Progress photos aren’t a requirement to lose fat.

Sure, they help.

But a great coach can get a good idea of what’s going on just by monitoring how well you nail the daily process, combined with a few basic measurements and feedback on how well your clothes are fitting.

But if you do take photos—excluding someone VERY lean and/or preparing for a physique contest—MORE frequent is seldom better.

Truth be told, frequent progress photos can be incredibly demotivating, especially for beginners.

A very real challenge with photos that gets zero attention is LIGHTING.

Everything from the type, temperature, and direction of the light will have a DRAMATIC impact on your perceived body composition. Many dramatic “before and after” shots have been taken 5 minutes apart with nothing but a different source of light and proper posing.

To make it worse, most of us are taking selfies with unforgiving frontal lighting that leaves the body looking washed-out and FLAT.

And we haven’t even factored in considerations like outfits, flushed skin, water retention, “food babies,” or the fact that yesterday’s pics were taken with a raging pump.

But my main issue with frequent progress photos is psychological: even under perfectly consistent conditions, the difference between pictures taken even two weeks apart might not reflect all the hard work you’ve put into the process—leaving you more than a little deflated.

Think of it like this, a watched pot doesn’t actually boil any slower. But it sure as hell FEELS like it does.

Your body isn’t much different in that regard.

So keep the selfies to a minimum, or at least stop looking for the changes.

Watched pots don’t boil.

Watched bodies don’t change.

— Coach Bryan

Enjoyed This Article?

Enter your best email below to get updates delivered straight to your inbox. You'll also get instant access to my FREE Physique Mastery email course.

    Unsubscribe any time.