When NOT To Celebrate Weight Loss

Let me say something that might surprise you:

Weight loss, in itself, is not an accomplishment.

That might sound strange coming from someone who helps women lose weight. But hear me out…

Weight loss is an outcome. Not a habit. Not a behavior. Not a skill.

And yet, it often gets more praise than the healthy habits that actually make it possible.

This week, I lost 5 pounds in 5 days.

And if I used weight alone as a metric, I would be celebrating.

But I’m not. Because I didn’t lose that weight by doing anything healthy or sustainable.

In fact, I felt terrible. Exhausted. Lethargic. Unable to workout…

I lost 5 pounds in 5 days because I had the stomach flu.

The weight I lost was simply a result of dehydration and an MIA appetite for fear that anything I ate might make a reappearance.

That doesn’t sound like something worth celebrating, does it?

We need to stop treating the scale like the full story.

Because it’s not just if you lose weight — it’s how you get there that determines whether that weight loss is actually a win worth celebrating.

Did it come from eating balanced meals that satisfy and nourish you?

From learning to stop when you’re full — without counting every calorie?

From getting back on track after a weekend away without spiraling into “I blew it” mode?

That’s the stuff that deserves celebration.

Because the skills and habits that create health-promoting weight loss are the things that stick with you - even when the scale plateaus, life gets messy, or when motivation dips.

When you stop obsessing over the number and start focusing on the behaviors that align with how you want to feel and live your life, everything changes.

What if instead of asking, “How can I lose X pounds?”

We asked, “What habits do I need to build to support the healthy version of me I want to become?”

When that’s in alignment — the results follow. And more importantly, they stick around.

So no, I won’t celebrate weight loss just for the sake of it.

But I will celebrate you every step of the way as you build the habits that make it possible — and sustainable.

Nicole Hagen

A Nutrition Coach, adoptive mom, dog mom, and mint chocolate chip ice cream lover.

I didn’t always have this business: the Masters degree in Nutrition Science and Public Health, the passion, the clients... in fact, years ago you could have found me endlessly counting calories and trying to find my worth on the scale and at spin class, exhausted in my pursuit of (what I thought was) health and happiness.

In my early twenties, I struggled with crash dieting and disordered eating. Little did I know, those circumstances would be my one-way ticket out of my restrictive relationship with food & fitness. Those experiences led me here: to the life-giving, sustainable, habit-based nutrition philosophy I embody today. Today you can find me living life without a calorie counting app and spending time with my husband, one year old son, and our two crazy golden retriever pups.

I enjoy spending my free time reading, sipping on matcha lattes, and dreaming of ways I can help other women create healthy, confident relationships with food without selling their souls to food rules and calorie counting apps.

Because nothing lights me up more than helping women live full and vibrant lives without food fear, rules, or restriction. I want to be that permission granter in your life that whispers: “you really can do this” while the rest of the world continues to settle for short-term satisfaction.

https://nutritioncoachingwithnicole.com/
Previous
Previous

I just wanted to lose a few pounds...

Next
Next

Do Women Really Need to Eat and Train Differently Than Men?