When it comes to your weight, the numbers on your scale don't tell the whole story.
Kelsey Wells, a 26-year-old fitness blogger, recently told her followers not to let that "stupid number" on their scales tell them how they should feel about their bodies.
The interior designer, who runs the blog My Sweat Life, posted three side-by-side photos of herself on Instagram this week, revealing that your weight doesn't show the complete picture — or even an accurate measure — of your health.
The three photos show Kelsey at three different weights: 145 lbs., 122 lbs., and 140 lbs. While conventional "wisdom" would say that she was at her most fit at 122 lbs., in fact, she looks fitter at 140 lbs (those abs!).
"I figured it was time for a friendly, yet firm reminder," Wells said in her Instagram post. "YOU GUYS. PLEASEEEEEE STOP GETTING HUNG UP ON THE NUMBER ON THE STUPUD [SIC] SCALE! PLEASE STOP THINKING YOUR WEIGHT EQUALS YOUR PROGRESS AND FOR THE LOVE OF EVERYTHING PLEASE STOP LETTING YOR [SIC] WEIGHT HAVE ANY AFFECT [SIC] WHATSOEVER ON YOUR SELF ESTEEM, like I used to."
The blogger also revealed that she had spent a year and a half doing Kayla Itsines's BBG program eight weeks after she gave birth and weighed 145 lbs. Currently, she weighs 140 lbs, just five pounds less than when she started the program.
"I weighed 130 before getting pregnant, so based on nothing besides my own warped perception, I decided my 'goal weight' should be 122 and to fit into my skinniest jeans," Wells wrote.
After reaching her goal weight, she then gained 18 pounds and went from being a size 0 to a size 4.
"According to my old self and flawed standards, I would be failing miserably. THANK GOODNESS I finally learned to start measuring my progress by things that matter—strength, ability, endurance, health, and HAPPINESS," Wells wrote. "I have never had more muscle and less body fat than I do now. I have never been healthier than I am now. I have never been more comfortable in my own skin than I am now. And if I didn't say #screwthescale long ago, I would have gave up on my journey."
So, let's practice what she preaches: don't let the numbers on the scale rule your life. #ScrewTheScale!
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