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Teen Body Building
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The Scales are Your Worst Enemy
I am currently on a mission to get lean. A common response is, "I know what you mean, I'm trying to lose weight as well. How often do you weigh yourself?" Polite, but clueless. Though getting lean will probably result in me weighing less, that isn't the objective. Therefore why would I weigh myself?
So, if you are "trying to lose weight" is that the "right" mind set, and should you be weighing yourself?
Let me give you two examples. First I know two women; one aged 50 the other aged 25. They are the exact same height and wear the exact same size. I know this because it’s a mother and daughter and they share clothes. All clothes, dress and casual. So everything from blue jeans to dresses. They both are fit and both look great. The 25 year old out weighs the 50 year old by 22 pounds. Exact same size bodies. How can this be? Guess which one is stronger and firmer?
The second example is me personally. If I had a phone conversation with an old high school buddy, someone that hasn’t seen me in over 30 years, if asked I would say “I am 45 pounds heavier today than when you last saw meâ€. What do you think my friend’s mental picture of me would be? We both know the answer to that question. But what if I had answered this way, “My waist size is 1 inch bigger than when I was in high school.†His response would be something like “wow, that’s great, you haven’t gained a pound, eh?†To which I would say, “No, I am 45 pounds heavierâ€. NOW what kind of mental picture does he have?
Does this put a person’s weight into a different perspective for you? It should. It is for all practical purposes a useless number. The entire premise of “losing weight†does not take into account the BIGGEST reason people USUALLY want to lose it, to look better (health reasons would be the other big reason). What you weigh has nothing to do with how you look, when taken as the “absolute†measure of “getting fit†as the above two examples illustrate. So, for starters having weight loss as the goal is not specific enough or even accurate.
I want to lose body fat.
A much better mind set.
So, what is the correct way to measure this? A cloth tape measure. Oh, you can spring for a fancy scale that also measures fat content, but it’s not as reliable as measuring your self. When you stop focusing on what you weigh and start focusing on your critical measurements, this is when your appearance starts to take literal shape. Let’s be honest, when people say they want to lose weight what they really mean is they want a smaller gut, lose the love handles, reduce the butt size and shrink the hips. Right? What do any of these things have to do with your weight?
Stop focusing on weight and start focusing on SIZE.
I want to lose body fat, AND NOT LOSE MUSCLE.
This is what your goal ought to be.
Correct me if I’m wrong but when people are trying to lose weight to look and feel better, the role model is not a “concentration camp survivorâ€. Usually weight loss statements are coupled with comments like, “firm upâ€, “get toned†and so on. What exactly do you plan to “firm†and “tone†if during weight loss, you lose muscle as well?
The notion of "losing weight", running and walking, doing cardio in general, and weighing yourself to monitor progress as a LONG TERM weight loss strategy is so flawed and inefficient that anyone that promotes it as THE WAY to get fit should be outlawed. Cardiovascular training is indispensable for heart heath, but weight loss? Only if how you look and how you feel are secondary goals to seeing a number on the scales get smaller.