I wish to begin this blog with a haiku written about a household accessory that possesses the antithetical, if not mystical, abilities to both dissolve women into personified pity puddles and also infuse them with the boost of confidence they need to wear once-questionable items of clothing. This is for you, Oh Curséd Scale:

I hear you whisper…

I step onto you and wait

Your days are numbered.

My CrossFit box is hosting an eight-week challenge called “Skinny Santa” in which participants weigh in and record their weight and body fat percentage once a week. More than anything, we’re hoping to motivate our athletes to stay on track during the eight-week-long pig-out fest into which the holidays can so easily morph. 

Sometimes I just want to say to the North Pole! with the scale where it can be imprisoned within an icy igloo of shame and guilt alongside the Grinch, Scrooge,  Lucy van Pelt, and other classic Christmas villains. 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the ladies I coach, Holly, recently had a revelation regarding her own “on again/off again” relationship with the scale.

Last July, Holly weighed 417 pounds. After having a gastrectomy, altering her diet, and committing to a consistent workout schedule, Holly is just a few pounds away from reaching the “200 Pounds Lost” milestone. Anticipating this achievement began to consume her, pushing her to weigh in daily so she’d be certain to catch the numbers “2-1-7-“ smiling up at her like a triumphant slot machine. But the day she expected that number to show up, it wasn’t there…

Like Vladimir and Estragon waiting vainly for Godot to arrive, Holly stepped onto the scale religiously for days, only to watch the numbers increase by a pound, then two pounds, all adding up to one incalculable word: FRUSTRATION.

Last week when the other “Skinny Santas” were slipping off their socks and hoodies (and all other materials that could potentially add a gram to their weight) in preparation for the weekly weigh-in, Holly wisely declined. In the manner of a ubiquitous Taylor Swift love song, Holly was breaking up with the scale. For a while, at least.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Holly is an inspiration to me and countless others for many reasons that would require an entirely separate blog (or two or three!) to enumerate. Personally, one of the things I admire most about her is her genuine love for the Lord and the wonderful way she looks for His shepherd’s staff in her life, guiding her, protecting her, even disciplining her at times when she gets off course. The following is an excerpt from a blog she wrote regarding her “scale situation” last week:

“He [God] taught me this: Counting calories, working out…I can do it all PERFECTLY, but in the end, it will all turn to ashes and mean nothing if I forget Who is really in charge of my victory, who is really making it possible for me to overcome.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Like so many of us, Holly had allowed the quiet power of the scale to become Dictator of her mood, Discourager of her progress, Destroyer of her joy, and a Distraction from her ultimate goal to glorify God as she pursues physical fitness for His kingdom.  Let’s not let what could be a helpful tool become a harmful idol in our lives. Holly’s lesson should be a lesson for all of us in that it reminds us that it is God who is our Source, our Strength, in everything.  He’s the One enabling us to be successful, to have victory; we will continue to be conquerors as long as we keep our eyes fixed on Christ and His perfect purpose for our lives. The moment we let our eyes fall to the sparkling lures of the world and follow them like fish along a broad, meandering stream is the instant we let those things have eminence in our lives.

“Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world—wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from him. The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out—but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.” -1 John 2:15-17 (MSG)

I pray you all are having a wonderful holiday season and that, if you need to, you put that scale on the shelf…with the Elf! 😉

Stay fit, stay faithful ~<3 Di