding on to water.
But knowing this and seeing it on the scale can lead to frustration and can become demotivating. It took me a long time to get over this and accept it.
My Story
I began my "official" macros journey at the beginning of 2017 when I hired my own nutrition coach. I was stuck in the mindset that the less I ate, the more and faster I would lose weight. Over time she helped me create a healthier relationship with food. I thought I was doing all the right things (okay, okay, maybe not all the right things, but I thought I was doing fine).
I was in the habit of skipping breakfast, having a smaller lunch, having a larger dinner, buuuut working out daily. I was perplexed as to why I wasn't losing more weight, and honestly, my energy was depleted(though I would have never admitted that back then).
In the beginning months of working with her, I was rather strict and didn't have much social life because I wasn't sure how to navigate my nutrition. With each passing week, I became more and more comfortable with consistency, sticking with my numbers, and getting creative with the foods I ate.
With getting more creative, there were some days where I wasn't perfectly on target (such as life, right?), and some days I was. As I leaned out, the weight loss on the scale became less and less, but it's still important to track your progress; the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Steeping on the scale in the morning became daunting because I didn't know which way it would go. And there is something about when the scale goes up instead of down, even only if it is half a pound, which throws us into a frenzy, mentally.
Over time I learned how my body reacts to certain foods and what my end goal actually was. Many people who are on a journey to weight loss know that they want to lose weight. But find it hard to pinpoint what that result (or end weight) will look like. So, they keep tracking, keep their calories in a deficient state, and still become discouraged if their weight fluctuates.
Follow these tips to combat scale stress
.Define success from the start. How do you know when you have reached your goals?
Get a scale that connects to an app, such as Weight Guru. The Scale will automatically update your information into the app. Then you can review it weekly if you choose.
Use other monitors of progress too. Don't let the scale be your only means of progression. Take pictures, body measurements, activity level, how is your energy, new personal records at the gym.
While the scale is a get tool to keep you in check, if it becomes too mentally un-bearing, then simply don't do it and use one of the other progression monitors.😃💪
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