What is Weight Management:
The
the term ‘weight management’ refers to the maintenance of one’s weight within
a healthy range, being neither overweight nor underweight.
Overweight or
obesity can be defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation in our
bodies. Overweight and obese affect one’s day-to-day physical performance. What
is more important, these are major risk factors for heart disease, stroke, type
II diabetes, osteoarthritis, and certain forms of cancers.
On the other hand,
being underweight makes one vulnerable to gastrointestinal diseases and affects
the immune system adversely.
Parents and teachers may please take note that as per
World Health Organization (WHO) report, childhood obesity is associated with a
higher chance of premature death and disability in adulthood1.
The
the problem of overweight is so huge and widespread that WHO has termed its ‘global epidemic’. It is no longer confined to developed countries; it is
increasing at a faster rate in developing countries.
As per the WHO report, in 2005,
globally approximately 1.6 billion adults (age 15+) were overweight and At least 400 million of them obese.
However,
the good news is that the problem of overweight and obesity
is largely preventable. And, the solution lies in an intelligent mix of
a balanced diet, regular exercise, and a positive mindset.
Cause of Overweight:
For
a normal person who is not suffering from any medical abnormality, the
the fundamental cause of overweight and obesity is more caloric intake and less
caloric expenditure. This caloric imbalance may occur due to the following
reasons
–
(i)
Aging process – With age our body composition3 changes. There is an
increase in fat percentage and decrease in fat-free mass.
Consequent to this,
our Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) declines. The decline in RMR means that our
body now requires fewer calories for its maintenance. Failure to
adjust our caloric intake to changed body composition leads to weight gain.
(ii)
Sedentary lifestyle – Increasing urbanization, sedentary nature of work, the widespread use of mechanized transport give us less scope for physical activity.
Ignoring this fact and continuing with higher caloric intake contributes to
weight gain.
(iii)
Discontinuation of exercise – Those earlier accustomed to regular physical
exercise may suddenly discontinue exercise due to illness, work commitment, or
out of sheer laziness, yet continue with the usual high caloric intake.
This
would surely cause weight gain. It is not very uncommon to see many
ex-sportspersons walking with those extra tires of fat around their waist, for
this reason only.
(iv)
Junk food – Frequent and indiscriminate consumption of junk foods is a major
cause of overweight and obesity, especially among children. Junk foods are very
high in calories due to their high contents of fats, sugar, and salts.
While
high calories from fats and sugar directly contribute to weight gain, salt
contributes so by causing more water retention in the body.
(v)
Poor understanding of exercise and nutrition – The relationship between the number
of calories spent and calories gained has to be understood properly.
Remember
this simple common-sense formula – for weight maintenance, caloric expenditure
should be equal to caloric intake; for weight loss, caloric expenditure should
be more than caloric intake and for weight gain, caloric expenditure should be
less than caloric intake.
Some of the newcomers to exercise have a tendency to
overestimate their energy expenditure during exercise and taking it as a license to consume high calories food. This results in an imbalance between
caloric intake and caloric expenditure.
Read more: How to Measure Body Fat
Read more: Most Recommended Methods of Weight Gain
What is the Ideal Body Weight?
We
are a generation obsessed with weight management? We are always in quest of ideal body weight. We starve ourselves to a ridiculous extent, put more faith in
miracle machines, devour magic pills and spend thousands of rupees visiting
slimming centers.
The question is – what is the ideal body weight (IBW) for a person?
The
the answer is – this is a WRONG question. In fact, there is NO ideal body weight
for anyone.
From
time to time, efforts have been made to devise some sort of Height-Weight
Tables to determine IBW for a corresponding height.
For example, Metropolitan
Life Insurance Height & Weight Table (1980), developed by Metropolitan Life The insurance Company was based on data associated with the long life of the subjects
who was closer to the average IBW?
Later,
Body Mass Index (BMI) came to be widely accepted as a simple, quick, and
convenient method for the determination of overweight and obesity. BMI is
calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by height in meters squared.
Weight (kg)
BMI = ...........................................
Height
(meter)
IBW is measured at a BMI
between 18.5-24.99 Kg/m2 or more and obesity at a BMI of 30 kg/m2, overweight
at or more.
Calculate your BMI: Click here...
