Progress Isn't Always Linear

I think a lot of us have this idea of progress in our heads that progress is linear. We're going to start at whatever point we're starting at, and we're only going to go up from there. Each week we'll be "better" than the last. Each week we'll be leaner than the last. Each week we'll be stronger than the last. Each week our nutrition will be more on point than the last. And if we make the mistake of thinking that achieving some sort of physique is the answer to our happiness, we'll assume that each week we'll be happier than the last.

But progress isn't always linear. Your menstrual cycle may make you feel more bloated or watery than the week prior. You might be in a building phase where your definition is slowly being hidden further under a layer of fat. You might be in an overreaching phase where fatigue starts to mask fitness. You might be in a deload phase where you're lifting significantly lighter weights. You might have a week where more events come up, more birthdays, more meals out, or more reasons to celebrate where some flexibility and accommodation is needed. And if you have a bad day, for any number of reasons, you may be wondering why your pursuit of perfection isn't making you any happier. (Spoiler: perfection doesn't exist, and chasing it will only make you miserable.)

Progress isn't always linear, and that's ok. Sometimes you need to take 1 step backwards to take 2 steps forwards. So long as you eventually move forward again, you're making progress. Things may not necessarily look different from day to day, week to week, or even month to month. And that's ok, too. Over time, though, there should be improvement. Are you in a better place (mentally, physically, or whatever that means to you) now than you were 3 months ago? 6 months ago? 1 year ago? That's the big picture, and that's what really matters. Don't get so bogged down in the small ups and downs that you forget the big picture. Don't miss for forest for the trees.

I think most people would be happy with this progress...

Just as progress isn't always linear, progress isn't always physical, either. You may initially set out on your fitness journey with the sole purpose of losing fat, leaning out, building muscle, whatever. You may start out being super restrictive with your diet, dreading your workouts, hating your body... But what if you defined progress by being more flexible and less rigid in your approach, finding workouts that you actually enjoy doing, and doing these things because you love your body and want to take care of it, not because you hate your body and desperately want to change it. Wouldn't that be progress?

...but would you be happy with this progress, too?

In the 1st picture, it looks like I'm leaning out, and in the 2nd, it looks like I'm gaining fat. I think many people would be quick to jump to the conclusion that the 1st picture shows acceptable progress, while the 2nd picture shows failure on some level.

The 2nd picture shows the real sequence of events (a 5 lb difference over 2 months, from the beginning of July thru the end of August), but I'm not failing at my fitness goals. These pictures show my body going through a reverse diet and bringing calories back up after a competition prep. (I've said it before, and I'll say it again: the post-competition period is the most challenging for me, even more challenging than any part of prep.) Moving from left to right, I'm less hangry and less food-focused. From left to right, my strength is increasing, my workouts are improving, and my body fat and lean mass are both increasing. My hormones are returning to normal. My appetite is returning to normal. I'm sleeping better. My energy is returning. I'm no longer cold all of the time. I'm regaining balance in my life. ALL of these good things are happening -- THAT is progress.

I'm only 5'0 -- any and all weight shows up on me, which does make for dramatic pictures. But I want to be clear that each step along the way is progress in the big picture. Did I improve on a lift? Progress. Am I feeling healthier and more energetic? Progress. Am I manipulating my body in the way I intended? Progress. My goal is gaining muscle, and with that comes gaining some body fat. I'm OK with that because in the big picture, I know that I'm making strides towards my long-term goals, and that's what matters to me. Progress doesn't always appear to be linear, but it's still progress nonetheless.