Blog: Celebrating my non-scale victories
Melissa and Loralie have partnered with Advocate Condell Centre Club to spend the next year working to achieve their health goals. They’re documenting their steps to get Movin’ and Improvin’ and be fit by 40. This is not a weight loss series, this is a journey towards health. Read the series introduction to learn more. Today Melissa updates us on how she’s doing…
It’s not the number on the scale.
I now have different goals:
- More energy and better sleep
- Be able to keep up with a very active toddler
- Be able to hold a 32 lb. toddler through the entire Sunday church service
- Carry a toddler having a tantrum in one arm
- Lower my cholesterol (goal is 30 points)
- Be comfortable in my own skin
Which is good because with four kids and a business to run, my summer routine has been a little more one step forward, one step back, a shimmy to the side and another step back. So while the number on the scale has been stagnant, the non-scale victories (NSV) have abounded, even with fewer trips to the gym. It’s been a great reminder that health is a journey and a process, not a quick fix with overnight results.
The biggest NSV has been my cholesterol. I can tell my heart is getting healthier because I watch my heart rate while I work out. I am not hitting maximum as soon as I start and it comes down to a normal rate much faster. Heart health has been my ultimate goal with this program, as my high cholesterol and family history put me at great risk for heart attack, stroke and heart disease. When I started, my cholesterol was 243, I’m excited to say that I have dropped 16 points! It’s still high at 227, but it’s progress–and very good progress.
Overall, I can’t believe how much better I feel, even if I only go to the gym once a week. I used to think that, while yes, I had to lose a few pounds, I was still relatively fit. I mean I had four kids and on most days I could hit those 10,000 on my FitBit. What I’ve learned, especially since switching to a free weight routine, is that 10,000 steps is only part of the story, a good first step, but not enough.
It hasn’t been a smooth transition to summer for my gym schedule, but I’m not letting that derail me. I can see the impact it’s having on me every day and it motivates me to make the time and make it work. It’s not about a number anymore, it’s about how I feel and what I can do.
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About the Author
Melissa Haak is mom to four. She used to live in heels and dream of traveling the world; now she lives in her minivan and dreams of a clean kitchen. She writes about all the sticky bits of motherhood at Peanut Butter in my Hair and is the creator and editor of Little Lake County. She can be found on most social media sites as @PBinmyHair.
When we practice monitoring celebrating non scale victories, we’re focusing on what is going right. We’re looking for progress beyond the scale and we’re focusing on the improvements in mindset, moderation, health, energy, fitness and anything in between. Plus, we begin to prove to ourselves that progress doesn’t require perfect and we clearly see that all-or-nothing thinking is counter productive.