• Does your digital scale have ONE or TWO decimal places on it?  According to a study by the University Of Utah, when participants received a weight range instead of an actual number – they lost up to 4 pounds in just 3 weeks.  Exact number participants actually gained up to a pound on an average.  Okay, so now it is the scale’s fault. (I like the fact I can blame it on the scale.. LOL)  The fuzzier the feedback, the more room to interpret the information.  The lesson: If you weigh yourself daily, even normal fluctuations could throw you off. Instead, get on the scale weekly and use a range as a goal (“I’d like to lose 5 to 10 pounds this year”).
• The wrong milk?  Really! A study led by Mark DeBoer, MD, a pediatric endocrinologist at the University of Virginia, found children who drank skim or 1 percent milk gained more weight than those who drank 2 percent or whole (full-fat) milk. He points out the same link — fattier milk, lower body-mass index — has also emerged in large, long-term studies on adults.) DeBoer’s theory is milk fat, compared with other calorie sources, makes us feel fuller, longer — so we consume fewer calories overall.  The lesson: If you’re a milk drinker, try whole or 2 percent in lieu of reduced-fat milk. A large Swedish study found among normal-weight women, those who drank one or more cups a day of whole milk had a significantly lower chance of gaining weight than those who drank reduced-fat milk.  Okay, so I don’t drink milk (no dairy with the current restrictions) and I use almond milk creamer in my coffee – can I blame that?

• You Eat At A Crowded Table – This isn’t my problem since it is only Rob and I for dinner or I am eating by myself.
  
  The lesson: “Sit next to slow eaters, they can help you pace your eating, not the speed eaters who eat like they grew up in a family of 12.”
• Bulk Shopping:
  
  This used to be my problem but now at the end of a week, hubby always says the fridge looks empty and it is.  The pantry is stocked but I moved it to the utility room in the basement so I don’t see everything at once.  I go to it when I need stuff for dinner.  Looking at ready-to-eat multipacks makes you overindulge. Stockpiled food is consumed twice as fast as other food in the house.  The problem is simple: Bulky packages consume too much kitchen real estate; we see them every time we open the cupboard, for instance. Visibility translates into impulsivity, and, before we know it, we’re eating more than we intended. The lesson: Out of sight, out of mind. Move multi-unit packs of food out of the kitchen and into the basement, freezer, underground bunker…wherever clusters of bright labels won’t catch your eye.

The truth is I have been sticking with what works – measuring everything and tracking. I’m afraid not to because it is when I stopped the pounds slowly crept on.   Yes, I have issues IBS as a result of the MS.  Yes, I tend to retain fluid for some unknown reason.  I have been pushing myself with my Fit Bit to walk at least 5,000 steps a day.  Not the ideal for weight loss but so far it is all I can manage.

What will you blame for not losing or maintaining your ideal weight?   The miserable winter weather? What is your excuses to justify your yo-yo scale.

I would love to hear what you have to say about all of this.. Share your thought.

Have a ThirtyOne-derful day!