Progress photos and bodyweight tracking in Boostcamp

1. 1

   Log your bodyweight

   Add entries in the Bodyweight Tracker and switch chart averaging between daily, weekly and monthly to smooth out day-to-day swings. It shows your current, highest and lowest weight.

2. 2

   Take progress photos

   Snap a "before" photo when you start a program and an "after" when you finish, with the in-app camera or from your photo library.

3. 3

   Compare and share

   Select up to four photos to compare, then save the comparison to your camera roll or share it to Instagram or Facebook Stories.

How to take consistent progress photos

Consistent progress photos are pictures taken under the same conditions each time, so the only thing that changes between them is your body. The usual checklist is the same time of day, the same lighting, the same spot, the same camera distance and height, similar clothing, and the same poses, typically front, side and back.

Many lifters take photos first thing in the morning, before eating, on a fixed schedule such as every two to four weeks. Weekly photos tend to look identical, while longer gaps make changes easier to see.

Bodyweight needs the same consistency. Daily weight often swings by 1 to 3 lb or more from water, salt, food and bathroom timing, so a single weigh-in says little. Weighing at the same time each day and comparing weekly averages shows the real trend.

Boostcamp's Bodyweight Tracker can average your entries by week or month, and Compare Photos lines up to four progress photos side by side.

Tips for using Progress photos and bodyweight

• Fix your setup Pick one spot with steady light and mark where you stand and where the phone sits, so every photo is framed the same way.
• Use the same poses every time Take front, side and back photos in the same order and stance. Relaxed and flexed versions are both fine, as long as you repeat them.
• Weigh in under the same conditions Weigh yourself at the same time of day, ideally after waking and before eating, and judge the weekly average rather than any single day.
• Space out comparisons Compare photos several weeks apart. In Compare Photos, putting your first photo next to your latest shows more than two photos a week apart.

Reading photos and bodyweight together

Bodyweight and progress photos answer different questions. The scale shows the direction your weight is moving, while photos show changes in shape that the scale can miss, such as gaining muscle while bodyweight stays flat. Looking at a weekly or monthly bodyweight average next to photos taken a few weeks apart gives a clearer picture than either one alone.

Syncing bodyweight with Apple Health or Health Connect

If you weigh in with a smart scale or another app, Boostcamp's bodyweight can sync both ways with Apple Health on iOS or Health Connect on Android, so entries from either side appear in the Bodyweight Tracker chart.

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