I know a lot of you won’t agree with me on this one, but for some people the scale is important in their road to a healthier lifestyle.  I’ve been thinking about it lately.  During the Dukan Diet you were on the scale everyday.  Now that I’ve moved I don’t have a scale, and I have realized that it was an important tool for me.

It’s not about obsessing.

It helps keep you on target – along with others ways to measure.

A lot of people think that going on the scale every day is a little bit obsessive and that the person is only concerned with the number of their weight.  There are so many arguments out there – it’s about how you feel; it’s about inches – not pounds; build muscle and loose fat.  I think all of these aspects are important.  Including the scales.

A persons weight fluctuates so much do to water intake or lack of it, muscle gain or loss, the foods you eat or don’t eat, and so on.  The scale can help you see those fluctuations and you can adjust accordingly.

• Make sure you have a good accurate scale.
• Use your scale each day. Don’t go from one scale to another because they might not be set the same.
• Make sure you weigh yourself at the same time everyday!  Have you been on Wii Fit in the evening when you normally go on in the mornings and the little guy says, “Last time you did your test at 7am, your weight might be different from the last time because of this.”  Ok, so it’s not those exact words – I haven’t been on for a while to remember, but you get the point.
• Write your number on the calendar that is in view so you can see your progress.
• Don’t get discouraged if your numbers don’t go down.
• Adjust your lifestyle if they start to go up too much – exercise a little more and make healthier food choices.
• Drink a lot of water! Get rid of the sugary drinks.  Goodbye POP! (Soda for you Americans!)

The last one doesn’t really have to do with the scale, but I like to throw it in there when I can.

I want to add that this might not work for you.  If you are obsessing over your weight, you might want to try a different method.  If using a scale is doing more harm than good for you, then don’t do it.  The key is to use the scale as 1 of many tools to help you track your progress – not make you stress and go crazy about your weight.

It’s all in balance!

Scale or no scale?  That is the question for you!  Let me know by leaving a comment below.