As a PT I’m always tracking the progress of my clients and often have a battle with them over the number on the scales.
 
Reason is, so many people use the scales as their only way of monitoring progress in the gym and get fixated on the number they see. Yes this is a good way to track what you’re doing BUT, BUT can also be very misleading and sometimes irrelevant for a number of reasons.
 
-If you’re looking to tone up you are essentially adding muscle to your body, therefore this will show on the sales as added weight.
-If you monitor your weight regularly you will notice how much it fluctuates, especially as a female due to water / hormonal differences.
-Scales only measure body mass, they cannot measure health, strength, fitness, happiness or body shape.
 
Here some alternatives that should be used alone or in conjunction with weight,
-Body Fat Percentage
-Fat Callipers
-Tape Measure
-Photographs
-Progress through training I.e. weights used.
-How well your clothes fit
-Simply how you feel
 
I personally think you should go off how you feel, so many times I’ve had clients come in saying they feel great and managed to fit in a smaller pair of jeans then we step on the scales to find out they’ve gained weight. This then demotivates and upsets them, even though they came in feeling so positive?
Yes the scales are a good way to track your weight loss and body fat is a brilliant way to see how lean you are becoming however you also need to look at the bigger picture. Don’t beat yourself up over a couple of pounds.
 
Pete Sweeney
Head Personal Trainer
Atom Health & Fitness