Self assess your Body Fat.

Hi! Welcome to ShreesHealth :)

Yesterday I was teaching my little one and came across a fact that said “an ant can lift 50 times its own weight”, which means if the ant is 1 gm, it can lift up to 50 grams! And what did I do next?? Any guess?

Yes, I started calculating my own weight and the amount I could lift...lol ..

Today I am here to let you know few facts about your body weight and fat distribution. There are many calculations to check if you fall under the correct criteria. I am not going to be too technical to make you understand what they are or how they are calculated in different ways for men, women, children, pregnant ladies or for our elders. What I am more interested to convey is that if you are physically fit and do not have any health issues, you don’t have to worry. Just eat right and sleep tight, you will be able to lift any reasonable weight. But if you are worried about your looks, then that is different J

We are all of different shapes and sizes, everyone is unique. There are three main body types -Endomorph (more body fat and less muscle mass), Ectomorph (less body fat and less muscle mass) and Mesomorph (medium body fat and medium muscle mass). Based on the body types the body reacts to diet and training. Analyze your body type and see the proportion of fat distribution, which is the key to know if you are at health risk or not. There are many more calculations and bio chemicals to know your current health status, but we will look at those that are simple and can be done by yourself. So, this self assessment will help you know your current status, and will help you analyze if you need a dietician or not. If you do, I am here to help !

Here are small common calculations which can give you approximate values to check where you are!

Let’s start with Ideal Body Weight (IBW) = Height in centimeters minus 100

[eg. 160 cms – 100 = 60 kgs.]

If you don’t fit into IBW, let’s check your Body Mass Index (BMI) the most common way to check body fat based on height and weight of adult men and women.

BMI = weight in kgs/ height in (m)²

[eg. 60/(1.6*1.6) = 23.4 kg/m²]

BMI Categories

Less than 18.5 – Underweight

18.5 to 24.9 – Normal

25 to 29.9 – Overweight

More than 30 – Obesity

Now, if you land up in the Overweight or Obesity category, then the next thing that comes is Waist Hip Ratio. This is calculated as waist measurement divided by hip measurement. [eg. 80 cm/ 100 cm = 0.8]. WHO recommends 0.8 for women and 0.9 for men, WHR more than 0.85 indicates that you are at increased health risk because of fat distribution.

The distribution of fat gives different shape to your body. There are two body shapes – “Apple shaped body” and “Pear shaped body”.

“Apple shaped body” is where the fat distribution is more towards the abdomen and waist area. So, If you are apple shaped but not overweight, you are still at a risk of heart diseases and diabetes.

The second one is “Pear shaped body” where the fat distribution is more towards the hips and thighs. So, If you are pear shaped but not overweight, you just need some more exercise and the right diet to keep you hale and healthy!

To know more details about YOUR right diet, reach out to us. We are there to help you. :)

For appointments call # 09962809572 or email us at shreeshealth@gmail.com

Stay Healthy, Live Longer :)

Cheers !!

Vanthi