Throw Out Your Scale: The Toxic Truth about Weighing Yourself

A good number of people in the non-diet space are all about not weighing themselves because they know how harmful it can be. But the truth is, most people still step on the scale as a part of their normal routine. However, they’re likely doing way more harm than good for their mental and physical health.

There are no rules with intuitive eating. Why should we follow any rules that dictate what or how much we need to eat or what we need to do in order to thrive as human beings? Our bodies do a good job at doing that, as long as we tune in and let it. The only “rule” I have my clients follow when I’m coaching them through their intuitive eating journey is for them to stop weighing themselves. However, that wasn’t always the case… when I was a dietitian in a doctor’s office, I weighed my patients regularly because I was incorrectly taught that our weight needs to be in the “normal” range to be considered healthy, which is so incredibly false. More on that later.

Ask yourself these questions: Where has it gotten you thus far, to be focusing on the number on the scale? If you weigh yourself in the morning, how does seeing the number on the scale impact the way you show up that day? For a lot of people, weighing themselves is reassurance that their doing it right, or it tells them that they need to try harder. There is so much that is wrong with that.

Throwing out the scale can be scary and feel almost like you’re giving up a sense of control. But the relief people get from releasing this habit is quite refreshing because weighing yourself has many harmful consequences.

Here are 4 reasons why you should throw out your scale:

1 Weight is just a data point, not a predictor of health

Your weight is just a number and it’s not an accurate measure of your health. We have traditionally been taught that being “overweight” or “obese” means you are unhealthy. This is outdated and flat-out wrong. Research studies are continuing to show us that the size of our body does not equate to health and that it is rather the individual behaviors that determine our health in the long run; Factors such as activity level, stress, sleep, socioeconomics, access to health care, actual eating habits, etc. Plus, as many of us recognize, there are a lot of thin people who are unhealthy, and many larger-bodied people who are quite healthy, but there is absolutely no way of telling that just by looking at someone.

Additionally, a person’s body weight is also affected by so many factors that are not within our control. There are so many things that can change the number on the scale overnight. One major factor is fluid balance. Some foods can cause us to hold onto more water, such as having a really salty Chinese dinner. And yet there are other foods and drink that have the opposite effect, such as coffee due to the diuretic compounds in the caffeine. Another factor that impacts our fluid balance is or fluctuating hormones, specifically in women. As estrogen levels increase in the days leading up to a female’s menstrual cycle, the body starts to retain more water. And lastly, our body weight tells us nothing about how much muscle we have. We’ve all heard that muscle weighs more than fat, and it’s true! For example, many body builders are considered “obese” due to their weight for height. But one would rarely assume that the same bodybuilder was “obese.” The point is, if you’re building muscle, the number on the scale may increase, but is that something to get distressed about?

2 Weighing yourself has many negative consequences for your physical and mental health

When we focus on our weight, this can cause us to become obsessed about food and preoccupied with our body. It can also cause low self-esteem, poor body image, and weight cycling. Weighing ourselves constantly causes us to hyperfocus on that number, which can lead to things like dieting and restricting our food intake. Dieting itself, is a major risk factor for weight gain. And it causes yo-yo dieting, which puts us at a higher risk for things like cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, insulin resistance, and inflammation. So ultimately it impacts our relationship with food and our body negatively, and it impacts our physical health by causing us to yo-yo diet.

3 Weighing yourself can be a trigger

What I mean by this, is that the number on the scale has huge potential to trigger someone emotionally. For example, Susie wakes up in the morning, steps on the scale and notices she’s 2 pounds more than her usual weight. There is a high likelihood that Susie is having feelings of anxiety and disappointment in herself, even to the point of blaming herself for the fluctuation in her weight. These negative emotions can, and often do, carry over and impact someone’s entire day and how they show up. It can even cause them to give up on their health goals all together and say “screw it, I’m done with this, what’s the point?” And then they self-sabotage by not paying attention to their body and ignoring the body’s cues.

