Inches lost ...

DietPrada
DietPrada Posts: 1,171 Member
Can someone explain to me how this works?

I mean if I measured my waist after a month I could say "oh look, I've lost 0.75 inches".
Or if I measured my waist, boobs, hips, neck, thigh, and arm I could say "well look at that, I've lose 4 inches".
If I measured enough parts on my body I could say "holy cow, I've lost 50 inches in the last month - go me".

How is this a measurement of anything? The maths geek in me does not understand.

Replies

  • MyriiStorm
    MyriiStorm Posts: 609 Member
    Combining all the inches together can be very encouraging for some - kind of a summary of all the losses. It's an affirmation of the progress made.

    Personally, I look at each body part separately, i.e. "I lost two inches from my waist, two inches from my hips, etc."

  • VKetoV
    VKetoV Posts: 111 Member
    Neck, waist, hip ratio is a rough estimate of bodyfat percentage. Proportions seem to make more sense vs. inches lost (i.e. visceral vs. subcutaneous fat) for body composition purposes
  • sammyliftsandeats
    sammyliftsandeats Posts: 2,421 Member
    It can be an indication that you're getting smaller without poundage lost. Sometimes you can get smaller without losing scale weight.

    You lose inches and you can fit into smaller clothes. You can even gain scale weight and that can happen.

    The scale weight isn't the only indicator of health.

    The bust-waist-hip measurement is generally used because it's a typical standard of measurement especially in clothing.
  • macchiatto
    macchiatto Posts: 2,890 Member
    I get what you're saying. I measure a lot of spots so I don't add up inches lost either. Like pp, I look at each separately.
  • Gallowmere1984
    Gallowmere1984 Posts: 6,626 Member
    edited December 2016
    I don't add anything together. As a strength training male in the 14-15% bf range, losing inches from the waist is good; anywhere else is bad, or maybe means nothing, as I could have done a measurement at a time when a muscle group was particularly swollen.
  • kimberlyb6682
    kimberlyb6682 Posts: 79 Member
    when I think of inches lost I think x amount from my waist, x amount from my hips. adding them all together doesn't seem like a correct assessment of my progress.
  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
    I do the standard chest, waist, hip measurements...I add in a low belly measurement because that's where I tend to carry my fat...arms and legs are not a concern for me, but for some people who carry weight in those regions, they might be good indicators of fat loss...not everyone carries weight in the same place or loses weight in the same place, so for someone who carries extra weight in their thighs, tracking chest/waist/hip might not yield many changes for fat loss, while tracking thigh measurements at 3 different places on their thigh can give them a better indicator of progress...like any other metric, it's just a way to track changes over time, the individual measurement is only meaningful if it's meaningful to your specific situation...
  • cstehansen
    cstehansen Posts: 1,984 Member
    I think the idea of adding it all up came from some diet plan/book/program as a marketing tool to say "LOOK!!! SHE LOST 40 INCHES IN JUST 4 WEEKS USING OUR PROVEN SYSTEM!!!!!" If you measure enough places, you can tell factual truths but be very misleading.
  • SuperCarLori
    SuperCarLori Posts: 1,248 Member
    I can't measure myself properly to save my life. According to my calculations I've gained inches. I gave up last month. My clothes are getting looser.
  • 805_blondie
    805_blondie Posts: 96 Member
    I measure everywhere because what I've noticed, I will lose on my legs one week and my upper body the next. It really helps keep me motivated that I can actually see that loss is happening even if it's not showing on the scale.
  • 40DayFit
    40DayFit Posts: 246 Member
    Most often I see folks measuring a baseline for each body part, then tracking changes to that baseline. I only see "total inches lost" in shilly adverts or the occasional person who wants to celebrate a total victory--but those folks then tend to share how many inches they lost per measurement area.

    I plan to track inches per measurement area, not a nebulous "total inches lost."
  • McShorty7
    McShorty7 Posts: 69 Member
    cstehansen wrote: »
    I think the idea of adding it all up came from some diet plan/book/program as a marketing tool to say "LOOK!!! SHE LOST 40 INCHES IN JUST 4 WEEKS USING OUR PROVEN SYSTEM!!!!!" If you measure enough places, you can tell factual truths but be very misleading.

    Ah...System. I really hate the word when it comes to sales
  • missippibelle
    missippibelle Posts: 153 Member
    I lost 40 pounds years ago using WW. I picked 7 body parts to measure for a baseline. I measured periodically at those same points. I kept a log of each individual measurement, as well as a total. I found it very encouraging to see the total number for my own motivation. When I would have few weeks of a stall on the scale, I could see changes happening with the tape measure. It was also helpful to have a total when I got closer to goal. 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch on one body part may seem small, but 1/4 inch x 7 parts added up to help me see the changes in a concrete number. It was, for me, a way to keep from getting discouraged. It also helped me not depend on the scale so much for evidence that I was progressing.
  • treehugnmama
    treehugnmama Posts: 816 Member
    I can't measure myself properly to save my life. According to my calculations I've gained inches. I gave up last month. My clothes are getting looser.

    I'm the same I went down 4 sizes in jeans and according to my measurements I gained 3 inches!!
    I took measurements before halloween for christmas challange and am going to measure today I hope it's a loss but I am bad at measuring
  • baconslave
    baconslave Posts: 7,018 Member
    The chick at BodyFit bt Amy has a good video on how to consistently measure yourself.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZVcaYJvnSU

    I love her exercise videos to death, I'm not gonna lie.
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    cstehansen wrote: »
    I think the idea of adding it all up came from some diet plan/book/program as a marketing tool to say "LOOK!!! SHE LOST 40 INCHES IN JUST 4 WEEKS USING OUR PROVEN SYSTEM!!!!!" If you measure enough places, you can tell factual truths but be very misleading.

    LOL
    I always wondered about that. If there was a set combination of measurements that they included for the total? Arms, waist, hips, and thighs or something?
  • treehugnmama
    treehugnmama Posts: 816 Member
    thanks baconslave that video was very helpf