Weight Isn't Everything...

ibanez450
ibanez450 Posts: 17 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
As a measuring stick, weight isn't necessarily a bad place to start... for someone who weighs himself daily and tracks it, I find that it can be a good indicator if something is wrong with you day-to-day (water retention, dehydration, etc...). I don't see many people here tracking measurements much though...

When I ended up losing weight, I really didn't use the weight as the focus - I focused on my measurements. For those of you who are frustrated at the number on the scale, try keeping once a month (or maybe twice a month) measurements. The measurements I use are...

Waist at the navel
Calf muscle flexed
Quadracep muscle flexed
Hips (feet about 4 inches apart, measured over the biggest part of the butt)
Chest (just over the nipple line)
Bicep flexed
Forearm flexed
Wrist
Neck

I eat about 150 grams of carbohydrates daily which isn't technically considered a low-carb diet, but it is half of what the USDA recommends. About 2/3 of my carbohydrates come from natural sources - fruit & veggies... very little grains/bread/processed carbs. I avoid potatoes - but I LOVE french fries and allow myself a small portion once/week. Even when I was overweight (5' 5" and 162 lbs), I was still able to run 10 miles nonstop, left weights vigorously, and trail bike 20-30 miles at a time. I eat only natural fats - saturated fat from meats, olive oil, coconut oil, and dairy products.

My exercise basically consists of running 1-2 times a week 4-8 miles depending on how I'm feeling, bowflex 1-2 times a week for maybe 30 minutes. I also did the Insanity workout for a while, not 6 days a week though, just on days when it was too hot or too cold to run outside.

This is my before and after pictures - the first picture was taken the beginning of February and the second one was taken about 2 weeks ago.

Capture.png

Replies

  • hannyfran
    hannyfran Posts: 13
    Congratulations on your results! I agree that the number on the scale shouldn't always be the focus. I think it really depends on how much you weigh, because if you're extremely over weight, scale numbers can be very useful (although measurements can also be motivating)
    What I'm planning on doing is getting a body fat scale. Most of them are fairly accurate, and they aren't affected very much by water weight or dehydration.
  • Kim55555
    Kim55555 Posts: 987 Member
    Good work!

    Yep especially if you are nearing your goal weight and are eating at a small defecit, lifting weights and exercising vigorously.

    I've lost a total of 32 kg since April 2010 and my latest kilogram took 6 months to come off. I'm now 59 kg.

    To track my progress I have been taking measurements and body fat % I have also been taking regular photos. Even though I wasnt losing on the scale for 6 months I was still losing fat, getting a lot thinner as my body composition was changing. I kept going down in clothes sizes.

    I have no idea what number i'll end up at. I'm 5 foot 2 and goal is to stay in the 50 kg range now that I broke through this barrier. I want to get leaner in the midsection. Have a flat tummy. I know it will come off but it will take time. I dont care if it takes me a a full 3 years to get there. 2010 - 2013.

    And the best part about this story is my football has improved out of sight now that I can run properly again, not having to carry around all the weight. I feel like i'm 20 years younger! :) Back to playing well again.

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