You’ve been working so hard, sticking to your meal plans, getting plenty of exercise and 8 hours of sleep most nights. This is it, it’s weigh day! Time to celebrate! With anticipation you jump out of bed & head into your bathroom. You strip down for maximum effect and step on the scale. Allowing enough moments to pass for the number to settle on your new improved weight, you look down and….what!?!?! The number hasn’t changed at all! All your hard work and sacrifice was for nothing! That’s it, you’re done, it’s pancakes and sausage for breakfast. Screw this!
If any of that sounds familiar, congratulations! You’re normal! We’ve all heard that muscle weighs more than fat. Fat takes up more space in your body, making you appear larger. Everyone knows as you replace fat with lean muscle, you will get firmer, tighter and, thank you Jesus, smaller! You want to believe it, but on days like this, you just don’t.
Remember, the scale is just one tool for tracking your progress, that’s all, it’s not the ultimate benchmark of your success. It’s absolutely true that muscle weighs more than fat, that lean muscle allows you to fit into a smaller pair of jeans. It’s also true that you must take your measurements. Most people don’t take their measurements when beginning a weight loss program because they don’t want to see the numbers. I know it’s hard, it’s embarrassing and the numbers can be the highest of your life and that can bring up feelings of hopelessness. All of this is true, but it’s also true that measurements are the true barometer of your weight loss success. Just do it, take your measurements!
If you’re not certain how to measure yourself, download my free chart & instructions click here: Weight & Measurement Trackers
There are other non-scale victories to celebrate when you’re on a self improvement journey! Here are the most common benefits that my clients realize as they progress along their weight loss path:
You are more comfortable in your clothes, even the smaller ones!
Uncomfortably tight clothes are now a thing of the past for you. It’s great to no longer feel the need to unzip your jeans after a meal just to breathe. Your confidence is growing because now, when you get dressed, your clothes aren’t pulling at the seams or buttons. You look better and more put together!
You have more stamina.
Before you began your healthy lifestyle journey, even a short walk may have caused you to be short of breath. Now, you can walk, even hike, and not get winded! It feels amazing! Pat yourself on the back because now you take the stairs instead of the elevator. You get a kick out of parking at the far end of parking lots just to get some extra steps in on your Fitness Tracker!
You are thinking more clearly.
When your food is not nutritious and it’s full of empty calories, it may appeal to your taste buds, but it’s starving your body. It’s amazing how your ability to stay focused, alert and able to maneuver through your day without those crazy mood swings now! The changes in your diet & lifestyle has had a profound impact on your mental clarity and stability. You’re doing better at home and at work, your newfound energy & focus has increased productivity in all areas of your life.
The Energizer Bunny® has nothing on you.
Before you began revamping your life, how much energy did you really have? Were you tired even upon waking in the morning? How many times did you hit the snooze button on your alarm? Those days are a thing of the past now! You’re feeling better and creating new habits with ease, your body is responding and you feel energized all day long.
Naps are for babies.
Remember when you had the 3 p.m. crash almost everyday? Coffee and something sugary just to try and make it to 5 p.m. so you could go home and hit the couch. Not anymore! You wake up refreshed from a good night’s sleep. For the first time in years, you can go to bed at a reasonable hour and get a good 7-8 hours of quality sleep. When you carried that extra weight and your body was full of unhealthy additives from all the processed food you ate; you had a hard time getting comfortable. Your legs would sometimes cramp and you tossed and turned through the night. Better sleep is definitely something to celebrate! It improves your life in everyway.
So, you see, there are lots of things to celebrate as you go through the process of taking charge of your health, weight and physical fitness. Actually, you don’t even need a scale. Many people simply work toward fitting back into a pair of jeans that they used to feel great in, but haven’t fit in years. The feeling of stepping into those jeans and zipping them up (without having to lie on the bed) is more rewarding than any number on a scale!
Take a full length selfie in a mirror, you don’t even have to look at it, but just take the photo and save it in your phone. As a little time goes by and you begin seeing results, you will be grateful to have the before shot. Set smaller, achievable milestones for yourself and celebrate as you reach each one. When you have gotten, for instance, halfway to your ultimate goal, take another selfie and compare it with your ‘before’ photo. You see yourself everyday and may not even realize the amazing transformation that’s taking place.
Above all, don’t get discouraged. What you’re doing is a big deal and you should be proud of yourself every step of the way! Keep moving, find an accountability buddy or coach, celebrate every success! You can do this!
Bobbi
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