Ways to Measure

In keeping with the goal theme of the week, here are some ways to measure things to help us meet our goals:

 

1.     Pencil and paper.  Spreadsheet also works.  Measurements only work if we have a way to track them, so write or type it down.

2.     Scale.  Yep, our good friend on the bathroom floor.  It’s best if we weigh ourselves on the same scale in the same clothing (or lack of clothing) at the same time of day to keep things consistent.

3.     Tape measure.  The sewing kind that flexes, not the construction metal kind that crinkles when it bends.  We can use it to measure our upper arm, chest, waist, hips, thigh, and calf.  Measure the same spot every time for best results.

4.     Tracker.  I have a Wristy Overlord (aka Apple Watch), but many fitness trackers exist and work just fine to track things like our exercise minutes, steps, heart rate, and the like.  They’re not necessary, but they’re nice and they keep us honest.

5.     Scale.  The one-to-ten kind.  This is useful when we want to track goals that are a little fuzzier, like having more energy.  We give each day a rating on a scale from one to ten and see how our ratings change over time.

6.     Other tech stuff.  This can be things like a bioelectric impedance gizmo to measure body fat percentage, or a blood pressure cuff.  Again, not necessary, but useful if we have very specific goals.

7.     Calculator.  Unless we love math, a calculator can really help us when we look at our averages.  Weekly averages help us see trends in things like weight, sleep hours, or HRV.

 

Remember that different people thrive under different systems.  What seems ridiculously elaborate to one person will delight someone else.  Some of us need things to be simple and others love to have thirty-seven color coded folders.  Do what works.