My Health Journal: Starting Measurements

It is important to mentally prepare and plan for a weight loss journey (aka lifestyle change) but there are also some fiddley things you actually need to do to kick it off.  These are not essential, but can help later on - or so I'm told by others who have successfully lost weight.

Unfortunately, taking measurements and photos are included those things.

Photos

While I am not making my proper pics official, I'll also be taking some fully dressed, casual pictures that will be useable on social media.

To take pictures that truly show your weight loss for motivation along your journey, pic a spot that you can use every month, keep the distance between you and the camera the same, have the camera at chest height, use good lighting, and a plain wall background. Dress in a standard black crop and cropped workout pants or bikini - nothing tight enough to hold you in, but also not baggy enough to hide.  If you need to go down in size, keep the style and colour the same as much as possible.

Take photos from the front, back and sides.  The big question is what to do with your arms. I find putting your hands behind your head allows your middle to be seen better in the side photo, and showing off your biceps enables the arms to be seen in the back photo.

A side note: for any official 'challenges' they will probably ask for a dated newspaper to be included in the picture to stop any cheating. That is not necessary for your own personal use though you can edit your photo to include the date and details of your measurements for your own records.

Measurements

There are some standard measurements to take, (bust, waist and hip) for women as these are generally what is used in sizing charts.  I also want to throw in a few extra for myself: the neck, as this measurement can be used in body fat calculators; my belly, as this is 'my problem area'; and my arm and thigh measurements, as these areas also carry excess weight.  You can take whatever measurements you like based on the way your own body carries weight. Take note of which side of the body you measure for your arm and leg measurements.

Here's mine taken this morning: 

Weight: 73kg

Neck: 39cm

Bust: 101cm

Waist: 97cm

Belly: 105cm

Hip: 108cm

Arm (R): 33cm

Thigh (R): 58cm