The Real Truth About the Scale
The real truth about the scale…
Although I weigh the same in all 3 photos, I’m clearly leanest in the photo on the right and carry more body fat in the photo on the left. This isn’t a post for anyone to tell me they think I looked good in all of the photos, this is just to show the differences.
In the photo on the left I was focused mainly on dieting. Cutting calories to be exact. I was eating between 1000-1200 calories a day to lose weight to be a bridesmaid in a wedding in Mexico. Without proper exercise and diet it is hard to lose fat in those “stubborn areas” and at that point I was still carrying the majority of my fat in my hips, butt and thighs.
I didn’t have as much muscle on me so my body fat percentage was higher (I never had it calculated at that time but I would guess 22-23%). In the photo on the right my nutrition and consistency was on point. I was doing high intensity workouts 5 days a week and adding in some additional lifting as well. My body fat percentage was around 18%.
On the photo in the middle, my nutrition was also pretty on point but my intensity and frequency in the gym was less. Clearly I had lost some of the muscle I had put on when I was working out more often and replaced that mass with fat – hence why the scale read the same as when I was leaner. My body fat percentage was about 20%. I weighed the same as the photo on the right but my jeans fit tighter, my muscular endurance had declined and I wasn’t as strong.
Just focusing on the scale to ‘lose weight’ is a total disservice. Losing weight and losing fat are two totally different things. To make sure that we’re getting the results we actually want, our nutrition and exercise need to coincide. Sometimes the scale won’t budge but that doesn’t mean incredible things aren’t happening!
We use the scale as a guideline in weight loss, but it’s also one of the most frustrating tools that we have to work with. It can determine someone’s mood depending on what the number says even when we know that the process is worth much more than that.
No one’s happiness should be affected by a number. We need to appreciate what our bodies do for us on a daily basis and to not be so hard on yourself when the number fluctuates. The journey is so much more than that!
The number does not define me and the number does not define YOU.
-Ash