The mind game. How do you handle it?

[enjoythetime 1,457]

The addiction of the scale is a battle I've been fighting for about a year now. During the weight loss phase I would only weigh in when I went for a follow-up with my surgeon monthly, then I started maintenance where I only follow up once a year so I started weighing weekly then it was twice a week and now sometimes I'll weigh myself twice a day. It's become an obsession more than the tool it's meant to be. At first I would get discouraged with the normal 3-4lb flex (that I wouldn't see at monthly weigh-ins), now more of an issue has become when I see those 3-4lbs. go away in my mind it gives me the "ok" to be more lenient on my choices. Any one else notice the mind games the scale can play? How do you deal with this?

[dsheive 100]

Enjoy

Wow I feel like I wrote that post... I'm not a year out but the rest is me. Sometimes I'll weigh myself 4 times in a row. And not yet post surgury but befor if my weight stayed the same I was like yeah I can more.. How much can I eat before I gain a pound.. I am trying to get out of that cycle.

scales can be our worst enemy.

[joatsaint 2,814]

I really tried not to take getting on the scale too serisously. Weight loss is not a continuous steady downward path. There will be stalls, slowdowns, and even gains along the way - for reasons that are completely unrelated to your diet and exercise.

I could be doing everything right - the right amount of calories, the right amount of protein/carb ratio, the right amount of Water.... and my weight loss would plateau for weeks.

My 1st week after WLS, I made a deal with myself. Only the 1st weigh in for the day - in the morning - counted. All the other times I weighed myself were just for fun. :-P

I was weighing myself - when I got up, before I drank, after I drank, before I peed, after I peed, before a BM, after a BM, and once in the evening. It was a game as far as I was concerned. Nothing counted except the 1st weigh in, there's just too many variables that can change during the rest of the day.

After 31 months, I still weigh myself daily. I'm too paranoid about weight gain to only weigh once a week or God Forbid! Once a month....eeek!

Daily weigh in's keep me aware of how much I'm eating and provide the feedback I want.

Hope this helps.

Down scale Down! The Fear of Seeing the Scale Move UP!

http://www.bariatricpal.com/blog/9018/entry-31534-down-scale-down-or-the-fear-of-seeing-the-scale-move-up-instead-of-down/

[enjoythetime 1,457]

@@joatsaint I love your response! Can I ask you a question? You're almost 3 years out; I'm 27 months out. How many lbs. would you say you flex on your morning to morning weigh-ins during a week before you start getting concerned? I freak out about 3-5lbs flex. I know this could also be due to several things out of my control as well but it sure can determine my day(s) or week trying to get back to where I was. Now if I know it's happened because of some not so great choices on my part I tend to not worry as much because I know once I get back on track things should align themselves. Am I making sense:-)

[joatsaint 2,814]

I guess the best way I can answer that is to describe a typical week. Over the weekend, I usually gain up to 5lbs because of the food/salt/carbs/alcohol I'm eating. Friday morning, I was 212. Monday morning, I was 216, Tuesday: 215, Wednesday 213. I tend to lose the excess weight I gain over the weekend as I go back to my weekday diet.

In the evenings, I can expect to be 1 to 2 pounds heavier than in the mornings. But overnight, all the Water gets flushed out. If I don't see my morning weight at the same or lower weight as the previous morning, I pay more attention to what I'm eating during the day and cut out as much processed food/carbs as I can. And that usually is enough to keep my weight in check.

If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.

@@joatsaint I love your response! Can I ask you a question? You're almost 3 years out; I'm 27 months out. How many lbs. would you say you flex on your morning to morning weigh-ins during a week before you start getting concerned? I freak out about 3-5lbs flex. I know this could also be due to several things out of my control as well but it sure can determine my day(s) or week trying to get back to where I was. Now if I know it's happened because of some not so great choices on my part I tend to not worry as much because I know once I get back on track things should align themselves. Am I making sense:-)

[pink dahlia 2,513]

Eeeek ! Im not sure if I should answer or not, because I really don't have a problem with the scale. I weigh in the a.m., thats the weight I am that day. Period. I guess my question is why do you eat that much different on weekends ? I think thats more of the problem than the scale itself. I realize everyones different, with different eating habits, etc. But if your weekend eating habits are drastically different than your weekday eating, maybe you should address that , tone it down some, and see what shows up on the scale ? Just a thought. Good luck !

[pink dahlia 2,513]

Sorry, the above response was to joasaint, obviously I need to pay attention to detail more ! And he wasn't the one looking for an answer ! (Geesh ! I need to go find my meds ! ) To enjoythetime, and I say this with all due respect, you've lost159 (!) pounds , and you're asking about a tiny weight gain of 3-5 lbs ? Wow is all I can say! Congratulations on your weight loss ! Id consider a temporary 3-5 lb Weight gain as nothing to worry about, but thats just me. Congratulations again !

[enjoythetime 1,457]

@@pink dahlia Thank you for your response, You're absolutely right! I need to let the worry go! It's hard. For me it really isn't the fear of the 3-5lbs. flex it's the ultimate fear that the scale will continue to go up and I will lose control. This fear comes from all those years of dieting and that's not what I'm doing any more and some times I just need someone to point out the obvious so thank you for putting things back into perspective!