| Set an Ideal "Weight Range" |
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| Monday, 24 August 2009 15:19 | |||
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Probably the most common reason why people exercise or start an exercise program is to lose weight or maintain their body weight. Often people will set a goal to reach a desired exact body weight or lose an exact number of pounds. When the goal is health, fitness, or aesthetics, I feel stepping on the scale should be, at the most, secondary to other more relevant factors: fitting comfortably into a smaller clothes size; tightening your belt another notch; decreases in circumference around troubling areas; improvements in body composition results; strength increases during your workouts; improved cardiovascular function and capacity – decreased run times for a predetermined distance and the ability to exercise for a longer duration; visuals – before and now pictures, and the mirror's reflection. The BMI is proof that your weight alone is no guarantee that you have the body composition and health you're working hard to obtain. It is not uncommon for your body weight to fluctuate by as much as four pounds from day to day. What, when, and how much you ate, recent evacuation or lack of, and water intake or loss (sweating) are a few common reasons that can account for these variances. Medications and hormones can affect water retention that will show up on the scale. If you do feel it is important to base your progress by weighing yourself regularly here are a few tips. Select a weight range as a goal rather than an exact figure. If you need to stay at or below a specific weight for some type of athletic competition or for your work, set your target at least 2 pounds below the requirement. If you are looking to reach a new body weight based on personal reasons – health , aesthetics, self confidence/esteem, pick a range that has a plus/mijus 3 or 4 pound tolerance. When you do step on the scale try to control the variables mentioned earlier for more consistency. Weigh yourself at the same time of day. If you relieve yourself before getting on the scale make sure that is the case each time. Proper hydration is an important factor for good health, so it would be better for you to drink a measured amount of water before each weigh in and not weigh yourself after losing a great deal of sweat. Reduced body weight should be achieved through fat loss, not water loss. You may also consider reducing the frequency of weigh ins. Depending on your size and situation, a weight loss of 1 – 2 pounds a week is a good goal and helps ensure it is fat you are losing, not muscle. A once a week weigh in should be enough to let you know if your workouts and eating habits are on the right track.
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