Day 4 - Take Measurements and Progress Photos Weekly...

Another great tip I added to my armory in my weight loss journey is this...

I read about this tip in a magazine and then it was reinforced at one of my early Weight Watchers meetings. It was to measure myself at the beginning of the weight loss journey and continue to re-measure throughout the journey. 

I took my measurements each week and entered it into a progress journal and online at my WW profile site. It was something I looked forward to doing, because as the weight came down on the scales it was great to see the cm’s drop from around my body. 

Another awesome idea that I found in a magazine was to get some string and use it to measure each area - bust, waist, hips, butt, thighs, arms and cut and label each. It becomes a constant record of where you started and as you get further into your journey... It’s a fantastic reminder of how far you have come! It is the most amazing feeling to see the pieces of string get looser and looser from your measurement spots, all over your body. 

Taking photos is great for us visual people. Make sure you take photos of your front, side and back. It is a very good way to see immediately how fast you body will change. 

I took weekly photos in the same bikini - Yes bikini!! It was super hard to do when you are 25kgs overweight, but it became very addictive and I made sure that I would take the photos on a particular day every week. After four weeks I could already see a big difference and after 10 weeks I was starting to look like a completely different person. As hard as it was to look at my ‘first’ photos. They have become a great reminder of where I was and how I felt at that time. I know I don’t want to go back there. So they remind me that I have to do everything in my power to keep my body in good healthy working order. 

Why is it important to take measurements? It has been well documented that when we embark on a lifestyle change and we start losing fat and exercising (which helps to build muscle). We sometimes have the odd occasion where we will plateau. Spending time at a particular weight when you are doing everything possible to loose that weight, can be very frustrating. There are various things that might be causing the plateau. Some of which could be, not eating enough, perhaps underestimating calories consumed, not drinking enough water, or not increasing your exercise to a point where you are challenging your body. When this happens, measurements will often tell a completely different story. You will  notice that the cm’s are dropping even if your weight on the scales isn’t. The measuring tape will be your friend and ally during this time. 

Click this link to learn how to take measurements effectively

Make sure you record your measurements weekly (if you can), I promise you, you wont regret it.

Today,

I wish you...

lots of bravery and courage to take measurements and progress photos to help document your coming journey.