Over the last couple of weeks I’ve been sharing stories with Before and After photos showing the results people on my 12 week Fat Loss Fitness programme achieved at the end of last year (more coming soon!).
I know they’ve inspired a lot of people, which is great. But why do we find looking at the pictorial evidence of other people’s transformations so motivating?
I think the key word is “evidence”. We get to see the proof that fat loss and body reshaping really can be achieved. A lot of people have grown cynical, and who can blame them with all the lies about various miraculous weight loss products they’ve been exposed to?
But the fact is that fat loss really is possible and when people see the proof that real people, with real lives have achieved it, that helps them to believe that they could do it do too. This is a very important mindset to be in, anyone who struggles to truly believe they can shed fat is going to have a harder time making it happen. I spend a lot of time encouraging and reassuring my clients to make sure they really know they absolutely can and will achieve their goals.
I’m not particularly concerned with how much weight people lose each week (you can read my thoughts on weight loss vs fat loss here). I’m interested to know, but the main reason I get them to record their weight is to let them see that the plan is “working” – to help them believe that they can and are losing fat. I already know they will look and feel a lot better at the end of the programme and I tell them all about the reasons why, but the evidence that it’s working for them right now is always going to be the most powerful persuasion.
In an ideal world, I’d discourage people from weighing entirely. The scales can be distorted as I mentioned a few days ago, and typically people will experience losing a lot of weight in the first two or three weeks of any diet and/or exercise programme and then the weight loss will slow down and I don’t want anyone to get demotivated by that. (Don’t be fooled by TV weight loss shows, by the way, they deliberately select morbidly obese participants so those big drops will continue for longer, but that’s for another time…)
However, often this initial weight loss helps people finally make the connection between the shape of their body and the food and exercise choices they’ve been making. At last, they see there is no magic to it. They don’t need to wait around for a cure that will never come, or accept that they’ll always be weighed down by excess fat. They see that they can control the amount of fat stored in their bodies by doing the right kind of exercise and eating the right kinds of foods. It’s simple really. Again, not easy, but simple and very possible.
Ideally, instead of weighing, we’d just look in the mirror or notice how our clothes felt to gauge progress. But, unfortunately for the vast majority of us our perceptions of our bodies are too distorted for that. We find it difficult to notice when we gain fat and also when we shed it. But when you see the numbers get lower on the scale or measuring tape, there you have the evidence that proves fat loss is real and you can do it.
But when all is said and done, who really cares what they weigh? I know I don’t! It’s how we look and feel and how healthy we are that counts. As discussed in my last post, it’s very possible to be lean and gorgeous and weigh a lot more than someone who looks overweight and unhealthy. So don’t get hung up on those numbers.
It’s not a compulsory aspect of my programme, but I highly recommend people take progress photos every three of four weeks and compare them to Before shots. My programme is not a diet plan, what my clients are doing is sculpting a great body at the same time as gradually shedding fat, so that as they strip back that fat what is revealed is a firm, fit-looking physique that they can maintain in the long term.
I encourage people to set goals that are not about weight loss, and not even only about fat loss – but about embedding habits that will make them healthier and happier for life.
Full details on the programme will be available publicly when the book is published in January 2014. If you’re keen to experience it now, with individual support from me, I’ll be taking on a small group of fat loss fitness clients during January 2013 for online coaching similar to the pilot programme. Visit my website for details. The new programme starts on Monday 14th January and places are very limited.