Do Your HEALTH STATS Measure Up?
Updated: Oct 13, 2021
It is August 2020, we are in the midst of a global health pandemic and to cheer us up the government has just announced that most of us are too fat! It just gets better doesn’t it. Well, sadly the stats show that they are right, with nearly two-thirds of the adult population in Britain being overweight. This statistic is based on predicted national BMI scores of adults living in Britain.
BMI is a good marker to measure for body health. However, it certainly isn’t the only one we should be looking at and for some people it can be misleading if looked at on its own.
Which Body Health Measurements Are Important?
Outlined below is a list of body health measurements that are important for your health and helpful information on how you can measure them.
(1) BODY MASS INDEX
Body mass index (BMI for short) measures how much body fat you have based on your height and weight. It is a common measurement that is used to gauge if people are overweight or underweight at certain points in their lives.
The ranges for the normal adult population are:
Underweight: less than 18.5
Normal weight: 18.5 - 25
Overweight: 25 - 30
Obesity: greater than 30
How to measure your BMI?
Measuring your BMI is easy. You can either use a helpful online calculator or, if you like maths, work it out yourself. For both you need to first measure your height, without shoes on, and then stand on scales to find out your accurate weight.
ONLINE CALCULAORS
There are many websites offering these. My favourite is on the NHS website. It not only calculates your BMI in seconds, it also provides a simple graphic representation of where you BMI currently is and which range you should be aiming to be in. You can find at https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-weight/bmi-calculator/.
MATHEMATICAL FORMULAS
For those who love maths there are two formulas you can use. A simple metric one and a more challenging imperial one:
The METRIC FORMULA is calculated by taking your weight in kilograms and dividing it by your height in meters squared.
BMI = Weight (kg) / Height (m)²
The IMPERIAL FORMULA is calculated by taking your weight in pounds (lbs) and dividing it by your height in inches squared and then you multiply this figure by a conversion factor of 703
BMI = [Weight (lbs) / Height (inches)²] x 703
(2) WAIST AND HIP MEASUREMENTS
These again are simple measurements to take and are important as they acknowledge that not all body fat is created equal. Your body has fat that sits just under your skin, normally around your hips, belly, thighs and upper arms. This is usually normally healthy fat. However, there is a second type of fat that can gather inside your abdominal walls, near the organs around your belly. This is called visceral fat and too much can be dangerous and it can cause serious inflammation and metabolic imbalances to occur inside you body.
In addition, studies have shown that people with apple shaped bodies, who carry excess weight around their middle, are more likely to be at risk from type 2 diabetes and other chronic health issues than those with pear shaped bodies, who carry more weight around their hips.
Two measurements commonly taken to check if you should be worried about having too much fat around your belly are:
WAIST CIRCUMFERENCE
WAIST TO HIP RATIO
How to take your waist and hip measurements?
To measure your WAIST CIRCUMERENCE take a tape measure and place it around your waist. Find the mid-point between the bottom of your ribcage and the top of your hip bones (often found just above your belly) and take your measurement from there. No holding your tummy in - breath out as normal when you take this measurement!
Regardless of your BMI score, you should consider losing some weight if your waist is:
94cm (37in) or more for men
80cm (31.5in) or more for women
You could be at very high risk of some serious health conditions and you should see your GP if your waist is:
102cm (40in) or more for men
88cm (34.5in) or more for women
To measure your WAIST TO HIP RATIO take a second measurement at the widest part of your hips, around your buttocks. Then divide your waist size by your hips size to get your waist to hip ratio.
WAIST ÷ HIPS = WAIST:HIP RATIO
Healthy ratios are regarded as follows:
For Men, Waist to Hip Ratios should be 1.00 or lower
For Women, Waist to Hip Ratios should be 0.85 or lower
(3) BODY COMPOSITION MEASUREMENTS
Body composition measurements give you a picture of what your body is actually made up of in terms of fat, muscle, bone and water. You need special scales to take these measurements. I'm a big fan of these scales!
Body composition scales were first introduced for athletes and body builders when training. You used to find them mostly in gyms but these days many models are more affordable to buy for home use. They provide a better glimpse into your overall health than traditional scales that only measure your weight. I use them in my clinic with most clients.
Body composition scales provide a range of measurements. Here are the key markers I always look for and what they measure:
Percentage Fat (% fat) – the amount of body fat as a portion of body weight
Fat Mass – the total weight of fat in the body
Muscle Mass – bone free lean tissue mass
Visceral Fat Rating – the fat that is in the internal abdominal cavity, surrounding vital organs
Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) – the minimum level of energy your body needs to function
They also measure your BMI which I always look at too.
How to Use Body Composition Scales?
Body composition scales are easy to use. You just stand on them like normal scales, but with bare feet. Then you enter basic information, like your height, age and sex. The scales send a low-level current through your body. The basis of the technology is called bioelectrical impedance analysis and it works because muscles, fat, bone and water conduct electricity at different rates of resisitance.
The only reading I ignore is the bone marker. I would not use these scales for measuring bone health. That’s a whole other health area where more accurate tests are required.
You can get basic and fancy versions of these scales, according to your price preference. Many gyms have the more sophisticated versions that segment the body into a few different areas to measure muscles mass at different points.
Final thought....
If you don't want to invest in body composition scales, there is another way to measure your body fat which is using skin fold callipers. Personally, these are my least favourite tool, only because for some reason they remind me of the forceps that were needed to help me give birth to my first daughter!
However, some people love them and they are much cheaper than body composition scales and have been around for over 50 years. They are still popular, especially in the world of body building as they allow you to measure fat in multiple sites of your body.
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