You're Worth More Than A Number On The Scales

Aug 02, 2026

I’ll ask you a question and I want you to tell yourself the truth.

What’s your hang up?

Everybody has one, some people have many. We’re always our own biggest critic.

Too tall, too short, I don’t like my nose/hair/other body part(s), too fat, too thin, not enough muscle, and the list could go on and on.

Perhaps you’re the complete opposite and don’t give yourself a hard time at all. You’re accepting of everything and don’t see any flaws whatsoever, regardless of how that might impact your health.

Neither of these two mindsets is healthy.

What’s your health history?

Take a step back and think about it.

Be honest with yourself.

What is your relationship with your body?
What is your relationship with the scales?
What is your relationship with food?
What is your relationship with alcohol/drugs/smoking?
What is your relationship with your mind?

Has it always been this way, or can you pinpoint when things changed for the better or the worst?

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been obsessed with my weight. All my adult life, it has been a recurring worry for me. I’ve had periods of avoiding the scale and weekly weigh-ins where I was afraid to look at the numbers.

Until now, I hadn’t stopped to consider why.

With the benefit of hindsight, I can see how subliminal diet culture messaging was. It was on morning television shows with lycra-clad “keep fit” trainers prancing around before breakfast, in the photographs of skinny models in magazines, and on the kitchen table with my mother’s Scottish Slimmers and Slimming World cook books and weight trackers. Whether it’s conscious consumption or not, it’s no wonder we’re conditioned to think thin is best.

In reality, most of my life I shouldn’t have worried about my weight. I was active at school. I enjoyed PE and joined after school clubs such as running, basketball, badminton, and orienteering. I was slim as a child, a teenager, and most of my twenties.

I first dieted when I was 20 after seeing an unflattering photograph of myself. As silly as it sounds, I hadn’t noticed body fat accumulating. Eating fast food every day for lunch and partying every weekend had started to catch up with me. I also did zero exercise.

However, I had youth on my side and lost two stone in weight relatively quickly. There was no grand diet plan. I stopped eating bread and bought an exercise bike. I managed to keep the weight off, despite being inactive and continuing to eat convenience foods and drink like a fish. I got away with it. I was in my twenties. I didn’t worry about my health at all. It felt like I had forever ahead. I had my first baby at 24 and my second at 27. Some women struggle to return to their pre-pregnancy weight, but I didn’t find that at all and bounced back to around 9st each time. I rode my luck and genetics for a decade.

My next significant period of weight gain was in my thirties. Again, disgusted by what I saw in a photograph, I was shocked into “dieting”. I had tried Slimming World with moderate success, but the weight came off and went back on again. I continued in this vein for years, trying short fixes, giving up and becoming more and more stressed and disgusted with myself.

It was time to try something drastic.

Cue running.

Running was a punishment. Age 35, 3 stone overweight, the heaviest I’d ever been and not feeling any benefit from doing one half-assed exercise class a week, it was time for drastic measures. I’m going to hate this, I thought, but I deserve it. It’s my fault for being so fat.

However, I was wrong about so many things. Running became much more than I could ever imagine. Running saved me in so many ways. While it started out as a punishment, it became a reward. I forgot about trying to lose weight. I loved running for running’s sake, nothing else. The weight loss was a welcome side effect, but for once, it wasn’t all consuming. I also stopped being such a bitch to myself.

Fast forward 8 years and I’m still a runner, but I’ve added in gym work. 2024 was pretty much a write-off in terms of my physical fitness. I succumbed to a prolonged period of stress-induced binge eating and my running and fitness suffered. As a result, I gained two stone. Determined not to get back to my heaviest weight, 2025 was about focusing on health and all the good habits required to feel, perform, and look my best.

Having made a good go of getting my mindset back in the game in 2025, 2026 is the year I stepped it up a notch.

Undoubtedly, carrying extra weight is unhealthy. Obesity can lead to type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer, and other health complications.

But why do we obsess over our appearance? It’s like we think we’re less worthy of love, happiness, or success if we’re not in peak physical condition.

Can you relate to any of this?

Do you think you’ve been brainwashed (subliminally or otherwise) into worrying about your weight?

Or, do you think you need to be beaten with a stick to chase the carrot?

We all have different motivations.

We all have different wants, needs, and goals.

What spurs on one person might not work for another.

Looking back on my key moments of weight gain, it seems I subconsciously ignored the problem.

I ignored my expanding reflection in the mirror.

I was blind to extra rolls of fat.

I bought clothes in a bigger size and didn’t think twice about it.

I saw bigger numbers on the scale and registered them with only a passing interest until I saw unflattering photographs that shamed me into getting back in shape.

I was shocked, miserable, and disgusted each time I saw one of those photographs. But, it was a negative spur into a positive solution.

I only regret letting the problem get so bad before I started to make it better.

Acknowledging the need to lose weight without beating yourself up is a win.

Do it for your health.

Do it because you want to.

Do it because you’re able to.

These are all steps towards better health.

You’re not a loser for being overweight. You’re a winner for recognising that something has to change and taking positive action for your health. However, your self-worth should be independent from the number on the scale.

There is so much more to you than what you weigh. There’s a whole personality in there, one who loves and is loved. One with specific skills, talents, and hobbies.

Don’t lose sight of yourself in your quest for better health. It’s better to have yourself as a best friend than a worst enemy.

Losing Weight Without Losing Your Mind

While there might not be a definitive one-size-fits all solution, here are some basics:

Accept your starting point - You might want to lose fat, add muscle, or just feel fitter and healthier all round. It’s better to start from a point of positive acceptance than a pit of despair. You can do it. Get your mind onside first.
Hydrate (water is best)
Sleep well (7-9 hours is optimal for most people)
Eat for health. Eat to feel good.
Eat to fuel your body for daily function - we’ve gotta live.
Eat to fuel your body for exercise and appreciate that fat loss and muscle gain take time.
Have a goal - what do you want to achieve? Be specific. Visualise the outcome then reverse engineer it. Break your goal down into smaller, more manageable chunks. For example, if you want to run a marathon, the end goal is 26.2 miles. Perhaps you want to just complete it, in which case, follow a training plan for 20 weeks. If you have a time in mind, the plan will have to include running particular paces in training.
Exercise - find something you enjoy doing and you’ll stick with it
Take progress photographs - For your eyes only. Photographing yourself in your underwear doesn’t come naturally for everyone, but it lets you see the changes in your body that the scale might not show.
Be patient - Trust yourself, trust your body, trust the process. Good things take time and effort.
Forgive yourself if you slip up. Accept that you’re not perfect and if you overeat or deviate from any of your plans, it’s ok. Don’t let a slip turn into a slide. The outcome means something to you or you wouldn’t have started. Keep going. Onwards and upwards is the only way.

If you feel your weight and appearance makes up most of your personality, it doesn’t have to be a negative. There are worse habits to have than making your health a priority and putting the work in. There are worse obsessions to have. Time to turn that obsession around from worrying about weight and put the focus on eating well, exercising well, and feeling fucking fantastic.

Remember that you’re a person first and foremost, a person who might make mistakes and need support. Treat yourself as you would treat other people.

(Unless that’s anything other than love, kindness, and respect because then you are just a dick).

Your worth is not determined by the number on the scale, the weight you lift, or your reflection in the mirror. But, being overweight can be detrimental to a person’s health and if we’re in a position to do something about it, we can, and we should.

We only get one life. Let’s make it a healthy and happy one.

Braw Bodies

Discussion about this post

Ready for more?