 4 Weighing yourself takes you further away from trusting yourself

Weighing yourself is an external tool used to measure progress. However, as I mentioned in the previous reasons you should throw out your scale, weight does not determine your health and there are many things that affect your weight that is not within your control, so it’s not an appropriate measure of progress in the first place. But how exactly does weighing yourself cause you to lose trust in yourself? Weighing yourself conditions you to rely on an external measure rather than internal cues like listening to how your body feels physically. The more we are focusing on external measures, the further this gets us from listening to all the things our body tells us. And the more we do this, the further away we get from actually trusting what our body is telling us.

If I’m not weighing myself, how do I measure progress?

First and foremost, it’s important to understand, that our health does not have anything to do with our body weight. When we focus on the number on the scale, it causes us to restrict our eating by focusing on external factors rather than listening to our internal cues.

Strength and endurance

Keeping up our strength is an important aspect of maintaining robust health and growing older, and the best way to do so is through a consistent movement practice. If you are someone who isn’t very active, start with walking and work your way up to more intense activities, such as using some weights. As you progress, you will notice yourself becoming stronger. For example, you’ll be able to lift more, or hike longer distances without running out of breath. I teach my clients all about the different types of activities to include in their routine. Of course, we don’t start with all four of these, but in the long-run, it’s recommended to include a little bit of each of the following: some endurance (such as walking, biking or hiking), some strength (such as using light weights or calisthenics), balance (like yoga), and flexibility (like stretching or yoga).

Energy level

Do you often feel sluggish during the day, unable to accomplish everything you set out to do because you lack adequate energy? This is likely a sign you are lacking some type of self-care. It could mean you’re not getting enough sleep. For example, if you aren’t getting at least 7-9 hours of sleep every night, you’re probably missing out on adequate recovery time, and this can significantly impact energy level. Another reason you may be lacking energy is that you simply aren’t eating enough. It could be that you are intentionally “cutting back” or dieting because you think you need to lose weight. As you know by now, you do not need to lose weight in order to be healthy. But in any case, a lack of sufficient energy will cause you to become fatigue and unable to carry out all of your daily tasks for the day. If you’ve been intentionally restricting your food intake, or unintentionally skipping meals, fueling your body on a more consistent basis is something to improve upon so that you can boost your energy level.

Level of stress

Chronic stress is a real thing. If we are always stressed, this can raise cortisol levels, which is the body’s main stress hormone. High levels of cortisol in the blood can cause a slew of different biological things to take place, such as high blood pressure, irritability, gastrointestinal problems like constipation or diarrhea, sleep problems, fatigue, depression, and more. Because high levels of stress have such an impact on the body, it’s important to have some go-to stress management techniques in place, such as talking to a friend, journaling, yoga, meditation, going for a walk, reading, you name it. However, research also suggests that stress may only be bad for you if you believe that stress is bad for you. Stress can also be a positive thing, as long as you perceive it as a normal part of living.

Mood

Our mood is impacted by so many different things. In fact, everything that I’ve already listed can impact our mood. When you don’t get enough sleep, that can impact your stress level by increasing cortisol. And increased stress levels can negatively impact your mood. Incorporating regular exercise can improve your mood because it increases endorphins and serotonin. Having slumps in energy level can cause slumps in your mood. I recommend keeping track of your mood and measuring it against all of the things I listed here. Ask yourself, “How is my mood on the days I exercise, compared to the days I do not exercise? How is my mood on the days I get more sleep, compared to the days I don’t get much sleep?” You get the point. After doing this for a while, you will discover what is right for your body, i.e., the right amount of sleep, exercise, the types of stress management techniques, etc.

Bowel movements

Of course, there are many things that determines someone’s health, but having regular bowl movements can be a sign that you are on the right track with your health. Consuming adequate fiber, drinking enough fluids, and getting enough movement are all things that can contribute to having regular bowel movements. Therefore, if you find you’re a little irregular, assess your eating pattern, fluid intake, and activity level as a place to start.

Throwing out the scale can be really scary, and feel like you’re losing a sense of control. But the truth is, the scale has been controlling you. Remember where focusing on the number on the scale has gotten you, and that continuing to do so will only contribute to feeling more out of control around food, and it will cause you to feel more and more disconnected to your body. Instead of focusing on the number on the scale, assess things like your strength and endurance, energy level, stress level, mood and gastrointestinal regularity, and you will be much better off.

To learn more about seeking your inner wisdom in order to get in tune with the body and truly to know what it needs, check out Freedom From Dieting, my group coaching program.