I am sure you have heard it a million times before, but did you really hear what was being said? Well, I need you to hear it again today..throw that scale away!
That nasty device is the leading cause of failure to follow through with a lifestyle plan! I cannot tell you how many times I have sat listening to new clients telling me about how they haven’t lost any weight and they can’t understand why, they are doing everything ‘right’…but they just aren’t shifting any weight on the scale! Here is where I usually stop them and ask what their previous program entailed and how long they have been training or how ‘clean’ their eating really is? Most of them can’t give me a straight answer, bring up the lack of weight loss and that awful little gizmo they step onto and boom, they unleash some fury! On further prodding and questioning, it often surfaces that they are in fact wearing smaller clothing sizes, or they are feeling much more energetic, they don’t get sick as often anymore, their gut is healthier and they don’t suffer from constipation..and so on. So in fact, there have been changes! Drastic changes, positive lifestyle changes! BUT the scale says not! So they ditch it, despite the positive changes.
When a client voices their concern regarding loss of kg’s (kilograms), I calmly take out my measuring tape and I measure them, then I take their fat percentage with the calipers (like I always do bimonthly or 1x a month, depending on the clients motivational needs) and I put the excel spreadsheet in front of them with all the necessary info and BAM! there it is…evidence, on paper, that even though the scale says they haven’t shifted huge amounts, they have in fact lost centimetres and shifted unwanted fat! Now when you put it to them that way around, and you ignore what that silly little metal contraption told them, then suddenly they are left feeling positive, strong even, like someone that has accomplished their goal for the week..one that put in all that effort and succeeded at getting one step closer. The scale said it was a waste of time, it was redundant, it wasn’t working..the measuring tape and the calipers, however, tell a different tale.
It is a physiological fact that muscle weighs 3x more than fat! The difference being that muscle is metabolically active, in other words, you and your lean muscular self could be sitting on the couch alongside a less lean & muscular buddy and even though neither of you is moving, YOU are still burning more calories and your body is metabolically more active..trying to keep those slabs of muscle going. Win, win situation really. The more muscle you have, in relation to fat, the faster your metabolism and the faster your metabolism the better your body is able to process foods and get rid of unwanted fat! The scale also is no indication of actual physiological health! It can’t tell you anything, none of your vital stats are linked to that number! You could weigh very little (which society has deemed fantastic) but be riddled with pain, toxins, illness and lethargy! But you are skinny, yay!
AS a woman, we allllll know that alot of our body functions and actions are governed by hormones..did you know that around menstruation time, a woman can retain up to 3kgs of water alone! Now let that lovely lady step on the scale with 3 extra kgs backing her up and see how friendly she is! An entire month worth of hard work; clean eating and focus can go up in smoke if you weigh her at the wrong time of the month! On the flip side, as with some males, weighing more is a sign of achievement and gaining weight is fantastic..but if there were an emergency, can you run (really fast), can you bend down and touch your toes without snapping something, if you slipped and fell off the side of a cliff, could you pull yourself up? You are heavy yes, but are you functional?
Kg’s mean nothing. Your weight can change up to 2x per day (male or female), depending on your fluid intake, bowel movement, stomach content, and last meal etc. etc…so you base your results and progress on a number that is so fickle! The scale causes stress (don’t deny it), stress causes a chain reaction of events in your body and one of these is an adrenal response by releasing a hormone called cortisol, this fun hormone is an essential buddy most of the time, but a nasty little side effect is that it has the ability to cause fat to pack around your midsection (hello spare tyre). This is known as syndrome X. So basically, the scale causes more stress which causes more fat to pack around the midsection and that vicious cycle will keep going around and around until you decide to stop the cycle!
Any health practitioner worth their salt will not allow you to base all your focus and energy on the number that pops up on the scale! I challenge you to throw that scale away and shift your focus, focus on feeling better on the inside first! When you take on a healthier lifestyle, focus on becoming healthier, feeling more energetic, ridding your body of toxins, boosting your immune system and longevity and suddenly, without you really focusing on it, your “outside” self-changes too! If you feel better you look better, plain and simple! When you remove the stress of losing KG’s and fixating on a number, you remove the stress and the process actually becomes fun! Your motives are intrinsic, for your own good, for a longer happier life…one devoid of all horrid little scales.
Live, and live wholesome…give your body and your mind the health it deserves! A number on a scale isn’t going to help you with that!
