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Your mental state can be a powerful driving force. It can motivate you to learn a new skill, create a masterpiece, or change the world.
But as powerful as your mental state is, it's also easily manipulated.
Sometimes progress feels slow, or non-existent. But if you put yourself in the right state of mind, you can bust through any plateu.
Enter the progress photo. A weirdly simple, yet powerful tool in our fitness toolbox.
A 3rd Person State of Mind
If you've ever seen an unflattering photo of yourself, you'll know how powerful progress photos can be.
"Is that me?"
"No way I look like that."
A unique psychological phenomenon happens when you see yourself in a photo - you enter the 3rd person point of view. This viewpoint is significantly more objective than your usual 1st-Person viewpoint. From this 3rd person viewpoint, you can see yourself the way others see you rather than the picture-perfect mirror glances where you tend to pose and posture. (Yes, we all do it, it's okay.)
It also changes the way you act.
An interested study was done by researchers to examine the relationship of 3rd-person viewpoint and correlated actions.
In a taste test study, published in the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, researchers gave 185 undergraduate students a choice between a chocolate cake and a fruit salad and then told the students to evaluate its taste in a room. Some rooms contained a mirror, some rooms had no mirrors around. The subjects who selected the chocolate cake claimed it tasted worse in the room with a mirror, compared to those with no mirrors around.
However, the presence of a mirror did not change the taste of the fruit salad.
Interesting.
Lead researcher Ata Jami of the University of Central Florida explains, “A glance in the mirror tells people more than just about their physical appearance. It enables them to view themselves objectively and helps them to judge themselves and their behaviors in a same way that they judge others.”
He found that mirrors can push people to compare their behavior with social standards of "correctness", and people then match their behavior. Accordingly, when one fails to follow the standards, he/she does not want to look at a mirror because it enhances the discomfort of the failure. Thus, the presence of a mirror induces a discomfort and lowers the perceived taste of the unhealthy food.
But researchers noted that this only holds true if the food is selected by the subject, because then he/she feels responsible for the food choice. Eating healthy does not induce any discomfort and, as a result, mirror does not change the taste of healthy food.
What This Means For Us
Okay enough with the psychology. What does this mean for those of us wanting to lose fat? Do we need to install a wall mirror in our dining rooms? No.
It means we need to practice looking at ourselves objectively, using this 3rd-person point of view.
This is easily done with progress photos.
So here are my tips on how to take progress photos:
1) Take photos every 2-4 weeks. This allows you to see the subtle changes in your body, but not so often it becomes a hassle.
2) Keep it simple. Use your phone.
3) Take the photos from three positions: Front, Side, Back (if you can).
4) Setup your phone to record a video. While standing, rotate to all three positions. Go back through the video and screenshot your poses. This is an easy way to take all three photos without twisting, contorting, or bribing a family member.
5) Try to wear the same amount / type of clothing in each picture, and take the photos in the same place with the same lighting.
Okay easy enough. Now go put yourself into 3rd person, and track your progress!
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