When making body composition changes, it's important to have a long-term plan. This means finding behaviors you can stick to for the long haul, even when feeling discouraged. Remember that weight is not the only measure of health. Other methods to measure body composition changes don’t involve the scale. Let’s discuss.   Effective Methods for Body Composition Measurement Use an in-body scan for more insight Use a measuring tape on your waist, hips, thighs, biceps, and chest See how your clothes fit Take and compare progress pictures   The Long-Game Strategy When making body composition changes, you need to understand that you must have a long-game strategy. This is where you take on behaviors that you can commit to for at least eighteen months. Give yourself the best chance possible for long-term success. If you can’t commit to a low-fat diet for the next eighteen months – don’t do it! You need to find something sustainable for you. In-body scans are a great alternative to a standard scale. In-body scans provide so much more information than weight, including your skeletal muscle mass, body fat %, and BMR – they’re a great tool for tracking your body composition progress.   Weight Outside the Scale Many people have a set weight they want to get to but struggle to define why they want to. I challenge you to start defining yourself away from a weight standpoint. Who you are at your core does not depend on what you weigh. In fact, as you’re losing weight, I want you to focus even less on the number on the scale but on how you feel at each weight. How you feel is infinitely more important than any number on the scale will ever be. Other methods to measure your body composition changes that don’t involve the scale are so important. I recommend using a measuring tape regularly, seeing how your clothes fit, and even taking progress pictures to see the changes you’re making. How do you measure your body composition changes? When do you feel your best? Let me know in the comments on the episode page.   In This Episode  What the long-game strategy is [1:45] Why you have to set yourself up for long-term success [3:30] The realities of in-body scans [5:00] How to define yourself away from a weight standpoint [8:45] The importance of how you feel at each weight [18:00] Other effective body composition measurement tools  [22:00]   Quotes “The long-game strategy for optimal health is taking on behaviors that you’re willing to do long-term. If you’re not willing to continue something for eighteen months, don’t do it now.” [1:49] “As you’re starting to build on your optimal health strategies, the different things that you’re taking on – make sure that they’re ones that you’re willing to continue. We’re not setting ourselves up for much success if we’re just looking for short-term fixes.” [3:21] “We have to, and I mean we have to, stop using old ways to measure ourselves in order to decide if we’re making progress or not.” [8:34] “Going with how you feel is going to be way more important than any number [on the scale] ever will be.” [19:40]   Resources Mentioned Fit Women Collective Check out the full episode page here Find Life Coaching for Women Physicians Online Follow Dr. Ali Novitsky on Facebook | Instagram | YouTube Subscribe to Life Coaching for Women Physicians on Apple Podcasts Podcast production by the team at Counterweight Creative   Related Episodes  Episode 176: Optimizing Your Health with Strength Training Episode 175: Your Easy Guide to Getting Adequate Protein Episode 174: What Obesity Medicine Docs Want You to Know About GLP-1 Agonists with Dr. Matthea Rentea