Though one of the most popular tools used today to determine whether someone is at a healthy weight or not is the BMI, body fat and lean muscle tissue don't figure into the equation. This has led many experts to discount BMI as an archaic measurement that isn't accurate for many people. What is BMI, and why is it a good measure for some, maybe, and completely wrong for others?
BMI, or body mass index, was created in the early 1800s by Adolphe Quetelet. Because of that, it's sometimes called the Quetelet index. It's nothing more than a way of comparing a person's weight to his or her height, and determining if his or her weight falls into a healthy and normal range. The BMI is still used today pretty much as it was when Quetelet invented it.
The formula for figuring BMI (body fat, bone and frame size, muscle and body type aren't included in that) is this: Take your height in meters squared (your height times itself) and divide your weight in kilograms by that number. For example, if I'm 5 feet tall, that's about 1.5 meters. To square that number, take 1.5 times 1.5. The result of that is 2.5. So if I weigh 120 pounds, that's about 54.5 kilograms. Divide 54.5 by 2.5 and I get 21.8 as my BMI. The normal weight range is from 18.5 to 24.9, so 21.8 is classified as a normal weight. Underweight is considered 18.5 and below, while overweight people will calculate a BMI of 25 to 29.9. A BMI of 30 or greater indicates obesity.
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BMI, body fat and general health can all be used as signs of how fit a person is. But where general health is pretty self-explanatory and the percentage of body fat clearly shows whether a person gets enough exercise or not, BMI is a bit trickier.
People with a lot of muscle don't show accurate BMI readings. Because muscle weighs so much more than fat but takes up less space, a relatively small statured person can carry a lot of muscle weight without looking huge. BMI doesn't take that into account. Football players, professional wrestlers, bodybuilders, and virtually any athlete who has a lot of muscle is going to measure as overweight and even obese according to the BMI. So it's not accurate for them. Is it accurate for everyone else?
The answer to that is yes, and no. It depends on you. The BMI typically doesn't show an accurate result for children. And extremely tall or large-framed people will show overweight or obese classifications more easily because of the extra weight from their bones and muscles. So for very short, tall or muscular people, the BMI appears to not be a good tool.
There's also no distinguishing between men and women in the BMI. Body fat is more natural for women who are supposed to have more than men, so some sort of distinction in the measurement of the sexes would help the BMI's accuracy.
Showing posts with label lose body fat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lose body fat. Show all posts
Friday, 15 October 2010
Monday, 22 December 2008
Why Interval Training Is The Best Way To Lose Body Fat
Interval training is effective because it makes use of a
diverse range of fat burning methods, leaving you lean and
mean and in control. The fat-burning techniques include such
things as steady state cardiovascular workouts, high
intensity interval training, and weight training, among
others.
Interval training is an approach where you alternate between
intense and easy workouts while resting in between. Your
workout will be in intervals, this way you provide your body
with the best exercise and you will burn the greatest amount
of fat as possible. This is the perfect solution for those
who want to lose a few pounds and be in top shape.
Steady state cardiovascular is working out in an exercise
that is at a fast pace for a specific period of time. You
will stay at that steady pace for the entire duration of the
exercise. Activities like this will involve exercising from
20 to 60 minutes. You want to work out at around 75% of your
maximum heart rate. The biggest benefit of this type of
exercise is it is easy for someone who is overweight to burn
the most calories in just one session.
High intensity interval training will help you lose as much
fat as possible. A person performing this workout will do
different rounds of high intensity mixed with low intensity
workouts. A good example of this would be running, walking
slowly, exercise bike, walking slowly, etc. This should go
on for up to 30 to 45 minutes.
Although the steady state works better to burn more fat in a
single workout, studies have proven that the interval
training works better over the long term. It actually works by
raising the body's metabolism. Although you are burning more
calories in a steady rate workout session, you are actually
burning more in the long run from the interval training sessions.
The reason being that even when you are at rest you are
burning fat. This enables your body to easily shed fat while
making it harder to gain back.
High intensity interval training can be quite hard for
certain people. If you are a low fitness person who is
completely out of shape it would be a good idea to start
with a workout that is less intense prior to starting on
something such as this.
Want the best interval training program to blowtorch
body fat and build muscle, all with little or no equipment
and only 3 short sessions a week? check it out NOW =>
Turbulence Training
diverse range of fat burning methods, leaving you lean and
mean and in control. The fat-burning techniques include such
things as steady state cardiovascular workouts, high
intensity interval training, and weight training, among
others.
Interval training is an approach where you alternate between
intense and easy workouts while resting in between. Your
workout will be in intervals, this way you provide your body
with the best exercise and you will burn the greatest amount
of fat as possible. This is the perfect solution for those
who want to lose a few pounds and be in top shape.
Steady state cardiovascular is working out in an exercise
that is at a fast pace for a specific period of time. You
will stay at that steady pace for the entire duration of the
exercise. Activities like this will involve exercising from
20 to 60 minutes. You want to work out at around 75% of your
maximum heart rate. The biggest benefit of this type of
exercise is it is easy for someone who is overweight to burn
the most calories in just one session.
High intensity interval training will help you lose as much
fat as possible. A person performing this workout will do
different rounds of high intensity mixed with low intensity
workouts. A good example of this would be running, walking
slowly, exercise bike, walking slowly, etc. This should go
on for up to 30 to 45 minutes.
Although the steady state works better to burn more fat in a
single workout, studies have proven that the interval
training works better over the long term. It actually works by
raising the body's metabolism. Although you are burning more
calories in a steady rate workout session, you are actually
burning more in the long run from the interval training sessions.
The reason being that even when you are at rest you are
burning fat. This enables your body to easily shed fat while
making it harder to gain back.
High intensity interval training can be quite hard for
certain people. If you are a low fitness person who is
completely out of shape it would be a good idea to start
with a workout that is less intense prior to starting on
something such as this.
Want the best interval training program to blowtorch
body fat and build muscle, all with little or no equipment
and only 3 short sessions a week? check it out NOW =>
Turbulence Training
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