Ways of Tracking Progress

shellyburger

I've been feeling very discouraged with weighing myself. While there a slight changes happening, I never feel happy or satisfied with marking my progress this way. Does anyone have any other methods of tracking that they find helpful in this regard? I've heard of people taking measurements but have no idea where to start with that. Any suggestions welcome!

livingleanlivingclean

Photos every month. Tape measure. Calipers (done by the same person every couple of weeks) ...

VintageFeline

Side by side photos, tape measure, having fitness goals /seeing fitness improvements. It's really lovely how sprightly and light I feel now doing things like burpees (which I admit are the devil's bodyweight exercise).

Lizzy622

Neck, waist & hips is what is in the tracker but you could also do thigh and arm. I also like to push myself physically to see how far I could run or how fast i can finish a mile or how heavy I can lift.

TavistockToad

I have fitness goals as well as weight goals.

cross2bear

Buying new clothes was a big motivator for me - I really didnt weigh myself for the first three months that I was watching calories and logging - I just had faith in the system and that if I was consistent and honest, I would see results. It worked! I could see that my clothes were getting bigger and finally when I did get around to being weighed, I had lost 30lbs. I had a goal outfit - I kept trying that thing on for weeks - at first I couldnt get the pants up around my butt. Then I could, but I couldnt zip it. Then I could but I had a muffin top that was too horrible to be seen in public! Finally I got the darn thing on..long story short, now its too big!!

I hope you find your motivator - it can play such a significant role in how well you do, and keeping you focussed on your goal.

Tacklewasher

I tried the tape measure but couldn't get the same measurement twice, so gave up.

Then I bought a body tape measure and find I can actually use it and get consistent results, so now every Sunday I measure about 8 different body parts.

dopeysmelly

Good advice here. I'd also suggest that you only compare "now" and "before" (whether that's weight, measurements, clothes etc) relatively infrequently, say once a month. It can take a while for the changes to show and you need patience, but the rewards are worth it. For weight I use Happy Scales app and only really look at the monthly reports or at most the 10-day trend. My favorite? Getting the new season's clothes on for the first time since last year and finding that they either still fit just right or are looser.

sammyliftsandeats

While I do weigh daily, I track it on Happy Scale and just pay attention to the average - not the fluctuations.

Other than that, I take monthly measurements, progress photos, and how clothes fit. If a pair of pants is snug one month and getting a bit loose in areas another, I know I've made progress.

Also nice to pay attention to strength gains (if you strength train), especially when you're losing weight.