Day 58: I'm Not Working to Scale

How much weight have you lost?

It's a question I love hearing, but, honestly, I don't have a good answer. I decided about two weeks into P90x that I was going to stop weighing myself regularly. First of all, we don't have a very good scale. But, more importantly, it's easy to get caught up in the numbers and get into a routine where your happiness is tied to how much the scale moved.

Ultimately, this whole PDaddyX thing is about being healthy, pushing myself and being a good role model to my boys. Weight loss is part of that and I've definitely dropped some pounds, but because P90x focuses so heavily on muscle development, chances are I haven't lost as much weight as some might think.

I have stepped on the scale a few times and my guess is that I've lost about 20 pounds, maybe a little more or less. However, there are other signs besides a number that tell me my body is changing and my health is improving:

• Clothes that were once tight on me are now loose around the waist, even baggy in some cases. And some clothes I put in storage because they were too, um, form-fitting are getting back in the rotation.
• I bought a pair of pants the other day that were three sizes smaller than the last pair I purchased (and they were suit pants, which generally run larger).
• I don't get winded taking a walk or climbing stairs.
• I'm generally sleeping better at night and I'm not getting the headaches and backaches I used to get.

To me, these are the real metrics of success, not the number that the scale tells me.

So, please, ask me how much weight I've lost, but don't be surprised when I say "well....I don't really know!"