Why Weight Is Not an Accurate Measure of Fitness

A plumper person does not mean he/she is less fit. Likewise, a thin person does not mean he/she is fitter.

How many of us put weight as our common goal in our fitness journey? How many of us weigh ourselves on the scale, after we have implemented a different fitness routine or a diet program, hoping to see the numbers shown would be smaller by each day?

The majority of us put a lot of our attention focusing on the wrong thing: weight. While weight may be a relatively good indicator of how well we progress from a fitness perspective, we would be ill-informed to believe that weight is the most accurate indicator.

Let’s talk about the obvious first. Weight is relative. How much you should weigh (at least by the standard public’s perception), depends on a variety of factors. Age, height, bone density, and ethnicity. These are but a few of the factors. This is why Body Mass Index (BMI) is introduced. Even then BMI should be considered as a reference point and not the North Star. After all, BMI only takes two other factors, age, and height, into consideration, alongside weight.

What may be less common to the knowledge to most, is that muscle weight more than fat. Let the meaning of the sentence sink in for a bit.

Okay, I admit that I lied.

A pound of muscle and a pound of fat still weigh the same. Technically, both still weigh a pound. To be politically and scientifically correct, muscle tissue is denser than fat tissue. This means that muscle takes up less space with the same weight. An extra 20 pounds of fat will make you look slightly more bloated and make you feel sluggish. But an extra 20 pounds of muscle will make you look toned and make you feel strong.

It has never been clearer until I experienced it myself. I stand at 5 feet 5 inches. At one (high) point in my life, I weight about 140 pounds. That pretty much categorized as the normal weight from a BMI standpoint of view. Neither overweight nor underweight. Just nice. I felt good. I looked good, if I may say so myself. My running performance has never been better. I was running 3 times a week without fail. I completed 3 half marathons in the space of 4 weeks.

Things took a turn with the arrival of my first daughter. With her arrival in our life, our routine took a drastic change. I don’t run as frequently as before. Other aspects of life took priority. For the record, I lay no blame on her. She’s one of the best things to happen in our life.

Despite all that, it took 6 months before the weight scale reading move. Within that time span, I could see my body changes. Toned but by no means muscular body is replaced by prominent love handles. It was one thing to see the scale remains unchanged. It was another thing to see the changes to my own body. Since then, I came to the realization that weight is not the only measurement that matters. Unfortunately, since then the reading has always been on a constant upward trajectory.

In our daily life, we may not realize it, but we are reminded of the same fact. A truth joke that I frequently tell my friends. A plumper person does not mean he/she is less fit. Likewise, a thin person does not mean he/she is fitter. If they don’t believe me, all I need to do is to invite them to take part in a running event and see for themselves. You can be plump but fit. You could be thin but unfit. I have lost count on how many runners may have been plumper than me, but run faster and have better stamina than me in events. I am constantly humbled by this.

Remember. Weight is not the only thing that matters. Focus on getting better in your training, and that will lead you to a better and healthier life.