Let’s talk about weight. By that I mean the number on the scales.

I’ve been obsessed with it. That number changing could make or break, and influence all of my decisions and feelings for the day ahead. Does that sound familiar?

It’s taken a long time to understand that health and happiness don’t come with a number. It’s not a scale. But that’s what it can feel like. And it’s bonkers, really. It’s a trap. There is no end, once you get to that self-designated number, the only thing to do is to keep going. Each incremental change in the number is a new dopamine hit or mark of failure.

Look at the next person you see, what do they weigh? Try and guess – 73kg? 9st6lbs? 58.5kg? 14st2lbs?

And if somebody were to guess your exact weight, could they? No of course they couldn’t. And if they did it would be a fluke. (Feel free to ask a friend, but I bet they won’t even try because they really don’t give a monkeys bum what the number on the scales says when you step onto it, they just like you!)

So next time you wonder what you weigh when you get up in the morning, just pick a number. Make it the number that you want it to be. Don’t check it! That’s really important. Instead use that aspirational number to influence your decisions for the day. Because you are a product of your choices; if you move, exercise, eat, rest and embrace the “weight” that you want to be, the actual number doesn’t matter.

You’ll embody the feeling that that you imagine that number to bring and those positive vibes will cascade into each decision you make during the day, impacting in real terms upon your health and happiness.

Nobody will ever ask you what you weigh. Nobody cares what anybody else weighs. All that people see when they look at you is a product of the decisions you make about your life.

So get out of bed, dress to suit your mood, eat to make you feel well, exercise to make you feel like you have super powers (ahem, come and learn to swing heavy kettlbells with me).

Because you are so much more than a fluctuating number.