Top 50 Non-Scale Victories – What the scale does not tell you
Table of Contents
- A billion-dollar industry
- Why am I not losing weight
- What are non-scale victories
- Top 50 Non-Scale Victories list

A billion-dollar industry
Losing weight and dieting is one of the most searched topics on google. At last count, there were 88 billion searches for dieting and losing weight. According to the Boston Medical Center, an estimated 45 million Americans diet each year and spend $33 billion yearly on weight loss products.
Losing weight and maintaining a weight loss is complicated, as many people will understand. It is a series of hormonal interactions, lifestyle, genetics, environment, muscles, digestion, mental health, gut health, and many factors that still need to be understood.
“Why am I not losing weight?”
Why am I not losing weight is a question I get often. It is a difficult question to answer because I don’t know. One of the most complex parts of working with patients who work so hard and make many positive changes is that the scale does not budge. The scale many times is what people focus on as a measure of success. Although that is one small piece of the health puzzle, many other factors that are not scale-dependent show how healthy we are.
An answer that I focus on is the importance of non-scale victories.
What are non-scale victories?
Non-scale victories are successes that a person can achieve or feel when they begin to make healthy food and lifestyle changes. Often times the scale will be the last to move which is so frustrating. There are so many more positive changes that can happen that do not have anything to do with a number on a scale. When asked why I am not losing weight, we brainstorm at least ten healthy non-scale victories people notice when they make healthy changes.
One answer that I can give is non-scale victories. When asked why I am not losing weight, we brainstorm at least ten healthy non-scale victories people notice when they make healthy changes. Many times people can identify with these victories and they are a better marker for health than weight and BMI.
Top 50 Non-Scale victories list
- Sleep better
- Sleep longer
- Clothes fit better
- Not needing to unbutton pants after you eat
- Able to poop easier, more regular
- Stool is softer
- Pea is clearer, less yellow
- Understanding what works for you
- Finding new activities you enjoy
- Trying new foods
- Blood work has improved
- Lower cholesterol
- Lower triglycerides
- Lower LDL
- Higher HDL cholesterol
- Improved blood sugar
- Improved insulin resistance
- Less fatty liver and improved liver health
- Less inflammation
- Better mood
- Taking less medication
- Reducing the dose of medications
- Skin looks better
- Hair looks better
- Able to bend over to tie shoes
- Breathing easier
- Spending less on out-to-eat foods
- Using all the food purchased from grocery shopping
- Not relying on the scale to dictate mood
- Rings fit better
- Socks fit better
- More energy
- Stamina
- Improved attention span
- Sense of achievement
- Less fatigue
- Excited about progress
- Understanding hunger and full cues
- Understanding how to fuel yourself better
- Understanding how food works in the body
- Seeing the joy in the process
- Getting to know yourself better
- Flexibility
- More confidence
- Stronger
- See more muscle definition of your body
- Less indigestion
- Less bloating
- Understanding that weight is just a gravitational pull
- Understanding how wonderful, creative, special, and loved you are.