The
old saying goes that Rome wasn’t built in a day. This French proverb basically
means it takes a bit of time to complete important work. This is how you need
to view meeting your fitness training goals. Many people check their progress
every four to six weeks. This is a good amount of time to see if your goals are
going to be reachable. Use these five key measures to review your progress.
1. The Scale and Body Fat Percentage
Checking
your weight too frequently will actually work against you in the long run. We
all go through peaks and valleys. Rather than jumping on the scale every other
day, do weekly weigh-ins. Then once a month or so, get your body fat percentage
figured out. This should provide you a few statistics on whether you are
heading in the right direction for your training goals.
2. The Tape Measure
Take
your measurements every month and see if they are changing for the better. Even
if you are not losing the amount of weight you would like, you could still be
toning up and losing inches.
3. Look Inside Your Refrigerator and
Pantry
If
you are now stocking your fridge and shelves with healthier foods than you used
to, then you are on your way to meeting your training goals. Remember that
health and fitness is only 25 percent exercise and 75 percent diet. Once a
month, remove the fattening foods that you may have in there and replace it
with better alternatives.
4. Check Out Your Fitness Journal
Some
people seem to think fitness journals are a waste of time. However, by
recording all of your exercises in the gym, you will be able to quickly
determine when you are getting stronger and how much your endurance has
improved.
5. How Many Times Are You Training a
Week?
The sad news is that most people give up on their fitness goals within a month to three months. You will find that putting in the time is the hardest part of getting healthy. Keep a schedule and mark down the days you were able to train and how long each training session lasted. This will give you a good idea if you are staying true to your training.