Progress

There are many ways to measure progress when you’re involved in a health and fitness program.

The scale is often one of the worst.

Weight is a one-dimensional data point. It’s simply a measurement of your body’s gravitational pull.

How boring … and what an unfulfilling way for people to measure their progress.

Here are a few better ones:

Body Composition: Weighing 150 pounds at 20% body fat is clearly healthier than weighing 145 pounds at 30% body fat. It’s never just about how much you weigh … but rather, how healthy your weight is.

Strength: Increasing your relative strength is one of the single most beneficial things you can do for your health and longevity. Prioritize strength training.

Flexibility: Becoming more flexible and better able to execute foundational movements with improved range of motion and no pain is going to be incredibly helpful -- both in your workouts, and in your ability to age in a pain-free way. If you see an opportunity to improve your flexibility, jump on it.

Cardiovascular Health: "Cardio" has gotten a bad name in the fitness industry. It's often presented (i.e. sold) as the best way to "burn fat" by trainers and gyms that don't know their stuff. The best way to burn fat and develop a stronger, leaner, more functional body is to focus on resistance training (i.e. lifting weights), with proper doses of "cardio" sprinkled in throughout the week. Don't avoid cardiovascular training, as it has many health and performance benefits. Just don't overdo it.

Hopefully, this gives you a few things to think about when assessing your progress with health and fitness. The number on the scale is only one way … and far from the best way.