The 10-pound range

Hello, my friend.

In this Love Letter, I talk about weight. If that’s something you’d rather not read about, skip this one, and enjoy this first weekend of the new year!

I’m 5’ 7”, and I feel most comfortable in my body when I weigh between 130 and 140 pounds.
Please note: I did not say the weight I think I should be, or the weight other people think I should be, or the weight society expects me to be. Or the weight I think other people should be.

This is my sweet spot because it’s where I feel my best. It’s also where I think I look my best. If I drop below 130 pounds, I actively work on gaining weight. If I go above 140 pounds (and it’s not because of muscle gains) I will actively work on releasing weight. This doesn’t happen often. If I eat mainly a whole-food plant-based diet and move my body regularly, I tend to stay in this range. I’m 45 years old, and I have pretty much stayed in this range for the past 10 years.

In Drop It Club, the plant-powered weight loss program I designed, there are three progressive phases—each with slight modifications to diet and lifestyle. After Droplets reach their goal weight, they play around and find their “forever phase.” They choose a 5-10 pound range where they feel most comfortable, and use all the tools they’ve learned in the program to maintain this range with ease.

It’s an effective technique.

At the end of November, I weighed 141 pounds. I didn’t get mad at the scale or myself. I took this information and used it as fuel to dial in the phase one guidelines. Within a week, I was back in my range.

When most people see a pound or two on the scale more than they would like, one of two things happen

1. They chalk it up as just a small increase and keep doing what they’re doing.
2. They beat themselves up and start restricting food.

Neither response is wrong, but both can lead to results you may not want.

There’s another option that is much more helpful and feels way better.

Instead of continuing to gain weight, pound by pound, until it adds up enough to “do something about it,” we can make small changes now. And instead of using the number on the scale to beat ourselves up and attempt unsustainable weight loss techniques, we can use the number on the scale as data and make small adjustments that feel healthy and abundant, instead of radical and scarce.

When we give ourselves flexibility with our goals (trading in an inflexible, set number for a range that your body can happily live in) and swapping judgment for curiosity (seeing the number on the scale as information rather than a character flaw), we can find a middle ground that feels doable, and freeing.

This is what Drop It Club is all about—a realistic framework and the tools and support you need to have a healthy, loving, accepting relationship with your body and the food you eat—while feeling better than you ever have.

Winter registration for Drop It Club closes on January 14th. Join now and experience a whole new way to reach your health and weight goals. No perfection, all-or-nothing, or deprivation required.

Happy New Year, my friend. May it be the best yet.

Molly