Look Beyond the Scale to Unlock the Secrets to Ultimate Body Composition

You may have started a new diet and exercise program and feel like you’re making progress, but nothing has changed when you step on the scale.

Numbers on a scale can be frustrating, but it doesn’t mean your efforts aren’t working.

The scale and body mass index (BMI) are basic tools for measuring your body composition, but they don’t provide enough information to determine if you’re at a healthy weight.

Body Composition

To better understand your overall health, it’s essential to know your body composition.

Body composition refers to the amount of fat, muscle, bone, and water that make up your total weight. Body composition can be expressed as a percentage, like body fat percentage, or as an absolute amount, like pounds of muscle mass.

Understanding your body composition is crucial to determine if your weight loss is healthy. Ideal weight loss involves mainly losing fat mass and preserving lean mass, with minimal reduction in your resting metabolic rate.

Your goal should be to lose fat mass and preserve or gain lean mass for better health. 

Higher muscle mass and lower fat mass are associated with a lower risk of heart disease, cancer, and dementia and may be a predictor of longevity.

But I’m not fat?

Some people may need to improve their body composition even if they don’t need to lose weight.

People with normal weight but several metabolic risk factors commonly associated with obesity are at risk of “normal weight obesity” or “thin on the outside and fat on the inside.”

To improve your body composition, you need to sustainably reduce your calorie intake to lower excess body fat, consume enough protein to promote muscle growth and exercise to build lean mass.

How to measure body composition

Measuring your waist circumference can be an easy and convenient way to estimate your body composition.

Belly fat, also known as weight around the middle, is considered the most critical weight to lose for better health. Having a larger abdominal circumference in relation to height, or a waist-to-height ratio, is a predictor of an increased risk of diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and overall mortality, even in people with normal weight.

This test, although not perfect, is easy to perform and does not require a doctor’s order.

To calculate your waist-to-height ratio, divide your waist measurement by your height. A waist-to-height ratio of less than 0.5 indicates good insulin sensitivity, while a number higher than 0.5 indicates worsening insulin resistance. You don’t even need a tape measure to perform this test. All you need is a piece of string. The length of the string around your waist should be no more than half your height.

By measuring your waist circumference, you can get a good starting point to see if you might have insulin resistance and take the necessary steps to improve your health. It’s important to note that this test is not affected by ethnicity, gender, age, height, or muscle mass. A waist-to-height ratio higher than 0.5 indicates increased risk, regardless of these factors.

 

Nutrition plays a crucial role in improving body composition.

Protein

Increasing your protein intake is essential for building muscle, especially if you’re trying to eat fewer calories than you’re burning. Not only will protein help you build muscle mass but it also promotes satiety. You’ll feel fuller longer when eating protein.

Regular protein intake supplies muscles with the amino acids they need to grow and strengthen. The maximum muscle-building effect occurs around 1.6 grams per kilogram of reference body weight per day for the average person.

Converting pounds to kilograms: Divide your weight in pounds by two and then take 1/10th of your answer. For example, if you weigh 200 pounds, divide by two to get 100, then take 1/10th off (10) to get 90 kilograms.

C​arbs

Decreasing carbs can have a positive impact on body composition.

Studies show improved body composition with a low-carb diet, including a 15% reduction in abdominal fat from a two-year keto diet study. Low-carb diets lead to a more significant loss of fat mass compared to low-fat diets.

Calories

Reducing your calorie intake can help you lose fat mass, but it’s essential to do so in a way that preserves muscle mass.

Some studies show that calorie restriction primarily leads to muscle loss, which is not ideal. To preserve muscle mass, ensure you’re consuming enough protein and exercising.

Get off the scale

It’s important to understand that the scale is not enough to determine if you’re at a healthy weight.

Body composition gives you a better picture of your overall health and is crucial to determine if your weight loss is healthy.

Improving your body composition involves reducing calorie intake, increasing protein intake, and engaging in exercise. By following the tips above, backed by science, you can improve your body composition and achieve better overall health.

Consult your doctor before starting any new diet or exercise regimen, especially if you’re a man over fifty.

 

Take care, even down there. 

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