Fat loss is better than weight loss!
There – we said it!
At The Body Camp in Ibiza and our new Mallorca country retreat, we have thrown away the scales. But why?
The goal to successful fat loss is to preserve as much muscle as possible, or possibly even gain some, while at the same time lose as much body fat as possible. Your body fat % is a key indicator of your success, not the scales.
In this blog we will name 5 reasons why we don’t need to weigh ourselves unless we are really overweight.
1. Healthy people weigh more than an unhealthy person!
Why is this so? When a person exercises daily and builds up dense muscle mass, body fat reduces and thus the body becomes stronger and heavier – fact! Ask someone who exercises regularly how much they actually weigh…you will be surprised!
2. Body fat/measuring tape is a better indicator of health!
When a person eats healthily and exercises regularly body fat begins to decrease. Body fat or measuring tape is the method top athletes and healthy people use to monitor progress. It’s much more accurate and gives a better picture of how unhealthy a person is. Here are the general ranges for body fat:
5-15% body fat – Athlete.
15-25% body fat – Healthy.
25% + Unhealthy and need to focus more on nutrition and exercise.
3. Weighing scales are prehistoric!
For many years our parents used and told us to use bathroom scales to monitor health. This was a misguided and ill-informed system of measurement. In the 21st century, we are now much more advanced. We can measure body fat and have many other better ways to check health. You need progress measuring tools that are going to track fat loss – not weight loss. Body fat callipers, tape measures, pictures, clothes sizes, and people’s comments are all going to be more useful for you. Don’t worry about your weight – even if it goes up. If you are looking better and feeling healthier, your weight doesn’t matter.
4. Weighing scales vary and only tell you one thing – a number.
Imagine saying to someone “you are 50 years old and now life is limited”. It’s only a number (50)!!! Scales only tell you one thing – a number. This number is unhelpful because your body is made up of many amazing parts. In fact, using a tape measure is much more accurate! At least with body fat, you find out exactly how much fat should not be on the body. Scales weigh everything…including your head, legs and arms etc! Want to lose weight quick according to your scales? Simply go and chop a leg off! With body fat, you know that it’s all about the fat!
5. There is one exception!
When you are very overweight (28 pounds or 2 stone heavier than our ideal weight is a good guide) you may need to use the scales initially, for accountability and as a basic way of tracking progress and weight. It’s very unhealthy to be this overweight and have that much extra fat/pressure around the body or in the body around the internal organs (visceral fat). Therefore, scales can be a useful tool for very overweight people ONLY, until a healthier eating and exercise routine has been established.
We hope you now understand that life moves on. Let’s get with the programme and take control – throw away those scales today.
Rick Parcell
Master Strategic Intervention Coach
www.thebodycamp.com
