Should You Be Weighing Yourself?
WATCH THIS VIDEO: https://vimeo.com/556623055/1acb85d6e6
The answer – yes and no! And why?
Because – weight (the number on the scale) is relevant.
But before we actually go there, let me make something very clear: you actually NEVER (ever) just want to lose weight! Nope- what you want to do is lose fat and gain muscle. Which actually means you can be healthier, carry less excess fat and weight more!
Weightloss Broken Down:
Water Weight: You can lose water weight (my fighters can lose 8-10lbs in water weight by wearing a sweat suit), they are also exhausted, dehydrated and rehydrated and regain that weight moments after weighing in.
MUSCLE LOSS: You can also lose muscle- which is unhealthy and as we get older flat our dangerous. We lose muscle as we age, stay sedentary and don’t train properly/ progressively or at all. And, we also can lose muscle when we starve ourselves and over-do ‘cardio’ and emphasize ‘feels and sweat sessions’ above strength and true progress.
WHEN YOU LOSE MUSCLE: you make room for fat (muscle burns about 6cals of energy per lb, while fat uses 1-2 cals), Fat is also 80% more dense – so the same pound of muscle takes up about 80% less space in your body.
When you starve yourself, yo-yo- diet, abuse cleanses and over-do (over emphasize) cardio vs just movement and activity and progressive strength and conditioning you will cannibalize your muscle – and not build new muscle.
One more thing: muscle is much more vascular than fat – that means more blood runs through it – more blood means a healthier body that is able to recover from stress, life, inquiry better.
And another crucial factor: the onset loss of muscle and bone density – conditions called Sarcopenia and Osteoporosis – are all related to longevity and quality of life- and they can only be cured/ balanced by progressive strength training: resistance, weights… not ‘killer empty cardio.
FAT LOSS: What you want to do is burn fat (you do need some fat in your body to lubricate your organs and have storage in case you need it), but access fat loss (losing that added fat you don’t want) has EVERYTHING to do with proper strength training and muscle gain.
RECOMPING: a recomp is the ‘golden goose’ of fitness in cases of people wanting to build an ideal and strong physique : you want to build muscle as you burn fat. THIS REQUIRES: proper nutrition (not over or under eating) YES I said it- NOT UNDER EATING! Proper protein intake (reg or vegetarian/ vegan – doesn’t matter), and it requires strength training with proper resistance/ progressive resistance- aka progressive overload. This means you need to lift weight/ work with band/ body weight resistance and other variables like this progressively (disciplined, dedicated, measurable regiment) in order to build muscle properly.
WEIGHING YOURSELF
If you understand teh above, you will understand that when we are looking at 5,10,15,20 even 25 or 30 lb weight-loss teh scale may not tell you the full picture.
In fact it is common that you will fit into a smaller jeans size, look far more lean, storing, compact and ‘tight’ and be far stronger and have more energy and live / move/ heal / recover better when you weight more!
SO- you can lose fat and gain weight- GET IT!
This does not mean you should not care about your intake, or the scale- it just means you MUST understand what that scale is telling you… and what it isn’t!
But tracking progress (can you do push ups, do you have more energy, do you fit into your jeans again and then in addition (maybe) tracking weight in a healthy way is okay.
It can help you understand how effective your program is. This can also motivate you to continue to progress and go beyond your initial goals… HOWEVER the numbers going up as inches go down/ or you see muscle in your back and arms should make you happy. And remember, you’ll never look like ‘that girl’ NOR SHOULD YOU! Beauty and strength lies in our differences, not in our similarities.