Since i just started my journey, i decided to take my measurements. I am totally blown away.. my waist was 55 inches.. my thighs are 32. my hips? i had to approximate it since the darn measuring tape was about 3 inches too small to go completely around them..plus the two inches of blank area at the end of the measuring tape..so i guestimated 65 inches... it's so depressing.. the only good thing, is now i have a starting point other than just pounds to watch the numbers go down down down

Good idea !

I think it's good to take measurements. I've barely lost any weight in the past month but I've lost 11 inches total from hips, waist, bust, and thighs. At my high weight I was 312 with a 55 inch waist. Now I'm down to a 33 inch waist. You can do it!!

It's always the worst when your measurements exceed the capacity of the tape measure! My mom did my measurements for me on Thursday and this happened with my hips too. So demoralizing... but you're right about it helping to get you focused on where you need to get to.

Good luck!

I had to buy a quilting tape measure to get an accurate measurement of my hips, 65" at my highest weight. I recall the day I could use a regular tape measure on my hips again. It was awesome! And now, I'm in the low 50s.

You can do this! You'll get there pretty quick. And if you workout to target your hamstrings and glutes, that tape measure will be overlapping even sooner.

Do not hang your heart on the measurements now. Look forward to what your efforts will buy you...smaller pants!

I honestly bought a 120 inch measuring tape for my own measurements... lol

I know it was "higher" when I was at my highest in 2009... I got it down... regained some... In July my hips were 61 inches. Now they are 58 and I like tracking this better than scales.

I was definitely in the same boat as you, for some reason the first time I measured myself was more of a slap in the face than seeing I had passed 300lbs! It sucks now, but man you be so glad you did it later on! This way, if you stop seeing the scale go down, you can track your measurements instead and not get discouraged. It's really helped me so far, and I can't wait to measure myself when I'm at my goal weight, the numbers will be fun to compare.

That's great you have those measurements as a starting point! I wish I had done the same thing. I really at the time had no clue about anything but a scale. Sometimes, it discouraged me and if I had measurements it would have given my more of a push. Smart move!

When I did start taking measurements all I did was the waist (duh!) I do take my measurements now. Just recently actually because I work out and want to see my progress. I weigh a lot and in the past I would have been depressed with what I lost last month but my measurements showed inches lost. Without that to push me forward I would have been indifferent. Glad you started early with measurements, it will definetely motivate you!!

Measurements will fall much faster than you expect, especially around your waist; as you're eating less and moving more, your body will let go of a lot of stored fluid as well as fat.

When I started losing weight the first time in '09, I was 287lbs with a 41" waist and within the first 15lbs or so it had already dropped to 38". In my experience, my hips have been a much slower rate of loss (started at 58", now 52.5" at 259lbs), but I'm sure that varies from person to person.

Good luck! =)

Try not to think of the tape measure (and scale) as anything more than a tool. It's an object to be used for evaluation.

I started out at a 48" waist and 64-ish hips (hello, not-long-enough tape measure). I'm down to 41" in the waist and about 57" hips. Getting below 300# and "small" enough to be able to be measured with the regular tape measure were big accomplishments. For me, it'll be a great day when my waist gets below 40".

If you need to get the longer tape measure to get accurate measurements, do it. It will make your future results all the more rewarding.

Super good idea! The scale sometimes doesn't want to budge but when you see those inches drop it's nice!

I tried to measure my hips, but I had the same issue as you. I do think taking measurements is a good motivator. The scale sometimes doesn't tell the full story month to month. Just think how good it'll feel when you whip out that tape measure on your hips and there's plenty of slack to go around .

Same problem here. But I found a (cheap!) workaround. I just use a plain old piece of twine that is long enough to reach all of the way around, mark the spot where the measurement ends and then measure from the end of the twine to the mark with a ruler (end-over-end).