Hi folks!

I'm sure we've all been ready to huck the scale out the window from time to time, so here's a nice objective lesson in why scales are evil.

I was looking through my journal recently, and I've been journalling for exactly one month.

Weight when I started: 210.
Weight now: 211.

Looks pretty ugly, huh? A month of LC and I flippin' GAINed a pound! Well, I was ALL on a rant about it. I'd been as close to perfect as humans can get, eating LC, doing weights and cardio 3-4 times a week each, using Fitday, etc. So why, oh why wasn't I getting any decent results?

Then I got out my measurements. 2 inches off my bust, 3 off waist, almost 3 more off the hips and 2 off each thigh. I used the measurements to compare body fat. In that month, I went from 39% BF to 34% BF - a loss of 5%. Then I took those numbers and calculated the pounds of fat lost and muscle gained.

Are you ready?

10 lbs of fat lost

11 lbs of muscle gained

The lesson: Take your measurements and track your body fat percentage! The scale doesn't know or care if it's weighing a 10 lb rock or a 10 lb can of lard. But you do! It isn't about just pounds or kilos. It's about body composition.

For more on BF%, have a look at Nat's two stickies in the Body For Life forum. One of them even gives links to some bodyfat calculators. I use the one on Lean and Strong that lets you enter body measurements, but if you have a set of caliper readings you can use those, too.

Edit: Oh, yes, one other thing. When I came here, I thought I needed to lose 100 lbs. 240 to 140. I now have 139 lbs of lean mass alone. At 25% bodyfat, which is 'normal' for a woman, I can weigh 186 lbs. How's that for encouragement?! As I've said in my journal, easiest 'diet' in the world; you just keep moving your goal weight UP.


Cheers!

Friday