An Evolution

Hey everyone, it's Karen here. When EatWell Membership first began in 2003 (yes, 18 years ago!), the scale was a prominent part of the weekly classes. And it remained that way until the last couple of years. Back in the day, we placed a high value on the accountability and feedback the scale could (theoretically) provide. But as time went on, we started to notice some troubling trends. One that really stood out was the typical weigh-in conversation we would have with folks when they stepped up to the scale. It went something like this:

Us: "How are you doing today?"

Them: "I don't know, we'll see." (as they stepped onto the scale).

Now I know this seems like an innocent interaction. But after seeing it repeated dozens of times, we started to wonder if the emphasis on the scale was a case of good intentions gone bad. It was clear to us that many people were allowing the scale to dictate their mood for the day and how they felt about themselves. This was tough to see. We would hear people tell us about all the "good" things they were doing, but if the scale did not show what they expected, they felt dejected. Suddenly, all that "good stuff" didn't count and they felt like they had failed. It didn't matter that they had moved more, tried a new vegetable, drank more water, cooked more meals at home. None of it counted as progress if the scale did not validate their efforts.

Now this is not the case for everyone who steps on a scale. For many, it can be a useful tool. But the real issue is that our society teaches us to value weight over all else. Diet culture tells us that weight = health. There are numerous reasons this isn't true, but this message is why we become dependent on the scale. We have been trained to believe that the scale (and by proxy, our weight) is the be-all and end-all of health.

These revelations weighed heavy on our hearts and minds for a while, and then the pandemic hit. We had no in-person classes and no opportunities to provide weigh-ins anymore. As time went on, we heard from many of you who said things like "I have not weighed myself in months and I don't miss it." or "I didn't realize how good it would feel not weighing myself every week." So we decided that when in-person classes did resume, we would not make weigh-ins part of the weekly meetings. We know that people who do want to keep tabs on their weight can usually do so at home, or at the doctor's office. In the end, we felt our choice was about becoming part of the solution, instead of the problem,. We want to help people ditch diet culture (scale or not) and embrace a sense of well-being that is not dependent on their weight. Will you join us?