You step on the scale…

You’ve been crushing your workouts…

Meal prepping like a boss…

You’ve even skipped your Friday girls wine night…

And yet…

That Sunday when you step on the scale?

The number hasn’t moved.

That moment hits hard.

You feel your stomach drop.

Your brain screams, “What’s the point?!”

You start questioning everything.

Should I cut calories? Add more cardio? Maybe my body’s just broken?

I get it.

Because I’ve had so many clients text me this exact message: “I’m losing inches but not losing weight 😭.”

And every time, my response is the same.

Wait…this is actually a GOOD thing.

You’re actually winning.

Now, I didn’t say that the first time it happened —

But I’m pretty sure my face said it for me.

Because losing inches while the scale stays stuck…Is one of the best signs your body is finally doing what it’s supposed to do.

It’s healing.

It’s rebuilding.

It’s transforming.

Here’s The Myth We All Fall For…The lie we’ve believed for most of our life..That the scale is the ultimate measure of progress.

And yes… it tells part of the story.

But only part.

Here’s the myth: If the number isn’t going down, you’re not making progress.

Here’s the truth: If you’re losing inches, your body is changing and fat loss is happening.

Because your weight is everything combined —

Muscle. Fat. Bone. Water. Hormones. Food. Stress. Sleep.

So when the number doesn’t change, but your waistline does?

That’s your metabolism whispering, “FINALLY… we’re doing it right.”

Here’s what’s going on…

When you lose fat and build muscle at the same time, that’s called body recomposition.

Fat is fluffy — like a bag of marshmallows.

Muscle is dense — like a brick.

Five pounds of both weigh the same, but take up totally different amounts of space.

So you can weigh the same…But look leaner, tighter, stronger because recomp has happened.

It’s like replacing old, squishy insulation with sleek, high-performance muscle.

Same weight — completely different structure.

That’s why the inches matter more than the number.

The scale just hasn’t caught on to how fabulous you’re becoming yet.

But it’s hard to remember this as the scale has been most of our measurements of success for a very long time…

And I’ll never forget my client Lisa.

She was consistent. She was showing up. She was doing everything right.

Then one day, I get the dreaded email: “Cori, I’ve been at this for two months and the scale hasn’t moved. I think I’m failing.”

So I asked her, “Do your jeans fit differently?”

She paused. Then laughed.

“Actually… yeah. I had to tighten my belt another notch.”

Two weeks later she sent photos — Same weight. Completely different body.

She was slightly shocked seeing the photos of herself side by side. She hadn’t realized how much was changing.

Because Lisa wasn’t stuck. She was healing.

Her metabolism was rebuilding after years of crash diets and cardio abuse.

That’s body recomposition.

And it’s exactly where the magic happens.

Now here’s where most people blow it and Lisa almost sabotaged herself…

They don’t see the scale changing quickly and…

They panic.

They slash calories lower. Add more cardio. Push harder.

And all that does is kill the muscle their body just started building.

You don’t need to do more.

Actually you need to STOP allowing yourself to repeat that do more cycle.

So let’s talk about how to do that…

If you want to keep losing inches and eventually see the scale follow, here are three essential steps to build your leanest, strongest body — at any age…

Step 1 – Fight the Urge to Do What You’ve Always Done

When progress feels slow, you’ll want to default to what’s familiar.

Cutting calories. Adding workouts. Pushing harder.

But if that worked, you wouldn’t be watching this right now.

This time, you’re not chasing doing more…adding more…You’re not chasing seeing the scale go down.

You’re chasing better. You’re focusing on systems and small changes that build. You’re focusing on the habits that will improve your health and help you build strength.

You’re not trying to get smaller. You’re trying to get stronger.

And with that focus recomp will happen.

I had another client — Jen — who always cut her calories the minute results slowed.

Her energy tanked, her cravings spiked, and within weeks she’d binge.

Once she stopped cutting and focused on fueling, her strength went up — and her body finally leaned out.

Write down your old reflexes: Cut more. Do more. Stress more and try to control every detail as you feel yourself getting more and more overwhelmed.

Now write your new responses: Focus on fueling your body. Lift with purpose. Recover with intention.

That’s how you break the loop.

Step 2 – Focus on Nutrition by Addition

Restriction doesn’t create transformation.

It creates burnout.

Instead of asking, “What should I cut?”

Ask, “What can I add?”

Add protein. Add nutrient diversity. Add water. Add real foods that energize you.

