What Does Weight Loss Actually Mean?

I know that when I go back to the gym in January there will be lots of new members wanting PT for weight loss. That is totally normal. Many people set new year’s resolutions and over Christmas can eat and drink a bit more. They want a fresh start to the year. A good PT won’t hear ‘weight loss’ though. They’ll hear the gym member say “I want to feel fitter, stronger and better about myself.”

What does weight loss actually mean? I assume nobody wants to lose muscle, bone, an arm or leg or any vital organ. All of which would produce a loss of weight to your body. So my bet is that they want to lose fat.

I didn’t become a PT to patronise people by replying ‘weigh yourself in the morning, don’t eat or drink, move more, visit the toilet regularly and there you go. Weigh yourself 24 hours after and you will have lost weight.’ Firstly, sudden drops or gains in weight is probably water weight. And secondly, following this advise is not sustainable. But thirdly, you’d be shocked at how many PT’s give this sort of advise. Pound Shop PT, as I call it.

Weighing yourself is one of the many different ways to keep a check on your progress. Measuring waist, arms, thighs are another way. Taking before pictures is a useful method. Calculating your body fat percentage is another and then the old trusty is trying clothes on that didn’t fit you before. Even when more and more people are asking you ‘have you lost weight?’ can give you an indication on your progress. None of them are 100% accurate though.

By all means have a target weight or measure body parts and wait for your friends to pass compliments. They will work to a point. But I’m talking about the real issues of why we need to elicit a change in the first place. People can get loser of the week at weight watchers and still feel like crap. I know, because after months of yo-yo dieting they quit and come to me to fix their approach to their fitness.

The end of a fitness journey should not be to lose weight. The end, if it exists at all, should be to move, walk, run better. It should be to breath easier and smile more. It should be to look at your reflection and say ‘I am proud of myself’. The lift that you just executed. The run you just did. Getting home after a gym session and saying to yourself ‘I smashed it today’. Walking instead of driving. Kicking a football around with your kids or grandkids. Setting new goals that aren’t gym related (you’re already smashing them remember). Walking into a room and being proud of who you are. These are all what we really mean when we say ‘I want to lose weight’.

Weight loss is just what happens when you start believing in the above mantra. Your body will begin to work with, rather than against you. And most importantly it is a sustainable method that will keep you where you want to be for life.