How to Measure Inches for Weight Loss

According to Real Women's Fitness, stepping on a scale may not be the best way to track weight loss. When most people start a diet and exercise plan, they are hoping to get slimmer and smaller, not specifically lose pounds, per say. When you start a rigorous exercise plan, you may lose fat, but gain muscle, which has more mass and can actually make you heavier. Measuring the inches that you have shed, rather than the pounds you have lost, will give you a more accurate gauge of your progress.

Things You'll Need

• Soft measuring tape
• Journal

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Instructions

• 1

  Pull the measuring tape around the widest part of your bust to get your chest measurement. If you are a woman, wear a bra that you would normally wear.

• 2

  Wrap the measuring tape around the thinnest part of your midsection, about an inch above your belly button, to get your waist measurement.

• 3

  Lower the measuring tape to the widest part of your midsection to get your natural hip measurement.

• 4

  Stand with your feet apart and wrap the measuring tape around the widest part of each thigh. This is your thigh measurement. Take each thigh measurement individually.

• 5

  Find the midpoint between your shoulder and your elbow and measure around this point to get the measurement of your biceps. You should measure each biceps individually.

• 6

  Locate the widest part of your calf and measure around it for your calf size. You should measure each of your calves individually.

• 7

  Note these six measurements in a journal every week to track your progress.