End the Scale Watching
Most, if not all of us looking to drop some pounds are obsessed with the scale. Me included. Well, you may say "How am I suppose to know if I am losing weight". After you are done reading this you will have a couple of sure fire ways to know.
Once you have decided to commit to a workout and eating program to lose weight you want to start seeing results as soon as possible. The first thing we do after our first workout is run to the scale and cross our fingers. Well, most likely you won't see any movement and heaven forbid you see it move up. How discouraging. Well I am here to fill you in on some things that will help you through this time of uncertainty.
The first thing we have to focus on when losing weight is our body composition. What we really want to do is lose body fat. Once body fat is loss that usually correlates to losing weight. Weight loss is just a byproduct, but should not be our main goal. That goal should be to lower our body fat. It is far better for our health to have a low body fat than a low weight on a scale. You can have a low weight on the scale, but be totally unhealthy. If you were 150 lbs and 6% body fat, you are much healthier that being 150 lbs and 20% body fat. You will have more lean muscle mass. We know that when we workout and eat clean, we will increase in muscle strength and density, which does add weight. This can be very confusing and misleading when all we use to judge our progress is a number on a scale.
When we get fixated on a number we want to see on a scale, we risk the chance of sabotaging our own progress. We may start to eat less food or crash diet, which kills our metabolism. Start to use other methods to gauge your progress. You can't look at your friends or people on TV reality shows that may lose a lot of weight really fast. We are all different and our bodies will react to things differently. The main thing is to be consistent with your program and eating and to be patient. Always remind yourself that this is a lifestyle change, not just a short term program to get you to a number and then you are done. When you treat is as a lifestyle change, you never have to worry if the weight will come back.
Better Options than the Scale
Here are 4 ways that you can gauge your progress when trying to lose weight and get healthy. The scale is not the tell all.
1. How do you look in the mirror? Take a set of "Before" pictures (just for yourself ) and compare them every 30 days.
2. Use a tape measure and take your measurements. Compare your starting numbers with monthly numbers.
3. More importantly, how do you feel. Do you have more energy? Are your workouts getting easier? etc.
4. How do your clothes fit? Are they getting looser? This is usually the first indicator that changes are occurring.
One thing for sure, your weight will fluctuate everyday. Why? There are many factors, but as long as you "Show Up" for your workout everyday and eat clean, you will see results. Stop listening to your scale and start consulting with some of the other tell-tale signs of weight loss and you will have SUCCESS.
Most, if not all of us looking to drop some pounds are obsessed with the scale. Me included. Well, you may say "How am I suppose to know if I am losing weight". After you are done reading this you will have a couple of sure fire ways to know.
Once you have decided to commit to a workout and eating program to lose weight you want to start seeing results as soon as possible. The first thing we do after our first workout is run to the scale and cross our fingers. Well, most likely you won't see any movement and heaven forbid you see it move up. How discouraging. Well I am here to fill you in on some things that will help you through this time of uncertainty.
The first thing we have to focus on when losing weight is our body composition. What we really want to do is lose body fat. Once body fat is loss that usually correlates to losing weight. Weight loss is just a byproduct, but should not be our main goal. That goal should be to lower our body fat. It is far better for our health to have a low body fat than a low weight on a scale. You can have a low weight on the scale, but be totally unhealthy. If you were 150 lbs and 6% body fat, you are much healthier that being 150 lbs and 20% body fat. You will have more lean muscle mass. We know that when we workout and eat clean, we will increase in muscle strength and density, which does add weight. This can be very confusing and misleading when all we use to judge our progress is a number on a scale.
When we get fixated on a number we want to see on a scale, we risk the chance of sabotaging our own progress. We may start to eat less food or crash diet, which kills our metabolism. Start to use other methods to gauge your progress. You can't look at your friends or people on TV reality shows that may lose a lot of weight really fast. We are all different and our bodies will react to things differently. The main thing is to be consistent with your program and eating and to be patient. Always remind yourself that this is a lifestyle change, not just a short term program to get you to a number and then you are done. When you treat is as a lifestyle change, you never have to worry if the weight will come back.
Better Options than the Scale
Here are 4 ways that you can gauge your progress when trying to lose weight and get healthy. The scale is not the tell all.
1. How do you look in the mirror? Take a set of "Before" pictures (just for yourself ) and compare them every 30 days.
2. Use a tape measure and take your measurements. Compare your starting numbers with monthly numbers.
3. More importantly, how do you feel. Do you have more energy? Are your workouts getting easier? etc.
4. How do your clothes fit? Are they getting looser? This is usually the first indicator that changes are occurring.
One thing for sure, your weight will fluctuate everyday. Why? There are many factors, but as long as you "Show Up" for your workout everyday and eat clean, you will see results. Stop listening to your scale and start consulting with some of the other tell-tale signs of weight loss and you will have SUCCESS.
John Rivers, an Independent Team Beachbody Coach, and his wife
Beth enjoy helping individuals reach their health and fitness goals.
Their unique support style through social media is a very integral part
of their accountability model. Find more info at HomeWorkoutsWork.com or sign up to Join their "private" Facebook group and start reaching "YOUR" goals today.
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_Rivers