These cut-offs are based on
the association between BMI and chronic disease and mortality and have been adopted
by the World Health Organization (WHO). Please see the following table –
However,
despite its wide acceptability and use, the concept of BMI suffers from the
following limitations:
(i) BMI is not a valid 4 method
to assess body fat. It is based on a simplistic presumption that ‘overweight’
is due to excess fat and hence more the fat, the greater the risk of diseases.
Therefore, being ‘overweight’ is always undesirable.
This presumption is not
true. BMI lacks validity as it does not distinguish excess adiposity (fatness)
from greater muscularity. In other words, it ignores the fact that overweight
can also be caused by greater muscularity or a larger body frame.
For example, sportspersons
like bodybuilders, heavyweight boxers, footballers, sprinters, etc. maybe
‘overweight’ or even ‘obese’ by BMI standards despite their excellent athletic
ability and low body fat percentage.
There is a distinction between overweight due
to excess fat and overweight due to excess muscularity. When your overweight is
due to excess fat, it is a liability.
It will reduce your physical performance
and increase the risk of certain diseases. Such overweight is harmful, hence
undesirable and a matter of concern.
On the other hand, if your overweight is
due to extra muscle gain, it will contribute to your better physical
performance. Such overweight is useful hence desirable and a matter of
celebration. Look at the following illustration–
In the above illustration, BMI
will blindly place both A and B in the same category. Whose health is more at
risk? You cannot find any answer from BMI.
Actually, in case of the person B,
high % fat is a matter of concern while for A, low % fat and high % lean body
mass is a matter of celebration though both of them have the same weight.
Read also:
(ii)
BMI ignores the element of body frame size. A person of the same height and body
composition but of a larger body frame may weigh more than his medium or small
body frame counterpart. But for all three body frame sizes, the same IBW has
been fixed.
Thus when we prescribe the same IBW for all body frame sizes and
allow a concession of 10% (beyond which one would be categorized as
overweight), it practically means allowing a narrower range of concession to a
person of larger body frame (as he is already heavier due to his larger
skeletal frame).
This is not a fair practice. In this illustration, D will have
a greater BMI than C despite having an equal % of body fat only because of his
larger body frame.
(iii) BMI is not a suitable
measure of ideal weight in the case of children. For adults who have stopped
growing, the BMI method presumes that thereafter an increase in their weight will be caused by an increase in their body fat.
In the case of children, their amount
of body fat keeps on changing as they grow up. Their BMI may decrease during
early school days (due to shedding of baby fat) and then again increase as they
grow into adulthood (due to increased muscle mass and larger body frame).
(iv) Similarly, BMI will
underestimate the amount of body fat of an elderly person. I have found many
persons declaring with satisfaction (and pride) that over the years they have
maintained their ideal weight. Take an example of a person who weighed 70 Kg at
the age of 20, 40, and 60. Look at the following illustration –
It
is clear from this illustration that the weight of the person has remained in an
ideal weight range throughout despite an increase in % body fat over the years
(which is not a healthy sign).
This person has lost muscle mass, bone mass, and
is still happy about his weight! By now, it must be fairly clear that it is not
the ‘overweight’ as such but it is rather the ‘overfat’ which should be of our
real concern.
What is the Ideal Body Fat:
Unfortunately,
unlike Body Mass Index (BMI) there is no universally accepted set of body fat
standards. Different studies have recommended a minimal essential fat
percentage of total body weight.
Minimal fat is the body fat that is necessary
for health. It is essential for our nervous system, cell membranes, regulation of body
temperature, and production of sex hormones.
According to the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), the minimal fat percentage for men and women should be 5%
and 10-12% of total body weight respectively.
Body fat less than 10-12% in
women may lead to bone-thinning disease osteoporosis. The healthy range of fat
percentage may go up to 25% and 38% for men and women respectively.
US
Army standards allow up to 26% and 36% for men and women above 40
respectively. There are so many other studies that recommend an ideal fat %
range with slight variations. Let’s not embark upon this endless journey of
finding ‘the ideal body fat’.
What is important for us is that we should be
well within a healthy range of body fat percentages. The lower the body fat
percentage; the better will be our physical performance.
Conclusion:
In final words
If you have any doubts or queries share your experience in the comments below.
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