By: Trevor Fullbright
If you’re reading this, I’ll make an educated guess—you’re interested in improving your physique. Whether you’re trying to lose fat for better health, get crazy shredded, or pack on muscle, tracking your progress is crucial. It helps you determine when adjustments are needed and what changes to make. Without tracking, you’re essentially flying blind.
There are several ways to track progress, each with its pros and cons. Some methods provide quantifiable data, while others rely on visual assessment. To get the most accurate picture, it’s best to use a combination of tracking methods rather than relying on just one.
Scale weight: The simplest but not always the best method
Using a scale is the most straightforward way to track your progress. If you're cutting, you should see a steady rate of weight loss each week. If you're bulking, your weight should gradually increase. No one wants to spend six weeks only to realize they’ve been spinning their wheels, making no real progress.
Best Practices for Weighing Yourself
- Weigh yourself under the same conditions each time—ideally first thing in the morning, wearing little to no clothing, and after using the bathroom.
- Aim for 4–7 weigh-ins per week, then calculate the weekly average.
- Log your weight trends over time instead of obsessing over daily fluctuations.
What Not to Do
- Don’t stress over daily fluctuations—many factors impact weight, including hydration, sodium intake, stress, sleep, digestion, and even workout intensity.
- Avoid letting one “bad” weigh-in ruin your mindset. That weekly average is what truly matters.
The Pitfalls of Relying Only on Scale Weight
While the scale is useful, it has major downsides—primarily water retention.
- Women often experience wild fluctuations due to their menstrual cycle.
- Stress (from work, relationships, or even dieting itself) can cause water retention, masking fat loss.
- It’s common for people to plateau on the scale for a couple of weeks, even when they’re losing fat. This often leads to premature adjustments.
A classic example: Someone drops their calories, yet their weight doesn’t budge. Why? They might be losing fat but simultaneously retaining water. Type-A personalities struggle with this—when things don’t go as planned, stress levels spike, and weight loss stalls. But give it time, manage stress, and you might experience the "whoosh effect," where you suddenly drop several pounds overnight.
Ever had a night where you went off-plan, had a big meal, relaxed, and slept like a baby—only to wake up lighter? That’s the whoosh effect in action.
Since scale weight isn’t always reliable, what other methods can help?
Progress pictures: A visual record of your changes
Progress photos are one of the best ways to track changes that might not show up on the scale.
Best practices for taking progress photos
- Same lighting, same conditions, same place each time.
- Ideally, take photos first thing in the morning, before eating or training.
- Use neutral lighting, not the flattering “half-natty” gym lighting.
- Take front, side, and back photos for a complete view.
Why progress photos matter
If your weight stays the same, but your physique looks noticeably different, you’re making progress. Many people lose fat while simultaneously gaining muscle, which keeps scale weight steady but improves overall body composition.
Circumference measurements: A reliable method for fat loss and muscle gain
Measuring body circumferences is another reliable tracking method, especially if your goal is muscle gain or fat loss.
For fat loss
- Measure your waist, hips, and thighs once or twice per month.
- If measurements shrink, you’re losing fat—even if the scale isn’t moving.
For muscle gain
- Track arms, chest, thighs, and waist.
- If your waist stays steady while other measurements increase, you’re likely gaining muscle with minimal fat.
Don’t overdo it—taking measurements too often won’t provide useful data. Once a week at most, but typically once or twice a month is plenty.
Body Fat Testing: Is It Worth It?
Body fat percentage sounds like a great way to track progress, but there are major flaws in most testing methods. Plus, exact body fat numbers don’t really matter. No one on a bodybuilding stage gets judged based on a test result—what truly matters is how you look and feel.
Bioelectrical Impedance (BIA) Scales
BIA devices (like handheld scanners or smart scales) are the most convenient but also the least reliable. They estimate body fat by sending an electrical current through your body, but factors like hydration, gut content, and food intake can make readings wildly inaccurate.
DEXA Scans
DEXA scans are considered the “gold standard”, but even they have a margin of error of up to 5%. They’re also expensive and less accessible.
The problem with using DEXA for tracking
Many people get a DEXA scan right before and after a diet, only to panic when the results say they lost muscle—even if they’ve been hitting PRs.
Why does this happen? Glycogen depletion.
- Glycogen stored in muscle appears as lean mass on a DEXA scan.
- When you diet, glycogen stores shrink, making it look like you lost muscle—even if you haven’t.
How to use DEXA correctly
- Compare apples to apples—post-diet scans to other post-diet scans, bulking scans to other bulking scans.
- If you test right after dieting, expect temporary losses in lean mass due to glycogen depletion.
Closing thoughts: The best approach to tracking your progress
Tracking your progress is essential for making informed adjustments, but no single method is perfect. Instead, use a combination of:
Scale weight for overall trends.
Progress photos for visual confirmation.
Circumference measurements for muscle and fat changes.
Key takeaways
- Don’t let short-term fluctuations discourage you—trends over time are what matter.
- Stress, hydration, and sodium intake can cause weight fluctuations—be patient.
- Focus on consistency and adjust based on long-term patterns.
- Progress isn’t just about weight loss—body composition changes matter more.
Your body doesn’t change overnight, but with smart tracking and consistency, you’ll be able to make the necessary tweaks to keep progressing toward your goals.
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