Your eyes slowly open up. You get out of bed. You go into the bathroom to relieve yourself, and there it is. The dreaded scale. The scale doesn't lie. It doesn't try to make you feel better. It just gives you the cold, hard, truth. You step on and you are horrified by what you see. Oh my god! How could that be? You've been working out and eating better. And, your clothes even fit better. Oh no! Was all that hard work you did in vain? No. It most certainly was not. In this article, I'm going to tell you, from personal experience, why you should throw your scale away immediately.

The reason why I don't believe in using a scale to measure your weight loss progress is because it is somewhat inaccurate. "What? How could the scale be inaccurate?" Here's how... the scale measures how much you weigh. That means that when you step on the scale, the number that it reads is taking into account the weight of your muscle mass, your skin, your organs, and your skeletal system. Chances are, when you are in the process of losing weight, you are probably working out. This means that, regardless of whether you are male or female, you are most likely going to gain some lean muscle mass.

Muscle weighs more than fat. This means that although you may have lost body fat, the scale may read that you are the same weight as when you started your weight loss program, and even worse yet, that you weigh more than you did when you first started your weight loss program. So, although a scale may be a great measure of how much you weigh in total, it is not the best option to measure how much body fat you are losing. Weight really shouldn't mean anything, in my humble opinion. If a bodybuilder, who has as close to zero body fat as humanly possible, steps on a scale at a doctor's office, he will actually be considered obese. Does this make sense? No, not at all, since the bodybuilder has a very low body fat percentage. But the scale is only measuring his weight. So, if you shouldn't use a scale, then how exactly should you go about tracking your weight loss progress? Here are five excellent ways that you can do just that:

1. A body fat caliper:

It can be purchased for about $20 and is considered very effective by the many people who use this type of device. Simply pinch a small skin fold and voila, you have your body fat percentage!

2. Your clothes (Waist size):

Are your clothes fitting better? If you are losing weight, they should be. Although this may not give your exact body fat percentage like the caliper, your clothes should be a definite indication as to whether or not your weight loss program is taking you in the right direction.

3. The mirror:

When I first started my weight loss program, I hated the mirror. It is a full body mirror attached to the inside of my bathroom door. But as I stuck it out and progressed in my program, the mirror became my best friend, and since then, I haven't met a mirror I didn't like!

4. Other people:

 They can be critical to the point where you feel like giving up, and yet they can be encouraging to the point where you're ready to hit the gym after talking to them! You'll get mixed reviews as you progress, and most likely, if people you know start to take notice of your weight loss, they will automatically tell you without ever having to ask them, "Do I look like I lost weight?" People love to share their opinion, and the more weight you lose, the more they'll tell you about it and the more you'll want them to. If you are going to ask people for their opinion however, make sure you ask someone who you know is not going to lie to you. Otherwise, they may just not want to hurt your feelings, and will then tell you what you want to hear, which will not help you at all.

5. Your body:

Does your back ache less? How about your knees? More often than not, when you are overweight, your lower back and your knees will hurt due to the added stress that they have to endure in order to support you all day long. If they are in less pain than usual, and you are exercising and eating better, it is probably because there is less weight for your back and knees to support. Also, do you have more energy than usual? Are you thinking more clearly? Are you more alert? These are all questions that you should be asking yourself a couple times each week. If the answer is "yes" to questions like these, you are going in the right direction.

From my personal experience, these are the best ways to track your weight loss progress. Another reason why the scale is not a good way to measure your progress is because many times, if you step on the scale and it gives a reading that is not desirable, you may get depressed about it. This means that you will undoubtedly become unmotivated, and therefore less likely to stick with your program. And when it comes to the weight loss game, like anything in life that you are trying to achieve, consistency is key.

Yours in health,

James Ryan Hallmark

CFT