How To Track Weight Loss Without A Scale
What if I told you that when efforting to lose weight, it’s not necessary to ever step on a scale? Upon hearing that, would you want to bet me a million dollars that it’s not true?
Well, you not needing to use a scale when you’re losing weight is exactly what I’m telling you and you now owe me a million smackeroos because that factoid is true!
There are a number of ways to track progress apart from stepping on a scale, the method that people automatically resort to as if it’s part of the default programming humans are hardwired with in this Sims video game we call “reality”. What follows below are some of these ways of tracking weight loss without a scale.
Tape Measure
Assess change with a tape measure to take the circumference of individual body parts then use something like the U.S. Navy body fat formula in the footnote to deduce a body fat percentage from the site measurements.1WOMEN
Measure your height, neck, waist, and hips. Measure at the largest width of the hips and at the narrowest width of the waist, which is usually halfway between the sternum and navel. All measurements are in inches.
Formula:
[163.205 × Log10(Waist + Hips − Neck)] − [97.684 × Log10(Height)] − 78.387 = Body Fat%
MEN
Measure your height, neck, and waist. The waist should be measured around the navel. All measurements are in inches.
Formula:
[86.01 × Log10(Waist − Neck)] − [70.041 × Log10(Height)] + 36.76 = Body Fat%
Frequency:
Measure yourself monthly.
Clothes
Just like how your clothes getting tighter told you that you were gaining weight, those same clothes can tell you if you’re losing it. For instance, are your old jeans fitting looser each time you try them on?2Then you’re losing weight. Or are they fitting looser in the waist and tighter in the thighs?3If so, then you’re losing fat and building muscle. Oh, they’re NOT fitting looser? Well, are you still writhing around on the floor and wriggling into your jeans to “fit” into them? Will you still have to wear a top that covers the unbuttoned waist that looks like it was let loose after a Thanksgiving blowout? Still have to MacGyver it?4You know, loop an elastic band over the button, through the buttonhole, and then back over the button? Or can you still not fit into them at all? Like, no matter how much you contort your body to squeeze into them, you can’t even pull off the encased sausage look? How you answer questions like those regarding the fit and feel of your old clothes will determine your course of action.5If you’re a much larger size than your goal size and can’t even put the article of clothing on without it tearing apart like Bruce Banner’s duds when he turns into the Incredible Hulk, then you may have to use other methods to measure your progress before attempting this one.
Frequency:
Weekly.
Progress Photos
Wear shorts and snap a few topless pics of yourself.6Ladies, wear something that exposes your midsection and upper back. The photos should be from the front, back, and left and right side and should be taken at the same time of day, in the same room, under the same lighting conditions, in the same clothes, and standing in the same spot.7Think of it as “selfie time” — except you’re not sexting the images to your side-piece or posting them on social media in a desperate attempt to satisfy your need for constant attention from people who don’t know you and could give two fucks about ya. Now, doesn’t that make your snapshots seem a hell of a lot funner?! When enough photos have been taken, what you can then do is compare and contrast past photos to current ones and visually tell if your body is going in the right direction or not and then make adjustments, if necessary.
Frequency:
Every other week.
Skinfold Calipers
Use calipers to measure subcutaneous body fat. All you have to do is pinch different areas of your body, with the most common approach consisting of measurements from three sites.8Women: Measure the triceps, thigh, and area above the hip bone.
Men: Measure the chest, abdomen, and thigh. A more time-consuming method is a seven-site test, which may yield results that are slightly more accurate if you carry fat in places that aren’t measured in a three-site test.9Measure the chest, abdomen, thigh, triceps, armpit, area above the hip bone, and beneath the shoulder blade. As for accuracy, that largely comes down to that of the person doing the measuring, whether that be you or someone else. For the most part, skinfold tests have around a ± 3 percent margin of error. After at least two measurements are taken from each site, take their averages and convert the numbers into a body fat percentage with an online skinfold calculator or use the formula provided by the manufacturer because who the fuck doesn’t want to do math?!?!
Frequency:
Monthly.
Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA)
Many bathroom scales can estimate body fat percentage through technology involving bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). How BIA works is like this: when you step on the scale, an electrical current is passed through your leg and up your body. The more resistance the current encounters as it returns down the other leg, the more body fat the scale determines you have because fat is a terrible conductor compared to muscle and water. In other words, the more body fat you have, the harder it is for electricity to pass through your body.10So gaining weight as a kid to combat your childhood fear of being zapped to death by Electro wasn’t such a crazy idea after all! This is probably the easiest way to ascertain body fat levels but it’s the least accurate of all methods that assign body fat a value because several variables that have nothing to do with body fat can skew the results, such as your hydration level.11For example, a 2016 study by Consumer Reports compared the measurements from a Bod Pod against six body fat scales and found that the most accurate readings were off by 21 percent and the least accurate were off by 34 percent. For more, see Byrne, Sue. “Body-Fat Scale Review: Consumer Reports Weighs In on the High-Tech Claims.” Consumer Reports, Mar. 2016.
Frequency:
Never.12Scale-based body fat readings aren’t the most accurate things in the world. However, while you shouldn’t rely on BIA for an exact body fat percentage that you can gloat to everyone about without rightfully being called a liar, you can use it for spotting trends. For example, if the body fat percentage is decreasing with each check-in, then what you’re doing is working.
DEXA Scan
A DEXA, or dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, scan involves the use of two X-ray beams with different energy levels scanning the body and is primarily used for measuring bone density to assess the risk for osteoporosis and fractures. It can also be used, though, to estimate body fat percentage. The margin of error is pretty low but the drawback is the limited availability, which drives up its price. Oh, and there’s also the radiation factor. But hey, if you have the money and don’t care about growing a second and third head…
Frequency:
Monthly.
Air Displacement Plethysmography
Air displacement plethysmography involves sitting minimally clothed for a number of minutes in an egg-shaped chamber called a Bod Pod. As you sit, air pressure sensors within the chamber measure the volume of air displaced by your body to determine your volume. That number is then used with your weight to figure out your density, which is then used in an equation to calculate your body fat percentage. This test has a low range of error but it’s pricey and only available in professional settings, like medical and research facilities. Also, it may not be for you if you’re claustrophobic. However, if you’ve always wanted to know what it’s like to be an avian embryo, then you can finally realize your dreams!
Frequency:
Monthly.
Hydrostatic Weighing
You know the dunk tank at the carnival, right? Yeah, the one where someone sits in a seat above a tank of water and people are asked to throw a ball at a target and if the ball hits it, the seat collapses and the person gets dunked into the water. Yes, exactly, that dunk tank! Well, minus the fun element, hydrostatic weighing works sort of in the same fashion. After being weighed, you sit barely clothed in a chair and are submerged into a pool of water. The amount of water that’s displaced by your body equals its volume. Then using equations, the density of your body is determined, with that then used to estimate your body fat percentage. The test has the highest accuracy of all methods but it’s expensive and isn’t widely available.
Frequency:
Monthly.
How to track weight loss without a scale?
Well, you’ve just been provided a few options for you to consider.
There are many more, though, like MRIs, CT scans, bioimpedance spectroscopy (BIS), electrical impedance myography (EIM), 3-D body scanners, and multi-compartment models. Regardless the method of choice, most of them should be used monthly to monitor change, something that takes longer to become observable with the given techniques. But if you do fall back on using the old standby, the scale, then it’s best to weigh yourself every day for the much more immediate feedback and quicker ability to notice a trend and respond to it, a luxury not afforded by less frequent weigh ins and, for example, circumference measurements.
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