Tracking your progress on your fitness goals can be a bit of a challenge. For many years the recommended way has been to simply step on a scale every day. There are many other great ways to track your fitness progress that you may be missing out on.
Why your weight isn't your best option for tracking changes
The standard for tracking fitness for many people is to step on the scale and check their weight. This is not the best way to do it because your weight can really fluctuate and have nothing to do with fat changes in your body. Water and muscle mass can change drastically and raise your weight even when you are dropping fat. Instead, try other ways of tracking your fitness that can make it easier to see improvements.
The best ways to track fitness
The best ways to track fitness are things that can show you improvement but will do more than just give you a number with no hints on the truth behind it.
Taking photos every couple of weeks is a great way to judge your fitness progress. Photos allow you to see where you were and where you are now. The best way to do this is to wear the same form-fitting clothing for each photo. This will allow you to see how the clothing fits as time goes on.
Tracking your body measurements is a great way to track both fat loss in areas like your midsection and muscle growth in areas like your arms. By using a body tape measure you are able to track changes in your body including different parts of your body to help make it clear change is happening even when it doesn't look or feel like it.
Setting and tracking fitness goals is a great way to track your fitness as it changes. Set a simple goal like running a mile to help track how well you are doing. From a slow walk to a steady jog your times will get faster and the mile will get easier as time goes on allowing you to see your cardiovascular health.
If your fitness goals are to get stronger and gain muscle try using a strength goal to track like seeing how long you can hold a simple plank for and tracking as that grows.
While the number on the scale can be a tricky lie, you can use a body composition scale to get a better idea of your weight and what is really fluctuating. Home versions are not the best for giving you details but can be a great tool to help you track as you go. Then when you are ready you can go ahead and go to a gym that offers a better body composition tool every few months to get a better reading.
Fitness trackers are gaining in popularity because they make a great way to track your daily physical activity which can be a great way to push you to do more but they also can track health and fitness markers like resting heart rate. As your cardiovascular system gets stronger your resting heart rate will drop.
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