108.2, 108.0, 108.8, 108.4, 109.6 --> 108.6
Weight-control pundits don't agree on whether it's a good idea for a loser like me to step on the scale every day. Warnings against it are more common (google "weigh yourself every day" and see what comes up). I suspect that those who warn against it don't have a good grasp of normal variation. It's disturbingly common to read in mainstream articles quotes from "experts" who basically say,
"Research shows that people who weigh themselves daily are more likely to keep the weight off. But don't do it, because the numbers! they will go up and down! and make you feel bad! and confuse you! and we all know it's unhealthy to be obsessed with numbers! so don't do it! Even though research shows that people who weigh themselves daily are more likely to keep the weight off."
I'm even more annoyed by the statement that "Because your weight goes up and down, you get a more accurate picture of your weight by weighing less often." Hello! It depends on your sampling frequency! Taking fewer samples will not give you a "more accurate" picture. It just won't muddle your pretty little head, apparently.
Research does show that daily weighings are associated with successful weight maintenance. Too, I think it's a good idea to know what the normal variation is. Because I've seen how much my weight can vary from day to day -- and I've also had a few days where I've stepped on the scale every hour, just to see how it changes through a day (interesting experiment, try it some time) -- I'm not startled by, for example, the difference between 109.6 this morning and 108.0 three days ago. It really is part of the normal variation.
It is also a reminder that I have about one more pound to lose, because I want it to be bouncing around 108.0, not above 108.0. As exciting as it was to see 108.0 on the scale a few days ago, that is not "my weight." "My weight" is a running average of five days. Still, I announced "the last three pounds" only a bit more than a week ago, so progress is being made.
I find that I can keep up the strict habits for about three days straight and then I indulge in something -- three pieces of toast at breakfast, for example, or syrup on my waffles, or a bagel left over from the children's bedtime snack -- and the next couple of days I notice an uptick. I steel myself, boil an egg, and dive into another three days of paying close attention.
Well, even though today's breakfast was blueberry-topped walnut waffles and homemade whole-milk yogurt, and even though dinner is pizza, today will be a stricter day. I'm also going to experiment with skipping the midmorning snack, or maybe having a snack signifier of three almonds, to see if the heartier-than-usual breakfast carries me comfortably through to lunch.
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