How are you defining success in your weight loss journey?
Is it by the scale?
The food choices you make?
or is it how you feel?
When it comes to tracking our fitness and wellness journeys, the bathroom scale tends to get all the attention. We often fixate on the number it displays, associating our self-worth and progress solely with weight. When success is defined by a number on the scale or harsh restricting patterns, this often leads to thoughts of deprivation, animosity towards eating, and ultimately unsustainable habits!
So how might you want to define your success?
Non scale victories are the intangible and tangible accomplishments during your wellness journey that do not involve the number on the scale. They are the achievements that signify progress in your health and well-being both physically and mentally. By focusing on non-scale victories, you validate your efforts and the choices you make based on your own values and goals, rather than relying on external validation.
Create your own Non Scale Victories
Start by envisioning how you will know when you are getting closer to the best version of yourself. That person who has a healthy lifestyle and a healthy relationship with all foods. How would you feel? What would you do? How would you show up daily?
Here is an example of some of my top 8 non scale victories
1. My clothes fit better than they used to.
2. I am making food choices based on how these foods make my body feel.
3. I am choosing to move my body in enjoyable ways.
4. My sleep has improved.
5. I am honoring my body by only eating when I am hungry and stopping at enough.
6. I am not using food as a form of comfort when I am bored, stressed, or overwhelmed.
7. I am making time daily for self-care.
8. My mind is sharper.
Free yourself from the scale.
Celebrate your non scale victories and feel empowered by shifting your focus towards personal progress, self-validation and health-centered goals. These victories remind us that health and wellness are more than just the numbers- they are about embracing our unique journeys, finding joy in the process, and reclaiming the autonomy to define our own paths to wellness.