Sunday, July 05, 2009

Can I Just Bring My Bathroom Scale?

My name is Karen, and I'm a data-a-holic. And I'm afraid of this upcoming week.

I'm going down to visit my mother. Let's not even talk about the issues that brings up. She's going to be so happy that I've lost all this weight... and I'm going to be uncomfortable about it. Why? Who knows. I know I don't, and I'm pretty sure even my therapist hasn't figured it out yet. I guess it would have been a good idea to bring it up at our last session, so I could come up with some strategies, but... Oh well, hindsight. I guess I'll just have to repeat in my head, "I'm doing this for me, not for her, and who cares if she thinks otherwise." Maybe that'll work. If not, I'll improvise. No way I'm going to let my "mom issues" derail my progress, dammit. Hmm... I guess we did talk about the issues. Oops.

Anyway, back to my addiction. If you've been following me and my progress at all, you'll already know that I border on OCD with my penchant for meticulous number-crunching. I weigh my food to the gram. Seriously. And I log it all, of course. I weigh myself every day and take my bodyfat reading every day, both so that I can enter them into "averaging" software. I count every calorie I burn (or try to) so that I can maintain (or at least shoot for) a particular caloric deficit.

For the next week, I won't be doing any of that. Well, I might try to use her ridiculous spring bathroom scale, but it'll throw off my numbers.

I'm already feeling withdrawal.

Yes, I did seriously consider bringing my fantastically accurate digital bathroom scale.

Seriously.

No, no, no... I won't bring it.

I think.

For a week, I'll have to do it like "real" people do it. Watching my portions, listening to my body. Eating when I'm hungry and not when I'm bored. Exercising for the adrenaline rather than the caloric burn that allows me to eat a little more.

Yes, I'm nervous.

I'll still track my workouts for my training logs (and for the challenges over at daily burn), but that'll be it.

And I'll be doing it while visiting my mom.

Yes, this week will be interesting.

Wish me luck. No, really. I mean it this time. Or, if you prefer, wish me sanity. It might be nice to know how that feels.

5 comments:

geo said...

Bringing your scale with you might just bang it out of alignment. At least that's the reasoning I've used for not bringing mine. :) I try to keep it in the same spot on the floor too.

I've found that as long as you're not at an all-inclusive resort, one week isn't long enough to have a lasting effect one way or the other on my goals. I haven't logged food in the past week and I've remained fairly even.

But not logging over a six month period... that was very problematic. EW.

Arnþór L. Arnarson said...

Some times being obsessive can be an advantage. I used to be really bad, but now I'm just rather mildly obsessive about things. I think it is great for reaching goals like yours. - But being obsessive, not to mention compulsive too, is very tiring. :/

Cidtalk said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Cidtalk said...

The measure of your accomplishments is more than numbers. Leave the scales, enjoy your knowledge and new habits, and remember, mothers can be full of it sometimes. They have been brainwashed just like the rest of us to think our importance in this world depends on our looks....they are wrong.

Karen said...

Cidtalk, that's beautiful. And true. Thanks for the comment.