How many of you out there have began a weight loss and exercise program and hadn’t gained any muscle definition or lost any weight after a month or so? How many of you then gave up thinking if it’s not happened by now, it’s never going to? So then you just quit and you’re back to square 1 again! I’m guessing the vast majority of you who have found themselves in this position right? What you don’t realize is that we are all different and weight loss and muscle gain comes to us all in our own time. There is no set time frame for when you should lose the first 5 pounds or when you should first notice some definition in your abs. By applying some discipline and patience to your program, we will all get to where we want to be.
However, most of us are not trained to think like that automatically, we must adopt a new way of thinking to our program in order to not be disheartened. By applying a more positive train of thought to your weight loss and exercise program, you’re giving yourself a fighting chance to see it through to the end and not lose faith half way through:
You should find yourself getting excited about your goal, you’re eating healthy and exercising daily so you know you will get there in the end. This will make you feel better inside, even when the bathroom scales are showing no signs of change.
Before long, and REMEMBER this amount of time is different for us all, your clothes will be feeling ‘slightly’ baggy but not quite enough to draw anyone’s attention to. However, you now notice the difference and you now know your getting somewhere.
You’re still doing everything right, by eating a healthy balanced diet, getting plenty of sleep and really pushing your body while exercising. Everything is still going to plan.
After a short while, your clothes are feeling even baggier, this time people are beginning to notice. It’s at this point where you start to get the ”WOW you look fantastic” comments. Never let it be said that compliments about our physical appearance are a bad thing because they are not and no matter who you are, they make us feel really great about ourselves.
After getting so much good feedback from the people you know, you decide to give the scales another shot and to your horror, you realize you’ve just gained 2 pounds since you last stepped on. ”GAINED 2 POUNDS?” How is this even possible you ask yourself? Then you make a quick fire decision to quit without even thinking about it.
However, what you don’t realize is that the scales only show you an overall weight of your body as a whole. The scales don’t tell you how much of your body weight is fat and how much of it is muscle. The simple fact is, you have just quit a weight loss and exercise plan that was working for you and simply due to the fact that the bathroom scales did not read as you wanted them to, you threw in the towel and dismiss the fact that your clothes don’t fit you anymore or that other people commented on how great you are looking.
You may also have gained muscle tissue that burns calories and would further assist you in your weight loss goal, but due to the unreliable bathroom scales, you have quit! What we all must remember is that our bodies are made up of bone, water, muscle, fat and skin, and when exercising the main aim is to increase our muscle tissue and reduce the excess unwanted fat. One pound of fat uses up a lot more space in our bodies than one pound of fat, therefore no matter what the number is on the scales, if you have been eating healthy and exercising well, you will be gaining muscle and losing fat.
Your body needs time to show you the results you want to see, and don’t be put off by what the scales tell you. Instead focus on the real evidence that you’re getting in better shape. Listen to others when they comment on how great you look and take note when those jeans you couldn’t get in to previously are now a little baggy on you. This is a sign to show you that you are losing inches off your body which goes a lot further than what any old set of bathroom scales will tell you.
Enjoy and good luck guys!