Why do I look stronger but weigh the same?

Muscle does not weigh more than fat — but it does take up less space on your body, which is why you might look leaner after building muscle even if your weight doesn't change.

insider.com - 14 Photos That Show Women Can Look Different at the Same Weight

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From daily weight fluctuations to unnecessary mental obstacles, there are a lot of reasons why you shouldn't weigh yourself too frequently. One reason you shouldn't rely on the scale is that it doesn't measure your body composition, or the ratio of muscle to fat that you have on your body. To demonstrate that, many women have shared photos on social media that show how building muscle can make you look leaner, even if you don't see a change on the scale. When you're going to the gym, eating well, and taking steps to improve your health, it's normal to want to track your progress and see the results. You might think that weighing yourself is the best way to measure that progress, but that's not always the case. There are a number of reasons why it's not a good idea to fixate on the number on the scale. One easily forgotten reason is that your weight only indicates your body mass index (BMI), not your body composition, which is the amount of muscle versus fat you have on your body. Your body composition makes a huge difference in what you look like even though it can't be measured by the scale. To the scale, a pound is a pound. Muscle does not weigh more than fat — but it does take up less space on your body, which is why you might look leaner after building muscle even if your weight doesn't change. The following women have posted photos to remind others that, at the end of the day, you shouldn't rely on your weight to measure your progress toward your fitness goals.

1. Leanne

Leanne didn't see any change on the scale when she toned up, showing that weight can't always measure progress. "This is why I find the scale to be so problematic. It does not take into account SO many factors, like for example how much of your weight is actually muscle and how much is fat, the time of the day you are weighing yourself, the time of the month, whether or not you have eaten, etc.," the blogger wrote. Osuna shows the scale can't account for your body composition. As she writes in her caption, she lost fat and gained muscle by hitting the gym, lifting heavy weights, and practicing intermittent fasting.

3. Holly Louise

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"When you build muscle and lose fat you may not notice much of a change in the scales but you will notice a big change visually and in your body measurements," Louise writes.

4. Sophie Brewster

The day I became a qualified personal trainer to NOW 👑 ⠀ 2 years on and a passion and a career have become 1 🖤 A post shared by Sophie Brewster WBFF PRO (@sophiebrewster_) on Feb 12, 2018 at 2:55pm PST Feb 12, 2018 at 2:55pm PST Brewster's photos show just how much of a difference gaining muscle can make in your appearance. She notes that transformation happened as a result of her working as a personal trainer.

5. Mahaba Sidi

Patience is a virtue, but if you want to see change, it requires hard work day in and day out. "Whatever your goal is, you can achieve it," Sidi writes in her caption. "Just keep working hard, be consistent, and be patient."

6. Nessa Sphere

Although Sphere increased her calorie intake to tone up, she reminds her followers that there's no one correct answer for how many calories you should eat. It depends on your weight, height, age, how active you are, and how often and how intensive your workouts are.

7. Kelsey Wells

The trainer notes that recognizing other non-scale victories is a key component of reaching fitness goals. "There was nothing wrong with my body, but there was everything wrong with the way I viewed it," Wells writes in the caption to her photo.

8. Laura Pattison

I weighed myself today for the first time in forever...I’m exactly the same weight as when I started @resultswithlucy last June! This is why you shouldn’t depend on the scales when you’re working out! I have so much more muscle definition now & look completely different, yet weigh the same 👀 Our bodies are incredible! 😆 A post shared by LauraPattison_fit (@laurapattison_fit) on Feb 22, 2018 at 9:54am PST Feb 22, 2018 at 9:54am PST Pattison's mindset helped her take the stagnant number she saw on the scale as an opportunity to recognize that "our bodies are incredible." "This is why you shouldn't depend on the scales when you're working out," Pattison writes. "I have so much more muscle definition now and look completely different, yet weigh the same."

9. Iulia Danilova

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Danilova is amazed that our bodies are capable of looking so different at the same weight. As she shares on her blog, she's been skinny, had extra body fat, and went through pregnancy — and never looked extremely different. "I'm still amazed by the fact what the human body is capable of," she writes.

10. Brittney

• 145 Pounds in Both. . Left: size 7 pant. Right: size 3 pant. . Stop letting the scale determine your success :: it’s literally just a number! #MotivationalMonday A post shared by Brittney Elizabeth (@brittelizabethfit) on Mar 5, 2018 at 11:29am PST Mar 5, 2018 at 11:29am PST "Stop letting the scale determine your success," Brittney wrote in the photo caption. "It's literally just a number!"

11. Sia Cooper

Cooper takes measurements to measure her health because, as she writes, they "will give you a truer representation of how you’re doing in your fitness journey." "Numbers lie all the time," Cooper wrote in her caption. "See these two pictures? I weigh the same in both yet, I have more muscle tone in the right and I'm fluffier on the left, yet, the numbers are the same."

12. Nikki Gundy

"How heavy or light you are, does not define what your body will look like," Gundy writes in the caption of her photo. She also added that weight "measures nothing else but how heavy your body is."

13. Madalin Giorgetta

Giorgetta admitts in her caption that she still struggles to love her body, but working out helps her change her mindset. "My physical changes weren't drastic but I grew to develop a deeper love for my body," she writes.

14. Arielle Mandelson

"This is your reminder to screw the f'ing scale! That number means nothing, what's important is how you feel, if you're being kind to your body (and mind), if you're nourishing yourself with proper nutrients, and letting your body sweat," Mandelson writes in her caption. At the end of the day, your weight and how you look don't really matter. What does matter is that you feel happy and healthy.

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insider.com - 14 Photos That Show Women Can Look Different at the Same Weight

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