Taking Progress Photos
We see ourselves every single day, and sometimes it’s hard to really notice the progress we are making. Relying on the scale for progress can be discouraging, so a much better way to determine progress is by taking weekly progress photos of your body.
Your weight can fluctuate daily due to water retention or loss, which means that when the scale jumps up a couple pounds, it is often water weight and NOT body fat gain.
Taking progress pictures is also important is because of something called body recomposition. Body recomposition is the percentage of fat, muscle, bone, and water in your body. This means that you could be simultaneously gaining muscle mass and losing body fat, while the weight on the scale doesn’t budge, resulting in looking a completely different way.
We recommend taking progress pictures once a week
- Take your pictures on the same day, at the same time, and in the same place every single time.
- Preferably take the pictures in the morning, on an empty stomach, after a bowel movement.
- Make sure the lighting is the same each time. Natural lighting is best.
- Stand the same distance away from the camera each time.
- Take pictures of the front, back, and side of you.
- Make sure the pictures are head to toe, of your full length body.
- For side views, always have your arms straight out in front of you. For front and back views, keep your arms at your side.
- Have someone take the photos for you or set up a timer on your phone camera.
- Take a video on your phone, run through the poses, and pause to screenshot.
- Wear as little clothing as possible during the pictures.
- Wear the same clothing during your pictures.
- The more skin you feel comfortable showing the more we will be able to compare changes down the line.
- We recommend wearing a bathing suit or a sports bra and shorts.
- Use a plain background.
- Make sure the space around you is decluttered.
- Have a preferably solid color wall behind you.
Take pictures for a month or two then look back and see the progress you have made!
Dena DePiazza is a National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach and is certified as a Certified Pain Management Coach. She is your personal advocate for living an energized and passionate life. She works with clients to help them create healthy lives in a way that is flexible, fun, and free of denial and unsustainable discipline. By working together, you can discover lifestyle choices that best support you. Dena helps you learn to make gradual, lifelong changes that will enable you to reach your current and future health goals.
with a Bachelor’s Degree in Nutritional Sciences. She is a Certified Personal Trainer and Certified Nutrition Coach through the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM).
Nadia enjoys providing the guidance and support people need to achieve good health and considers herself their biggest cheerleader when they decide to make their health a priority. As a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, Nadia works with clients one on one to help them optimize their health through holistic health practices. She helps reduce the symptoms of chronic illness through nutrition and lifestyle practices, but is not limited to helping anyone who wants to learn how to make better choices. She teaches clients basic kitchen skills, how to read labels and will even do grocery tours. As a personal trainer, Nadia works with clients of all levels, ages and in various settings. She has taught group fitness classes and worked with clients one on one. She emphasizes the importance of staying injury free and building strength to move about their day without pain.
Karissa originally attended Westmont College in beautiful Santa Barbara, and began her B.S. in Psychology, then transferred to Montreat College, in the Appalachian hills of North Carolina, graduating Cum Laude with a B.S. in Music Therapy, and a double minor in Psychology and Music Business.
