What the Scale Misses!

Why are women obsessed with the number on the scale??  I don't even own a scale!  All the scale really does is make you obsess more about your body.  The scale misses so much! 

First, I'm sure you know that muscle weighs more than fat. Think of muscle as bricks and fat as cotton balls.  It takes alot more cotton balls to make a pound then it does brick!

Second, the more muscle you have the more calories you burn!  Muscle increases your metabolism so that you are burning calories at a much faster rate....so you better be lifting! 
I always tell my clients to measure by their clothes. Everyone has that one favorite pair of jeans "the skinny jeans" or a dress that they love that they wore at their "best" weight.  You should use those things to measure your progress. I have a little black dress that never lies to me! If its snug then I have some work to do, but if it fits then nothing else matters...I feel great!

I also do measurements on my clients and body fat %. With body fat % you can calculate exactly how much fat and how much muscle you have.  And....I can guess how you lost weight by looking at those numbers. If someone lost 10lbs just by dieting it will show...they will have lost muscle. If they lost weight on a fitness routine including strength training they will have lost the weight in body fat! A healthy body fat for women is anywere between 20-30% depenting on your age and height.  But please, please, do not follow those charts that tell you how much you should weigh based on your height!  Those charts have no idea how much muscle you have and often times tell athletic women that they are considered obese!! Crazy!
On the other hand, just becasue someone is skinny does not mean that they are in good shape.  I have taken lots and lots of body fat percentages in my career and it amazes me how a skinny person can have such a high body fat %!!  A naturally thin woman may not have any muscle!  And of course definition is always more attractive too!  Who wants to diet and be flabby in their bikini? Have you been at the beach or pool and see someone thin take off their clothes only to see cottage cheese and a jiggly tummy?   If you are weight training and burning  more calories, you can eat more of the things you love and have such a better shape and definition!  Do you still care about the scale? 

What about your health?  Isn't that one of the main reasons we exercise?  Don't answer that! I know women mostly exercise for looks, but we should say yes!  Heart Disease is the #1 killer of women, so improving our cardiovascular fitness and decreasing our risk for other diseases and issues that effect women is huge!  The scale doesn't tell you how healthy you are.  If you meet with a personal trainer for a fitness assessment you can learn all the other numbers that really matter when we talk about health and fitness.

If you want to do some math here are some numbers for you:
1 pound= 3500 calories
1 pound of muscle burns an extra 35-50 calories a day
your weight x 10=  a guess of what your metabolic rate is (not completely accurate). This is how many calories you burn per day without doing anything. This is just your body working to be alive.
You should never go below this # or your body will think you are starving and go into starvation mode.  Exercising, especially weight training significantly increases this #, so you will need the additional fuel.

Estimates of how many calories you need per day:
your weight x activity level...
12= somewhat active
14= moderately active
16= very active
(these are not competely accurate numbers. This is just a guideline to see about where you should be)
If you would like more concrete numbers, see your doctor, or a fitness professional.
I say, check the scale every few weeks or so.  Its good to know where you are, but don't obsess! There is alot more that the scale doesn't tell you!