Moment of Truth: The Weekly Weigh-In

Watching the numbers on the scale slowly drop 1 to 3 pounds per week really never made me too excited. In fact, in the beginning, it felt SO SLOW! I wanted results much faster. Now that I have taken an active interest in nutrition and exercise, I have been reading a lot about weight loss and I know that this is the best way to go about losing it. It is the most effective for long term weight loss success.

So to me, when I stepped on the scale for my weigh in this morning, I saw that the scale was down 1.5 pounds from last week. I was happy but it was no big deal. I expected those results, afterall, I had been eating clean and working out this week. But then, when recording my weight in my book and looking to compare my numbers to my very first weigh-in on January 19th, it suddenly hit me just how much I had lost. 30 pounds? 30 frickin pounds!!! Well, 30.5 to be exact.

So after a pat on my back and comparing the rest of my statistics which include body fat measuring (down 8.5% since Jan 19th), and inches (down 7 in the waist alone, back in my size 8 pants from a tight 12 which probably should have been a 14) I started to wonder just how much body fat I have lost because certainly I have gained muscle.

After googling images of body fat, I thought I'd share with you what 5 pounds of muscle looks like and what 5 pounds of fat looks like.

5 pounds of muscle compared to 5 pounds of fat:


5 pounds of fat. For 30 pounds, picture 6 more of these!


After seeing these photos, and a similar photo of what 1 pound of fat looks like, I think I am going to be a little happier when stepping on the scale to see another pound lost. I will still celebrate the milestones but I will also recognize the footsteps it takes to reach them and will embrace those small triumphs with just as much enthusiasm.

1 Pound of Body Fat: