Being fit and healthy has nothing to do with a number on the scales. It pains me a little bit every time I see people saying they're weighing themselves because personally, I don't think we need to do that anymore. Even just taking photographs of your body can show your progress and make you feel more confident about the changes than stepping on the scales. A number on the scales does not define you, your health or level of fitness. When I did last step on the scales, they told me I was heavier, when in fact, what they meant to tell me is that I'm fitter and have built more lean muscle but a scale is incapable of telling you that and instead, can leave you feeling really unhappy.
As most of you know, I've been using the TomTom Touch recently to monitor things a little bit more closely. This means I can track my progress but most importantly, my body composition. It's a much better indicator than just stepping on the scales. Body composition doesn't look at a single number (e.g, you weigh 100kg) but instead lets you see how your muscle mass and body fat percentages change over time, and will help you understand what works best for you with your diet and exercise plan. For me, mainly, it helps me track my progress towards my goal, I want to have a high muscle percentage and athletic body fat percentage. We all have different goals, for example, I like to maintain my weight but tone up, some people may want to lose weight and some may just want to get fitter.
If you've read any of my blog posts about what I do at the gym, you'll know that I work out hard and often, as well as balancing my food well. I believe in the 80/20 principle, that is, eating very well 80% of the week and allowing myself to have 'naughty' things in the other 20%.
Recently, when I compared my body composition to a few months before, I was shocked that I'd 'gained weight' as the number on the scales had gone up ever so slightly. However, when I checked everything with the TomTom Touch, my body fat percentage had gone down and my muscle mass percentage got higher, which is exactly why I think understanding body composition is so important. It means we won’t feel deflated when we look at the number on the scales (not that you should ever feel that way anyway) but for example, if I was trying to lose weight and was monitoring my progress by stepping on the scales, I'd feel like I'd gained weight but actually, it's because muscle weighs more than fat. This is why taking progress photos of your body and measuring body composition is a better way of understanding your body than stepping on the scales because obviously they can't tell you which part of your body is fat, muscle and water.
I think monitoring body composition is a great way to keep you on track and also, it's so easy to do. Personally, it's not something I'd become obsessed with but it really is a brilliant way to set goals. You can check out the TomTom Touch and find out more about it here. So this Winter, let's not use the scales as a way to monitor ourselves, but instead, let's understand that weight gain definitely isn't a bad thing, yes I weigh more, but say hello to more lean muscle!
How do you feel about this topic? Do you weigh yourself? Do you want more fitness posts from me?
Posts you may have missed:
- How to stay fit and healthy on the go
Lots of love, Em x
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