Why does body weight matter . . . (long)

I have been hitting the gym fairly hard the last couple of weeks.  I have been going approximately 5 days a week for 1 1/2 hours each day.  As a result the scale has not been kind, but I've been taking it in stride realizing that I was more than likely dropping inches.  Stressing somewhat, but not overly.  Mostly stressing because I wanted to be in the hundreds by the fourth of July for my 12th year wedding anniversary.  I didn't reach the goal this week, but I know it will this weekend or next.  It'll happen, it is just a matter of time.   I was taking a water break at the gym and was reading a trainer's bulletin board.  She had posted an essay written by her friend Erick.  Apparently, he was on a rant and decided to put pen to paper and give his opinion on body weight.  I loved it!  I asked for a copy and retyped it for my OH friends.  It puts everything into perspective.  I hope you find it as inspirational as I did. 

Why does body weight matter so much to “you"?

 

What does body weight tell you?  It tells you what you WEIGH!!  Who knows what you weigh?  YOU.  Who cares what you weigh?  No one else.  What are your goals when it comes to training and nutrition?  In most cases, at some point, it will be fat loss. . . or is it just weight loss?  Do you care where your weight loss comes from?  Or is the only thing that matter is seeing a lower number on the scale.  What if you looked the same?  Just a smaller version of your current self.  Would that matter?  Ok, so I’ll assume and answer for you – you care about FAT loss, not weight loss.  I mean, if you didn’t care where it came from, then you’re fine with your weight loss coming from a combination of fat AND muscle, right?  It’s all good as long as that stupid scale comes down right?  Come on!  What does the scale tell you?  I’m waiting . . . Yes, the answer is that easy.  It tells you what you WEIGH!!!  It doesn’t tell you anything about what the composition of that weight is.  It says nothing about body fat, muscle mass, fat, or anything else.  It tells you what you weigh.  Why is it such an important number to you?  Other people don’t know what you weigh; they see what you look like.  What are people’s perceptions of what you look like based on?  The composition of your body weight---muscle, fat, body fat, etc. and NOT the number on the scale.  People know if you’re in shape or out of shape, if you look good or don’t look good based on well, what you look like . . . obviously.  Not based on the t-shirt you have to wear every day that gives a daily update of your body weight.  Let’s say you dropped 5 lbs of fat.  That’s good.  Let’s say, you happened to gain 5 lbs of muscle.  That’s really good.  Uh oh, problem.  It would appear to me that if the above were true, you’d register no change on the scale.  You weigh the same so you think you’re a failure.  You’re not!! That might not register as weight loss on the scale, but that represents a 10 lb change in the look of your body.  Is that not why you’re training?  To LOOK better?  Your waist is smaller, your hips are smaller, your legs are smaller, your clothes fit better, friends and family are commenting on your “weight loss" and asking you what you’re doing . . . and yet? Your weight hasn’t changed much.  Failure?  NO!  You believe that because of the stupid number your scale spits out . . . that you’ve made no progress. Come on!  Is this resonating yet?  Of course you’ve made progress!  Plenty of it.  If your measurements have come down, you’re smaller.  If you’re smaller, you’re losing fat.  Fat is weight.  If you’re losing fat you’re losing weight (that is associated with the lost fat).  If the scale says you’re not losing weight in light of the above, well something’s happening.  Something is being added to your body to counterbalance the loss of fat weight.  Guess what?  This isn’t a bad thing.  Chances are you’re in the SWEET SPOT of simultaneous fat loss . . . and muscle gain, which is not easy to do, so if you’re there, be happy and enjoy it!  So the addition of muscle (weight) is counterbalancing the loss of fat (weight).  Is this not a great thing?  What improves how your body looks?  Fat loss and muscle gains.  NOT just weight loss for the sake of seeing a smaller number on the scale.  Now, get over the sale already, and start paying attention to the signs that your body is improving—measurements, skin fold readings, how your clothes fit, comments from others, etc.  Got it?  Good. 

Amen to this

Thanks for sharing!

What a great essay!  So glad you took the time to re-type it...I'll have to bookmark this one! :)

This is why I'm so glad I have a scale that tells me my body fat percentage!

What type of scale do you have?

It's a Tanita brand scale.. does body weight and body fat percentage.

Thanks for sharing, he totally has it right (even though I still love to see that scale number go down).

The other day I asked my boyfriend to guess how much I weighed. I thought he was going to say something between 220 and 230. He knows my start weight and I have shared with him milestones for me such as...getting below 250 or losing 75 lbs...etc. etc. And he can see myfitnesspal diary and ticker...so I figured he would know about where I was. The whole reason I asked him was because I was excited that I got below 210 and could actually start to believe that I might make it to "onederland."

Anyway...he shrugs and says, "I don't know...190, 195?" (Even more background info is that he is 1" taller than me and slim and he weighs 180).

I was mad! I was like, "Don't you think I would have told someone if I was below 200 lbs for the first time in my adult life?! Don't you think that is something I would have shared with you?!!!"

Then I stopped and thought...did I just get mad at him for saying I look like I weigh 195?? That is ridiculous! LOL

Anyway, long story short...yes, I would rather have fat loss and muscle gain and look better and fit into my clothes better!

Thanks again for sharing,
Lindsey

I love it! 
Both the essay and the boyfriends guess. And from men no less. 
Being a woman we think the men are the ones that notice. Apparently not so much!