For most of us women who have started weight training, our primary goal is to lose fat while also gaining muscle. This can actually happen simultaneously in a process known as body recomposition.
While this is happening, we want to be able to recognize our progress to appreciate how far we’ve come and give us the momentum to keep moving forward.
This is essential for us to recognize that our hard work isn’t going to waste and that we’re hitting all the key elements to make progress in.
However, while body recomping, it can get tricky to track and see our progress.
Typically, when trying to lose weight, most people look at the scale to see their progress.
But, for most of us women who lift weights, we aren’t just trying to lose general weight.
We want to be more intentionally about our body composition and lose fat (not weight) and put on muscle.
Because we want to lose fat while ALSO gaining muscle at the same time, we have to find other ways to see our progress (besides the scale).
Why we can’t rely on the scale alone
We can’t rely only on the scale to see our progress because in most cases we are trying to gain muscle (which increases our weight) and lose fat (which decreases our weight).
This means we’re not looking for any specific directional movement on the scale.
If we were to only look at the scale, we can’t exactly tell what we’re gaining, what we’re losing, or what’s happening inside at all.
For example, an increase in weight could mean we’re gaining muscle or that we’re gaining fat. Whereas gaining muscle is the goal, gaining fat is not.
Similarly, a decrease in weight could mean we’re losing fat, or it could mean we’re losing muscle.
Because of this, the scale gives us a very general idea of our progress. If you’re focusing on losing more fat than gaining muscle, then you want to look for a decrease in the scale.
Whereas if you want to gain more muscle than lose fat, then you want to look for a general increase in the scale.
Things get trickier when we fall somewhere in the middle or want to see the specifics of our progress.
Because of this, I find it better to look for alternative ways to see your progress.
Other ways to know you’re gaining muscle, not fat
Look at your body composition
The best way to track your body composition is to keep track of your measurements.
You can do this by using measuring tape to measure each part of your body.
Measure your legs, arms, stomach, etc., and keep track of your measurements.
Since we know that muscle is much denser than fat, we can say that if you’re measurements are getting smaller but the scale hasn’t changed much or has increased, it’s likely that you’re putting on muscle.
Which is great! This is where you want to be.
Taking progress pictures periodically is a great way to see your progress.
I recommend taking progress pictures about every month to give yourself enough time to see noticeable changes in your body.
You likely won’t even see changes from month to month, but after something like six months, you’ll have six pictures to compare.
You’ll surely see differences among these.
It’s not easy to see your progress if you’re just looking at yourself in the mirror everyday.
We get used to how we look and don’t see the long, slow changes. This can make us feel stuck and discouraged.
But by comparing ourselves directly to where we started, meaning the pictures we took of ourselves, we see the changes right in front of us.
Notice how well your clothes fit
Looking at the way your clothes fit can be a great indicator of your progress in the gym.
You’ll want to look where your clothes are fitting looser and where they’re fitting tighter.
For example, you want your clothes to be fitting loser on areas where you want to lose fat. But fitting tighter in areas where you want to gain muscle.
If you notice this happening, the chances are you’re body composition is changing.
For example, your clothes might start fitting loser around your stomach but fit tighter on your legs.
This is a great sign and something you should be proud of.
Why you should be proud of yourself
For almost everyone who lifts weights, this is the goal.
To change the shape of your body to a shape you desire more.
This is going to be one of the best parts of your weightlifting journey.
When you can actually see the work you’re putting in paying off, with the proof of how your clothes fit.
Take progress pictures
Taking progress pictures is one of the best ways to be able to tell your body is changing.
I recommend you take pictures periodically throughout your weightlifting journey and keep track of them.
Once you give yourself enough time to make some progress, compare your pictures side by side and look at the changes.
I’d say you should give yourself at least six months to see some real changes between pictures.
You might notice things like your body looking slimmer or your overall frame appearing smaller.
This is a great sign that your body is exchanging fat for muscle.
Another clear indicator you’re putting on muscle instead of fat is that your muscle appear larger or are more toned.
This is exactly the progress you want to see in the gym and it lets you know that what you’re doing is right.
You feel stronger
If you feel stronger and perform better in the gym, there’s no way for this to happen without gaining muscle.
Signs that you’re getting stronger and performing better are things like doing more reps than usual or having weight that felt heavy now feel light.
Another sign of increased performance is if you find yourself getting less fatigued after most exercises.
Or you might find yourself increasing the weight more often and throwing on extra pounds on every lift.
This means that you’ve gained more muscle and the weight is no longer feels heavy.
I recommend that you now increase the weight of your lifts if you want to progressively overload and make the most progress.
All of this indicates that you’re doing the right things to gain muscle and lose fat.
You’re likely eating right, hydrating, and staying consistent enough.
All of which allows your body to be able to put on and sustain new muscle in order for you to grow.
Be honest with yourself and your work
By this I mean, take the time to evaluate yourself and BE HONEST.
Ask yourself have you been working as hard as you should be? Have you been eating according to your goals? Have you been consistently going to the gym?
This part requires honesty or it’s not going to work.
More than likely, if you answered yes to all those questions then you are making progress.
You’re likely losing fat while gaining muscle and your body is changing.
Whereas if you’ve answered no to any of those questions, it’s more likely you’re not making as much progress, if any.
But, don’t loose hope just yet.
What you can do now
Especially as a beginner working out, you’ll likely have made at least some progress even if you haven’t been doing exactly what you know you should have been doing.
However, you have to keep in mind that progress in the gym requires a lot of time, work, and energy.
It’s extremely important that if you want to see progress you stay patient and stay consistent.
Spend months eating the right foods to gain muscle and creating and sticking to a workout split that works for you.
Results don’t come on their own. What you put into this is exactly what you’ll get out of it.
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