Weight Management Fundamentals

Everyone seems to be looking for a magical formula to lose weight, shed fat, and build muscle – through a new diet book, diet pill, exercise gadget, and/or an exercise philosophy promising quick and easy results. When it comes to healthy weight management, there is no “magic bullet”; but there are ways we can reach and maintain a weight that is appropriate for us if we are willing to do the work.

Although many people can recite the number of calories and grams of fat in a particular food, they may not know as much about their own body in terms of proper weight, amount of exercise needed, and balanced nutrition.

Too many of us look only as far as our bathroom scale. The truth is that our weight is only one part of our overall fitness. An important part of knowing what we should weigh is determined by what makes up that number. Real fitness is realized when our weight reflects a healthy ratio of muscle, bone, and fat.

Although a pound of muscle and a pound of fat have the same weight, because muscle is more dense than fat, its mass is more compact and takes up about one-third of the space. Practically speaking this means that a lower body weight does not necessarily mean better overall health unless exercise is a part of the equation. Here’s where the body mass index (BMI) comes into the mix.

Many people do not know their BMI or how to calculate it. Here’s the simple formula:

• First – take your weight in pounds and multiply it by 705
• Next – divide that number by your height in inches
• Finally – divide that number by your height in inches once again

For example, the BMI calculation for a woman who is 5’5” and weighs 150 pounds looks like this:

• 150 x 705 = 105750
• 105750 divided by 66 = 1602
• 1602 divided by 66 = BMI of 24

A healthy BMI is considered to range between 18.5 and 24.9. Individuals who fall under 18.5 are considered underweight. Those within a range of 25.0 and 29.9 are considered overweight. Once the BMI goes above 30.0 individuals are considered to be obese.

Although body composition is a better indication of our health and fitness level than our weight, it is still not perfect. Our genes determine our body type, and some types just carry more fat than others regardless of diet or exercise. Each of us inherits a specific body type, and although as a society we tend to obsess about what is deemed to be the “perfect” body, healthy bodies actually come in all shapes and sizes. These are categorized as:

• Ectomorphic – are people with long lean bodies who may actually have difficulty gaining weight and muscle no matter how much they eat or how hard they work out.
• Mesomorphic – are people who are generally muscular, may be shorter, and have stocky arms and legs. They tend to gain muscle mass when they do strength training, and may have difficulty losing weight.
• Endomorphic – are people who are more pear or apple shaped, and carry more body fat. Their bodies resist losing weight and body fat, and their metabolism may actually slow down to resist weight loss.

Many of us don’t fit exactly into any of these categories; rather we find we’re somewhere in-between. It is, however, important to understand these differences to determine what really is healthy for us when it comes to creating a lifestyle that is built on eating the right foods and getting proper exercise – and loving the bodies we’re in.

Although there is no magic bullet for obtaining the perfect weight, knowing how many calories to consume is a step in the right direction. In order to maintain your current weight you need to have as many calories leave your body as those consumed. It’s a very simple formula – calories in must equal calories out.

Calories in is everything we eat and drink. Calories out include our resting metabolic rate (RMR is the minimum number of calories our body needs to support its basic physiological functions—breathing, circulating blood and the biochemical reactions required to keep us alive). Also factored is the thermic effect of the foods we eat (how much energy it takes to process, use or store them), and our physical activity.

Again, genetics and body type play a role, but a simplistic way for women to determine how many calories they can consume in order to lose weight is to take the healthy body weight they are seeking and multiply it by 10 calories.

Example: 140 pounds x 10 calories
= 1,400 calories a day

A pound of fat equals 3,500 calories no matter how you slice it! Theoretically, in order to lose one-half to one pound a week, we must create a deficit of 250 to 500 calories each day either by eating less or burning more through physical activity. As resistant as many of us are to getting off the couch and moving (it truly is the best way to help us lose weight), doing so will help us create healthy lifestyles.