When You Can’t See Progress, Look for Evidence
There will be weeks when you feel like nothing is working. You’re showing up, following your plan, doing your best—but the scale isn’t moving. Your clothes don’t feel different. The mirror isn’t giving you the validation you were hoping for.
Cue the self-doubt spiral:
“Am I wasting my time?”
“Is this even working?”
“What’s the point?”
But just because you can’t see the progress doesn’t mean it’s not happening. In fact, the biggest changes are often the ones we don’t notice until they’ve compounded over time.
Why visible results are a lagging indicator
Behavior change research tells us that outcomes take time to show up. What you do this week may not reflect on the scale or in your energy for another two, four, or even six weeks.
It’s kind of like planting seeds. You water the soil. You show up daily. And for a while, it looks like nothing is happening.
Then one day... A sprout appears.
But that sprout wasn’t magic. It was evidence of all the invisible work happening underground.
Same with your progress.
What to track when the scale won’t budge
One of the biggest mindset shifts I coach clients through is detaching from only looking at physical outcomes (weight, size, inches) and tuning into behavior-based evidence.
If you’re in a slow season, try looking for:
How often you’re following your habits (meal prep, workouts, hydration, walks)
How you handle stress or weekends differently now
The fact that you’re noticing your negative self-talk instead of believing it
Getting through your cycle with less all-or-nothing spiraling
Saying no to things that drain you
Logging food without guilt or pressure
None of these things show up in a before-and-after photo. But all of them are data. They’re evidence. And when you collect it? You learn to trust yourself.
A client moment: "Nothing's changing"
A client recently said, “I just feel like I’m doing all the right things but nothing’s changing.”
So we looked at her past two weeks.
She had walked 8 out of 14 days.
Prepped her lunches 5 times.
Slept 7+ hours most nights.
Managed PMS without binging.
Was in bed by 10pm 11 out of 14 days.
That’s not "nothing." That’s proof that she’s becoming a different version of herself. One choice at a time.
Action steps: How to track progress when it’s not obvious
Start a wins journal.
List one thing every day that moved you toward your goals—even if it was tiny.Shift your weekly check-in questions.
Instead of just "What went wrong?" ask:
What did I do well?
What felt easier than last week?
What am I proud of?
Use behavior-based tracking.
Mark off your habits on a calendar. Keep a note in your phone. Create your own receipt of effort.Have someone reflect it back to you.
Sometimes we’re too close to see what’s working. This is one of the biggest reasons my clients make progress—because I reflect their wins back to them when they forget.
P.S. Progress doesn’t always look like change. Sometimes it looks like staying steady when you used to give up.
If you feel like things are slow, or you’re not getting the validation you hoped for this week—look again. Look at your actions. Look at your mindset. Look at the moments you would have spiraled six months ago, but didn’t.
That’s progress. That counts. You count.
If you’re having trouble seeing it clearly on your own? Let’s find it together.
Ready to start noticing the evidence you’ve been missing?