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MEASUREMENTS MATTER

When talking to someone about their fitness goal, it almost always goes to the talk of the scale. Often I'll try to steer the conversation to other indicators of progress and see if they have been considered. They look surprised and then very curious.


I like to look at multiple metrics when evaluating progress, this include:


1. Pictures: NOBODY likes to take these; especially the 'before' shots. However they are key to seeing how shape is changing. A key is consistency in lighting, positioning and clothing.


2. Circumference measurements: There are countless measurements that can be taken but what is important here is that they reflect the areas you want to focus on and that they are consistent. Usually measuring from a fixed point and taking a few averages helps this.


3. Body composition: Okay, there is a lot of options here and I don't put all my eggs into this basket. You want to go with a reliable method, two of my favorites are either skin calipers or bioimpedance scans (think InBody). Keep the factors as consistent as possible (time of day, before training, hydration, etc.)


4. Training logs: Yes, these are measurements. By gauging how well you are performing in the gym you can see that you're improving by getting stronger, increasing work capacity or endurance.


5. Scale: Even though it's not my favorite, it still is a metric that can be tracked. However, if it becomes too much of a focus, I'm not opposed to leaving this one out and relying on the above as they give us just as much (and more) feedback.


Bottom line, use the data and progress factors to get an overview of how you're doing. Don't just rely on one and the recurring theme is consistency in measurement. Then next time you're in a conversation about progress, you can pull up your graphs and show them.





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