🚩Follow up to my last post on tracking scale weight!⠀
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Think about what one pound coins would look like next to one pound of feathers. ⠀
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You are visually comparing a roll of quarters to a fluffy pillow. THIS is why you want to understand what the scale can and can’t tell you.⠀
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Here are ✋ things to know: ⠀
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1️⃣ Day-to-day, your weight will fluctuate for countless reasons. Fat loss isn’t linear. There will never be a given week when you can expect to drop ‘x’ amount of weight. Ground your expectations in reality. You will not lose weight every single day. Instead, watch for an overall downward trend. Weekly and monthly averages tell the real story.⠀ ⠀
2️⃣ Losing .5-1lb per week is GREAT progress! Unfortunately, most people don’t want to embrace this, as we’ve been fed for years this idea that you should be able to ‘drop weight fast!’ How’s that worked out long-term for anybody in the history of ever?⠀
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3️⃣ While the scale can be a useful tool to see if you’re losing weight over time, it’s important to also understand that not all weight is created equal. Over the course of your journey, you may wind up 10lbs OVER what you thought was your goal weight. Many different things such as muscle, water, stomach content, glycogen, bone density and more will all contribute to that number on the scale - which is why I suggest aiming for a ‘look’ or a ‘feel’ vs. a goal number.⠀
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4️⃣ You will often weigh more after a tough strength workout. It’s counterintuitive isn’t it? You worked out, pushed hard, but when you weigh-in the next day you’re heavier...this is 100% normal and here’s why; After you work out, your body needs to recover from the stress you placed upon it. In order to do this effectively and form the desired adaptation, your muscles actually store more glycogen (carbs) which results in a short-term weight (NOT fat) gain. ⠀
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5️⃣ If you want to skip the weigh-in after what felt like a ‘bad day’ then you should. There are no awards for sitting in your own misery. But you might be surprised by how you can learn to trust your body is doing exactly what it needs to do by checking in every day and reviewing your progress holistically rather than in a vacuum 👇
