FIT&FAB: My love-hate relationship with a weighing scale

I stood on the weighing scale at a clinic near my house and watched its tiny needle hit 85kgs. I became ecstatic.

In just two months I had lost over 15kgs; my baggy clothes and fewer out-of-breath moments were hard to miss. Over the next few months I lost even more weight until the scale read 70kgs and I hit a plateau.

The next two months were discouraging because despite constant exercise the numbers on the scale remained constant. I was devastated.

I decided to change my workout routine as well as my diet: jogging every morning and eating a low-carb diet. This helped me shed 2kgs.

SHOCK OF MY LIFE

In the following month I again intensified my workout regime throwing in an occasional gym session to lift weights. Then one day something strange happened.

I had just walked to the clinician's office and confidently announced: “I have been hitting the gym hard. Wait and see!” but when I stepped on the scale I got shock of my life. I could not believe my eyes so I got off and then back onto it again, this time more cautiously.

I had gained a whooping three kilograms! The clinician took one look at me and started grinning but I was so vexed and just wished I could wipe that smile off his face.

“This doesn’t make any sense. Do you know I have been eating meat once a week? Once! I have paid the ultimate sacrifice. I skip rope 50 times daily and I have been lifting weights. Weights! Can you see these blisters on my hands? Look!” He burst into a fit of laughter and at this point, I was so upset that my head began to spin.

For the life of me I couldn’t fathom what was so hilarious about my present predicament yet I had worked so hard. He placed a reassuring arm on my shoulder and said: “Marion, take it easy. You have been building muscles. See these guns, see your toned legs. Muscles are much heavier than fat that’s why you are heavier. Keep at it girl!”

I am not sure what got to me first: the kindness in his words or hypnotic combination of his brown eyes and very white teeth. As I got back to my senses and stepped off the scales, he added: “You see how beautiful hippos are? Well toned with no sagging skin despite them being very heavy? So don’t mind the readings.” Did he just compare me to a hippo? We both started laughing.

Remember the time I talked about weighing scales and strongly advised against using them? Well, now we know why I did that but what is life without a little challenge?

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Fit&Fab is a blog series by Marion Maina who lost 30kg during her weight loss journey that started two years ago and is now in pursuit of a healthy lifestyle. Do you have feedback on this story? E-mail: [email protected]