You’ve eaten right. You’ve exercised regularly. You are doing everything you’re supposed to do.

And yet, the scales have stalled. Your weight-loss seems to be curtailed. Your frustrations mount with each passing day.

I feel your pain. The struggle is real.

Sometimes, despite doing everything just as we are supposed to, the number on the scale refuses to go any lower. These are what diet experts call ‘plateaus,’ and they can be confidence-shattering.

But they don’t have to be.

Use plateaus as a time to re-evaluate your activity level and caloric intake. You may need to adjust your diet or the intensity of your exercise routine as your body’s needs change. Ask your doctor or nutritionist for specifics. Tell them Clint sent you.

But one thing you absolutely don’t need to do is get discouraged!

Here are three ways you can measure your fitness progress when the number on the scale seems to be taunting you.

1. Count Your Hangers

Losing a huge amount of weight is life-altering. It is also closet-altering.

I recently purged my closet of any shirt larger than a 2-XL. It was the fourth such purge since I began losing weight last summer. At that time, I was in a 5-XL. I have shrunk three shirt sizes, making my closet one of the busiest rooms in my house in the past year.

As I weeded my wardrobe, I removed the larger shirts and coats from their hangers and tossed the garments into plastic bags. I stacked the hangers absentmindedly on my bed.

When the dust finally settled and the smoke cleared, I had 91 empty hangers before me.

Holy cow! Ninety-one hangers! That’s a lot of giant clothes that I will never fit into again.

That morning, the scale had mocked me. But the closet’s message was loud and clear:

What you’re doing is working! Keep at it!

2.  Check Your Measurements

When I was first diagnosed with diabetes, my waist was 54 inches around. The belt I wore was custom-made, and was over five feet long.

My belt was almost the same height as my wife.

Today, my waist is 38 inches and shrinking. I’m still wearing that same belt, but I’ve had to drill almost a dozen new holes in it. Each of those new holes is a literal notch on my belt for weight loss; a reminder of how hard I have fought to get in shape.

Weight loss is not just measured in pounds; it is also measured in inches.

Even if the number on the scale has plateaued, your body may still be shedding inches. Keep track of your measurements, and don’t lose heart.

3.  Walk a Mile in Your Own Shoes

You’re keeping track of your exercise aren’t you? Either in miles traveled, minutes spent sweating, or total calories burned, keep track of it all in some form.

And when you start to feel discouraged, tally it all up!

By walking three miles a day since I was diagnosed with diabetes, I estimate that I have walked more than 1,050 miles as of this evening. That’s like walking from Washington, DC to New Orleans!

If you haven’t kept track of distance, total up the time you’ve spent exercising. How many times could you have watched your favorite movie in those hours?

More importantly, how many hours do you think you’ve added to your life for every hour you’ve spent exercising?

A recent study postulated that one hour of running per day could add up to seven hours to your life. Get moving, and remember your motivation!

Don’t let the scale get you down. Take steps to break that plateau, but also remember how far you’ve come!

I want to see pictures of those empty hangers in your closet!