An Honest Scale

"Your scale is a liar."

Doctor Don stops reading the nurse’s notes and looks me up and down over the rim of his glasses. I am perched on the edge of the chair because my wide hips will not fit between the arms. He notes my uncomfortable posture and ignores my pout.

“Hmmm,” his lips flatten under a full gray mustache and he returns to the notes. “Maybe it is lying in your favor. Looks to me you’ve gained even more weight than indicated here.” He continues despite my vocal sputtering. “Your lab results are great; even the cholesterol and triglyceride levels look good”. He pauses, looks me full in the face, “You are healthy, for now, but you know obesity will cause multiple health issues. I can prescribe nutritional counseling, but I think you already know what you need to do to lose weight.”

I like Don. He is friendly, easy to talk to, he takes his time during the appointments and I suspect he is pretty smart. He is not insulting me, but doing his job, by advising I change my habits, but damn it, dieting is hard!

Each New Year, I make the same resolution, to lose weight. I start great with a sensible menu, appropriate foodstuffs and even an exercise video to guide me through the contortions that promise to result in weight loss. Then Valentine’s Day and the persuasiveness of chocolate will convince my self-control to take a vacation.

Once I stumble, I do not pick myself up and continue on the straight and narrow path to the land of thin. I am not sure if the guilt is defeating me, or if I am looking for an excuse, any excuse to stop regulating what I put in my mouth. Maybe, I can strengthen my willpower with a reward system for sticking to the eating plan. The money I save by not buying junk food can pay for spa days.

Don watched my face as he waited through my mental dialogue.

“Ok, Doc, you are right. I do know I must get serious about my weight. My next errand is to buy a scale, but I am getting a different brand than yours. My scale will tell the truth.”