Losing Inches but Not Losing Weight?

What does your weight really mean and how useful is it when it comes to tracking weight loss progress?
Focus on Fat Loss, Not Weight Loss:
When you talk about losing weight, what you usually mean is slimming down.  But slimming down doesn’t always mean losing weight.  It may sound odd, but it’s possible to get thinner without actually seeing a change in your weight.  This happens when you lose body fat while gaining muscle.  Your weight may stay the same, even as you lose inches, a sign that you’re moving in the right direction.  But, if the scale doesn’t change, you may not even be aware that you’re getting real results.  Knowing the difference between losing weight and losing body fat can change how you get results and may even change how you look at your own body.
The Truth About Your Weight:
What does your weight say about you?  If you think about it, that number doesn’t tell you a whole lot.  The scale shows your weight, but does it tell you how much of that weight is muscle and how much is fat?  Or how much of that weight is water, bones or organs?  A bodybuilder’s weight could be off the charts because of extra muscle, but does that mean he’s overweight or fat?  Most of us would say no because we know that weight doesn’t tell the whole story.
Many women who exercise as part of their weight loss program become frustrated initially when they don’t lose weight.  They don’t realize that training increases muscle size, and muscle tissue weighs more than fat.
As you develop muscle and lose fat, you may lose inches instead of pounds.  You may even gain weight, but you’ll appear slimmer and trimmer.  Because you’re lowering your body-fat percentage and increasing your metabolic rate, you’re improving your physical fitness considerably.
So what’s the best way to lose weight?  Combining diet and exercise results in more weight loss than dieting alone.  When you lose weight, you lose lean body mass as well as fat.
Knowing your body composition is crucial information if you really want to get results and, unfortunately, the scale doesn’t tell you that.  Another reason scale weight isn’t so reliable is that it changes all the time.  All of us experience weight changes throughout the day, sometimes by as much as ten pounds depending on what and how often we eat and drink.  You could gain weight right now by putting on a pair of heavy boots, but does that mean you’ve gained fat?  No.  Just as taking those boots off doesn’t mean you’ve lost any fat.  While the scale isn’t completely useless, it may not be the best tool for people just starting a fat loss program.