For anyone who is serious about getting in shape and making changes to their lives, the importance of tracking your progress cannot be stressed enough. This doesn’t mean simply stepping onto the scale first thing every morning, but instead, discovering a plan that will allow you to stay on the right path for you.

Does this sound like you?

• You have made the decision to get in shape
• You attempt to eat less food and go for a short run every day
• The scale shows you are losing pounds every day for a week
• Sunday rolls around and you attend a neighborhood BBQ
• First thing Monday you step on the scale and it has gone up
• You decide you will never lose weight and keep it off — and you fall off the wagon
• Lather, rinse, repeat — again and again

All of the above steps happen to at least 80% of the people who are trying to lose extra pounds and fail. While tracking your progress may seem redundant to you, it is an essential step to keeping the weight off. Here’s why:

• The whole story is not told by the scale: Any of the personal trainers in Staten Island will tell you that there is a big difference in losing fat and gaining muscle mass. Going by the numbers on the scale alone can end up doing nothing more than making you feel discouraged. Honestly? The scale really can lie!

• You are unable to decide if the path you are on is working or adjustments need to be made: You need to lose the right amount of weight in the right places for your path to be effective. Staten Island personal trainers can help to devise a plan that works for you.

• Measuring means improving: Keeping track of your progress gives you a reason to do better and go farther than each time before. Similarly, taking measurements of your various body parts with the help of a Staten Island personal trainer will point you in the direction of the areas you need to work on more than others.