How do you define your keto success? Do you rely on the scale to determine your success? Or do you measure your success with other markers? Following the keto way of eating is so much more than a number on the scale going down. It is the many successes that is can be referred to as “non-scale victories.”

“Toss That Scale!” is the recommendation of Melissa Hartwig, author of Whole30 and Food Freedom Forever. At least for 30 days! Could you do that? It will help to free you from the shackles of the scale and you will no longer need to be a slave to it.

How many times do you weigh yourself in a month? Many of my clients HATE the scale because the number staring back at them isn’t the one they want to see or they allow the scale to determine their mood. Scales are merely a tool that gives you a snapshot in time, whether good or bad.

Truthfully, the scale helps you to measure success, but it doesn’t tell you everything. It doesn’t tell you whether your macros on keto are dialled in. It doesn’t tell you how many inches you’ve lost.  It doesn’t tell you that you made positive changes in your food choices (at least not initially).  It doesn’t tell you that you lost fat and gained muscle (well, not most scales).  It can’t know it’s “that” time of the month. Scales are merely a tool that measure weight. So don’t give it more power than it deserves.

The scale “cannot measure beauty, talent, purpose, life force, possibility, strength, or love. Don’t give the scale more power than it has earned. Take note of the number, then get off the scale and live your life. You are beautiful!”

Steve Maraboli, author of Life, the Truth and Being Free

The scale masks real health results you may be experiencing as a result of the positive changes you are making on your keto journey. By focusing your attention on “the number,” you are missing out on other results that actually mean much more to your overall health — those non-scale victories that have more long-term meaning and health impact mentally and physically. Perhaps you’re sleeping better, having more energy throughout the day, not experiencing a mid-afternoon craving or slump, or you’re less moody.

The scale cannot measure positive health changes. It only measures your weight at the moment you step on it. It’s time to get your mind off the scale and focus on the health progress you’re actually making. For me that has meant realizing that I’m breathing better; I’m not reacting to certain foods; I have energy; I’m sleeping through the night, and my wedding ring is loose (translation: I’m less bloated).

If you feel you need a physical measuring stick, try using a favourite pair of jeans as a gauge for your successful weight loss or maintenance. I like to call these jeans your thermometer jeans, a term coined by Rachel Cosgrove.  If your favourite jeans are a little tighter, tighten up your keto macros and aim to move your body more. Or perhaps mix up how you’re moving your body. Maybe add some resistance training like body weight movements or barre or pilates.  It’s time to focus on positive progress and adjust your choices accordingly.

After discuss the how you can mark your keto diet milestones without a scale, one of my clients took the time to list a number of non-scale victories she had noticed but not taken the time to let sink in. She shared them with me and encouraged me to share it with my audience. Check out this link and enjoy. It may spark you to see something you had taken time to notice before.

Write your own success story by starting to today. You too can have freedom from the scale. Together we can work together to figure out your personal macros, how to eat keto well and how to have victories without jumping on the scale. Feeling good in your own skin is far more than a number on a scale. You will build new healthy habits that will transform into your personal keto lifestyle.

The keto/low carb lifestyle transformed me from a slave to the scale to looking at all the other victories I’ve experienced to mark my success.

Let Brenda be your nutritional keto coach. Reach out for your FREE Discovery Chat to discuss your next steps to feeling vibrant and healthy. Click on the link below for this offer.

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Resources

Rachel Cosgrove, “What Size Are Your Thermometer Jeans?” Nov 24, 2009.

Melissa Hartwig and Dallas Hartwig, The Whole30, (Toronto: Viking, 2014) page 29.