Fitness By Dylan: The truth about the weighing scales

Hi guys. Dylan here.

Hope everyone is having a good summer so far.

So today I’m going to let you guys know why it’s not good to judge your weight by the dreaded weighing scales.

Have you ever stepped on the scales after a week of working your ass off in the gym and eating right only to notice that you actually haven’t lost any weight, or even worse, your weight has gone up? This can be very disheartening and demotivating but fear not, as most of the time there’s more to the numbers on the scale than meets the eye. The weighing scales can not differentiate between muscle, fat and fluids, so relying on a scales is therefore unreliable in terms of tracking your progress.

Hydration levels has a huge impact in the number you see on the scales. Our hydration levels fluctuate at different times of the day. You could wake up at 140lbs and go to bed at 145lbs. Glycogen has a big influence as well. Think of it as your energy tank packed with accumulated carbs. When you eat carbohydrates, only a certain amount can be used, or circulated in the bloodstream at any one time. What can’t be used immediately needs to be stored. The carbohydrate is broken down and converted to a substance called glycogen, ready to be stored in the liver or the muscle cells to be used at a later date. About 8 percent of the weight of your liver is glycogen and about 1 percent of your muscle mass.

The time of the month for females will also effect your weight along with talking the contraceptive pill.

For those who are weight training, muscle is more dense then fat so therefore if you’re gaining muscle you’ll be gaining weight. This is not a bad thing however as when you’re lifting weights you’ll also be getting rid of all that unwanted fat.

Eating foods that your body is intolerant of will also cause more inflammation and swelling in the gut which will cause 10-15lbs of water weight gain.

SO to conclude, what is probably happening to most of you out there on a weight loss journey is that you are building muscle by lifting weights which in turn is weighing down the scales, however this does not tell you about the fat you have lost.

MUSCLE IS MORE COMPACT THAN FAT SO YOU CAN LOSE INCHES OFF YOUR WAIST AND LOOK LEANER BUT YOU WONT LOSE POUNDS ON THE SCALE.

The best way to track your progress in my opinion is by taking pictures and comparing them, or by trying to fit into a pair of jeans that were once too small. If you’re a member of a gym you can also get your body fat % measured. This is a more accurate measurement then any weighing scales. You will appear smaller but the muscle you’ve built will help raise your metabolism giving you more energy and leading to more fat loss.

Hope all this has helped you guys, and remember, don’t let those numbers on the scale affect you.

Any questions, just comment below!

Dylan