No tags yet.
I had a conversation with a gentleman at the swimming baths the other day and it made me realise how important numbers are to everyone. So much so that I decided to write a blog about it. The conversation went something like this:
Him: Back for more punishment
Me: No I love swimming I’m really enjoying it
Him: Are you counting (referring to my lengths)
Me: No I don’t count
Him: Oh you’ve got to count
Me: No as long as I’m having fun and enjoying it I don’t care how many lengths I do
Cue him looking absolutely flabbergasted that I could possibly want to exercise out of sheer enjoyment.
How is it that we are never happy unless we are chasing a number or have a target to meet? People think there’s no point in doing something if you’re not tracking it or counting it. Why would you swim just for fun and not count lengths? How could you possibly go and just have fun? Why would you go for a walk without counting the steps? You can’t go for a walk and just enjoy the scenery and fresh air - don’t be stupid! Hell, why would you even go to the toilet if you don’t have your Fitbit on (you may laugh, but I genuinely held my wee in once because I was charging my Fitbit, which just shows how obsessed people do get and how sucked in people get, myself included in the past.)
Unfortunately it doesn’t stop there. People continue to be obsessed with numbers in all areas of their lives. Why would you healthy eat if you’re not trying to lose weight? You couldn’t possibly do it to just feel good about yourself and look after your body, you’re talking stupid again! If you don’t see the pounds go down and you’re not getting weighed, what’s the point? If you’re not chasing your next sticker or certificate or clap in group, then why on earth would you bother? I chased a number for years, that golden target weight. What do you think happened when I got there? I didn’t know what to do with myself, I no longer had a number to chase and I hadn’t actually changed the way I thought or felt about myself, queue me watching those numbers go back up and down, then back up again until one day I was sick of seeing them and decided enough was enough.
I don’t think tracking numbers of any sort is a good thing any more. It doesn’t matter if you’re counting your syns, your steps, the amount of carbs or calories you eat, whatever it is that you’re counting you can get obsessed with it and it’s not healthy. I know from experience that the healthiest thing you can do for your body and for your mental health is to not be obsessed with numbers. Not a number on the scales or a number on some packaging or an app. That number does not define who you are. That number is just as relevant as your height, your date of birth or your passport number - you don’t see people obsessing over them and trying to change them. Numbers are not important unless you’re teaching a child to count perhaps, or looking at the time to make sure you’re not late for work.
And if I can’t go for a walk with my Dad without having to count my steps or go for a nice swim on a morning without wondering how many lengths I’ve done, or eat a salad without wondering how many pounds I could lose by eating it, or eating a slice of cake without wondering:
- How many syns/points/calories are in it
- How much weight I could gain eating it - How much I need to workout to rectify it
- How guilty I need to feel about eating it
Then that’s not a life I want to live and its not a world I want to be part of.
So could you stop focusing on numbers so much in your life? Maybe you could stop getting weighed, or stop obsessing over every step you take, or every gram of fat you eat. Maybe instead you can count the memories you’re making, the hugs you give and the amount of times you smile a day. Because I can guarantee, when you stop obsessing so much about numbers, you’ll have so much more time in your life for those things.
LOTS OF LOVE, LAURA x