Love dessert? Keep it.

Just build around it.

One of my clients adores chocolate cake.

So we didn’t cut it.

We added a protein-packed breakfast and fiber-rich lunch.

The result?

She lost fat, gained strength, and still ate her cake too.

And she finally felt she could stay consistent.

That’s balance. That’s sustainability.

Because your body doesn’t need punishment and neither does your mind.

Feeling constantly deprived doesn’t make you embrace lasting change.

How we fuel isn’t just physical nourishment. It’s also a mental balance.

And that balance reduces our stress and allows us to build lasting habits which lead to the recomp we want.

By focusing on adding, we truly give our body what it needs to heal our metabolism, build strength and FEEL our most fabulous.

Step 3 – Train to Build, Not Just To Burn

Your workouts aren’t punishment for what you ate.

They’re investments in the muscle that burns fat for you.

Stop chasing sweat. Chase strength.

Progressive overload — lifting a little heavier, moving with better control — beats endless cardio every time.

The more muscle you build, the faster your metabolism becomes.

Think of muscle as a 24-hour furnace. Even while you’re sleeping, it’s burning.

One of my favorite stories:

A client named Maria was addicted to her treadmill.

When I switched her to 3 short strength sessions a week, she freaked out — thought she’d gain weight.

Two months later, her weight was the same on the scale…

But she’d dropped two pant sizes and said, “I finally feel solid — I feel truly strong.”

Muscle isn’t bulky. It’s magical and not just for recomp.

That lifting and the muscle you build makes your body, bones, and brain all healthier so you can feel and look your most fabulous until your final day on this planet.

Now there are a few worries that often come up, some myths I want to bust about the recomp process…

Myth 1: “Muscle Turns Into Fat.”

Nope. That’s like saying your car turns into a couch when you stop driving it.

Muscle and fat are completely different tissues.

They don’t “transform” into each other — but they can shift in balance depending on how you train and fuel your body.

Here’s what really happens…

When you stop strength training or under-eat for too long, your muscle fibers shrink because they’re not being challenged.

And since muscle is metabolically active — meaning it burns calories even when you’re just living life — when you lose that muscle, your daily calorie burn drops.

Now you’re burning less, but probably eating the same.

So what happens?

Your body stores more fat.

It’s not that muscle turned into fat — You just lost muscle, and fat moved in to fill the space.

So focus on building that lean muscle in the gym and fueling to keep it!

Myth 2: You can’t build muscle during menopause.

False.

You absolutely can — you just need to train intelligently and fuel adequately.

Your hormone levels are shifting and you aren’t as able to utilize protein as efficiently…Not to mention you may see inflammation rise.

But through how you adjust your workouts to optimize recovery and tweak your macros, you can address what your body needs now.

Just be willing to make a change from what USED to work.

Myth 3: Cardio is the best way to burn fat.

Also false.

Cardio burns calories now.

Muscle burns calories forever. So focus on building your forever furnace.

We also have to remember, cardio isn’t just one thing.

Using SIT or sprint interval training is different than endurance steady-state running or riding which even has a different impact than walking.

There is nuance to everything and we need to be open to adjusting based on our lifestyle and goals.

We need to stop the focus on that calorie burn if we want to truly see recomp happen!

I want to give you one final reminder if you do feel that temptation when the scale isn’t changing to do MORE and you see the promise of a shiny new quick fix…

Those 1200-calorie diets.
Those detox teas.
Those 30-day shreds that promise “ten pounds in ten days.”

They’ll make the scale drop — fast.

But they’ll also steal your strength, your energy, and your sanity.

Don’t trade short-term validation for long-term frustration.

So if the scale isn’t moving

But your clothes fit better — celebrate it.

That’s not stagnation. That’s transformation.

Your body is learning to trust you again.

It’s healing from years of “less” and rebuilding into “strong.”

You’re not losing progress. You’re gaining power.

As weird as this may feel…Close your eyes for a second — visualize this.

Six months from now…you walk into your closet. Grab the jeans that used to mock you. And they slide right on.

You glance in the mirror — same weight, leaner, stronger, more energized reflection.

You stand taller. Move easier. Smile wider. You feel strong, lean, confident, capable.

Because you finally stopped chasing smaller and started becoming stronger.

So keep going. Keep building. Keep trusting the process.

Because losing inches without losing weight doesn’t mean you’re shrinking…

It means you’re becoming unstoppable.

Ready to build your leanest, strongest, most fabulous self?

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