So the past couple of weeks have been a MASSIVE learning experience for me when it comes to the scale.
Ever since I can remember as an adult, the scale has NOT been my friend…terms like ‘big boned’, ‘more muscle mass’ etc have always been tossed around. Even though I barely cracked 5 ft 3 inches on the measuring tape ( and hit that at 12 years old lol) I was always MUCH heavier than most BMI or other charts on what my IDEAL weight should be.
As an athlete in my teens and early 20s this didn’t really bug me…I was fit. I was active. I could eat whatever I wanted for the most part. But even at my thinnest I never got below 145lbs…
And then I had kids. Lol. I feel like so many women’s health stories begin with “and then I had kids”… 😉
Because as beautiful as the miracle of pregnancy is, it stretches, shifts and puts our bodies through the ringer. During pregnancy was the first time I had to weigh myself regularly. Every doctor’s appointment, every month, and then every two weeks and then every week… and inevitably the scale went up because I WAS GROWING A HUMAN! lol Really in hindsight, what a terrible time to start developing a relationship with the scale!
The only time I LIKED the scale was right after birth when I lost 16lbs magically overnight (lol)!
But two pregnancies later (and my babies were BIG BOYS) and I actually managed to lose the weight within 7lbs of before I had my first son. And I felt good, even though according to charts and so on, I was ‘overweight’!
It was at that point I stopped ‘believing’ in the scale… and I stopped going on it unless I had to. We broke up indefinitely lol
And because I refused to use it as a tool, and I figured it had some sort of personal vendetta against me, it became my enemy. And life took over. And work stress. A sick child. Regular marriage struggles and house moves and on and on and I began to spiral into massive weight gain. I didn’t know how to stop it and I was fearful of what that meant for me and my future health. My anxiety was through the roof. My energy was non-existent 😦
And I knew regardless of my relationship with the scale, SOMETHING had to change…and I need to put some effort into being HEALTHIER, even if it meant the scale didn’t go down.
So I learned about portion control. I started to workout from home (which was tremendous for my inner athlete that had been misplaced by motherhood). I felt my anxiety levels go down thanks to the endorphins. And I saw my body reshape. Inches were being lost. So many inches. But the scale…the scale never really wanted to move.
I learned to get over my disappointment with the scale not moving when I saw myself going down from size 16 in a dress to size 8. But secretly I still felt like the scale was a little evil!
Enter the new nutrition workshop I’ve been doing for the past couple of months.
The one that is teaching me how to OVERCOME my emotional eating habits. Teaching me how to FUEL my body, to make sure it’s hydrated, and not hungry, or feeling deprived! And what I think is the secret ingredient : more veggies!
Yep, plants for the win! lol
Veggies are the ONLY food you can eat more and more of and lose more and more weight! They are usually low in calories, high in water, keep you full and help with your digestion! And it turns out, there’s a lot of AMAZING ways to prep them (yes, I said it–a staunch lover of carbs and chocolate, non-fan of salads)
From turnip fries, to overloaded salads, to veggie noodles, to bell pepper nachos to stir fry–I’ve been trying them all. And I have been LOVING IT!
But wait, get this: the SCALE HAS BEEN GOING DOWN!
Yep, 10lbs in two weeks…what used to take me months of intense workouts and some serious dietary restrictions, has been coming off thanks to this new way of eating! Me: the ‘big boned’ girl lol
My body apparently responds really well to vegetables and common sense lol Go figure !
So if you’ve been struggling like I was, maybe it’s time to stop living in the mindset of restriction, deprivation and disappointment!
Email me at lindsay.fortney@gmail.com and we can chat about the nutrition workshop I’ve been doing and now mentoring in! Losing weight can FINALLY be done happily and healthily…and best of all : FOR LIFE!
Chat soon xo Lindsay
