This morning as my toddler, P, was "measuring her feet" (her words) on our bedroom scale, my 8 year old, X, started laughing & decided to weigh himself as well. 53 pounds. "Perfect," he said, as his father & I agreed.
Then my husband stepped on the scale & we asked X to guess if his dad would weigh more or less than he. "More because he's bigger," he answered. "How much more?" I asked & said, "I think about 100 lbs more." X laughed & thought that seemed crazy, but it was pretty close.
Then X said I should get on the scale. First we asked if he thought I would weigh more or less than his dad. "More," he said. We laughed. Then asked him why he thought that, since before he said his dad would weigh more because he is bigger. He answered, "Because you exercise more." I like your thinking kid!
OK so consistently applying logic to estimate outcomes is not his strong suit! :-) But I loved hearing his thought process. To him, that number on the scale could represent any number of things. Fortunately so far, none of it is negative!
When we have preconceived notions of what that number *should* be, we do ourselves a disservice. That number is one measurement that can be useful in tracking overall categories (underweight, normal, overweight, obese) or one measurement to help track goals, but really what does it MEASURE? It is a number that represents the total volume of your fat, bones, water, blood, muscles...doesn't it make a lot more sense to understand what all of those are separately? Or at least in reference to your bodies' optimum operation, needs & abilities?
I have a client who said to me, "You look like you are a 'buck five' dripping wet." When I told him I fluctuate between 125-130 he was surprised. His perception of me, nearly one third his size, was basically just that I'm tiny. Hearing a higher number than he expected was a good lesson that day, as we began talking about his desires & goals for creating a new, healthier lifestyle together.
So does your weight matter? Knowing your weight is only one piece of information. It may help start a conversation with yourself or your Doctor about your overall health. However, understanding your body composition (fat, muscle, water, bone) and how it relates to your muscular asymmetries, mobility challenges or relative flexibility is even more important.
How about this - instead of looking at the number on the scale & thinking it's inherently good or bad, ask yourself: "What do I want my body to be able to do? When do I want/need to be able to do this? How much time and/or effort will it require?" Then make a plan.
Please don't keep getting on & off that scale, time after time, without thinking about what your body can DO. You are so much more than that number!
If you'd like help making a plan, call or email me. We can do an assessment to help determine your body composition & overall fitness. Then we can make a plan & set goals. I can work with you personally, in or out of the gym, to help you execute the plan & meet goals - or you can take the plan & "run" with it.
