Measuring Body Fat

Many people who are watching their weight — or trying to lose some pounds — turn to their bathroom scale. But that old familiar standby is not the only way to measure one’s size. Another possibility to consider is your body fat percentage.

Body Fat: What Are the Dangers?

When most of us hear the words "body fat" they have immediate negative connotations. However, in the right proportion, fat is actually critical to our diet and health. In the not-so-distant past, the ability to store extra body fat allowed our ancestors to survive in times of famine, when food was hard to come by. Even today it’s essential to keep the body functioning, to preserve body heat, and to protect organs from trauma.

Problems arise when our bodies store too much fat. This can lead to a variety of health issues, including high cholesterol, hypertension, glucose intolerance, and insulin resistance. Especially dangerous is fat stored at the waist, creating what is often called an “apple-shaped” body, as opposed to fat on the hips and thighs, a “pear-shaped” body.

“Normal body fat for men is around 8 to 15 percent of their total body weight and for women approximately 20 to 30 percent,” says Caroline Apovian, MD, associate professor of medicine and pediatrics at Boston University School of Medicine and director of the Center for Nutrition and Weight Management at Boston Medical Center.

Body Fat: How Can It Be Measured?

There are a variety of ways to measure the amount of body fat a person is carrying. “The most accurate way is ‘underwater weighing,’ which weighs the person on land and then underwater,” says Mary M. Flynn, PhD, RD, chief research dietitian and assistant professor of medicine at the Miriam Hospital and Brown University in Providence, R.I. “But equipment for this is very expensive and not readily available.”

Another fairly accurate option is Bioelectric Impedance Analysis (BIA). BIA consists of electrodes being placed on a person’s hand and foot while a current (which is not felt) is passed through the body. Fat has less water and is more resistant to the current, whereas muscle, which contains more water, is less resistant. The resulting numbers are entered into an equation which figures the percentage of fat and lean tissue.

The easiest method is measuring waist circumference and determining the Body Mass Index (BMI). A waist circumference over 35 inches for women and 40 inches for men is cause for concern.

Figuring BMI involves a little more calculation. BMI is done by multiplying your weight in pounds by 703, then dividing that number by your height in inches two times. If the end result is less than 18.5, the individual is underweight;18.5 to 24.9 is normal; 25.0 to 29.9 is overweight; and over 30 is obese.

“However, you must be aware of this disclaimer. BMI alone is not an indication of body fat, especially in athletes and bodybuilders. Growing children under 18 years old should also avoid using BMI,” says Elizabeth Downs, RD, clinical dietitian at the Montefiore Medical Center at the University Hospital for the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, N.Y.

One final way of determining body fat is using skin calipers to measure fat at specific places in the body. However, not only is it easy to make errors, but this method also doesn’t measure any interior fat or fat contained in thighs and women’s breasts.

Ultimately the percentage of body fat is just another number in the health equation. And if you are not happy with the result, all it takes is adding exercise and cutting calories to get it moving in the right direction.

Copyright © 2015 Everyday Health Media, LLC

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5 Things Guys Love About Women Who Lift

When I met my wife, she was a total gym rat. Sure, she ran for the college cross country team, but she wasn’t the stereotypical wispy, rail thin beanpole of a woman. Instead, she could throw a barbell around, wasn’t afraid of a bit of steel, and didn’t leave me with a feeling of dread for my life when I asked her for a spot. No wonder I wound up marrying her.

Anyways, there’s just something about women who lift, isn’t there? As a matter of fact, I can think of 5 things I love about women who lift. They’re all C-words (and don’t worry – they’re all good C-words). Let’s jump in.

1. Curves

Most women naturally have curves. Women in general have higher body fat percentages to support hormones and babies, wider hips to support childbirth, and bigger butts to make them more attractive to males and to offset the biomechanical weight of boobs. I’m not trying to sound sexist. These are just facts of life – take ‘em or leave ‘em, ladies.

But women who lift don’t just have round and soft curves. They have defined, sculpted curves that make a curvaceous woman who lifts vs. a curvaceous woman who doesn’t lift look like a Prius vs. a Ferrari. Sure, they both have curves, but one is just way sexier.

And by the way, you can’t get curves by running, doing Hatha Yoga, or working your core. You get curves by throwing weight around, recovering well, then doing it again.

2. Confidence

You can just see the steely look in the eyes and the set jaw of a woman who has had to lift more than her bodyweight off the ground or who has suffered under the crushing weight of a loaded barbell. See, there’s a hardcore stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system when you’re forced to handle a significant load, and this results in a big dose of stress resilience.

I’m not saying that riding a bike for a hundred miles or completing a marathon doesn’t breed confidence, but I’d say that endurance is more skewed more towards perseverance, while strength gives you more of a “I’m me and I’m not changing – take me or leave me” kind of confidence. And guys dig that.

3. Control

I’ll admit it: I like a woman who can throw me around in the bedroom. A woman who can take control. A woman who start on top, then barrel roll me from one side of the bed to the other and wind up on the bottom. A woman who can leave biceps, shoulders, hips and butt sore in the morning.

If a woman has ventured beyond elastic bands and body weight exercises and is instead used to tossing a kettlebell, hurling a medicine ball, moving a barbell, and throwing around some significant free weight, she’s going to be able to do all that and more in the bedroom.

Copyright © 2015

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Secrets to Mastering the Squat: Part 2

You don’t know squat!

OK, OK so that’s probably not true.  But after reading Part 1 of this article, you may have felt like you didn’t know anything about how to squat properly, and that’s OK!  We all had to learn at some point.

Now if you read that article and you were already familiar with those concepts then congrats!  You’re totally ahead of the game!

Part 1 of this article discussed how to teach a beginner to squat using a box or a bench, and then progressing them to a body weight free squat.

Part 2 discusses the next progression which is a goblet squat.

Goblet squat — front view and side view

The goblet squat was invented by Dan John and is a fantastic exercise.  They allow you to lightly load a squat and build a solid pattern before putting a bar on your back.  Most women aren’t ready to go straight from a body weight squat to a bar on their back, so a goblet squat is the perfect transition.  Also, holding the weight in front of you, forces you to stiffen your core more, which helps you control your pelvis.

1. Pick up the kettlebell properly!   Make sure you push back into your hips to pick up the kettlebell instead of rounding your back.  This reinforces a good hip hinge pattern and is safer for your lumbar spine.

2. Keep your elbows down!  Keeping your elbows down is much easier on your shoulders, and allows you to hold heavier weight than if your elbows are flared out.

3. Pull your shoulder blades back/squeeze your upper back together!  Anyone who has had weight on their back can attest to the fact that keeping your upper back tight is a must!  Not only does it keep your whole body tighter, but it will teach you to create a little “shelf” on your back for when you do start squatting with a bar.

4. Keep your ribs down!  As discussed in the video, keeping your ribs down will help you maintain a solid neutral spine position, and it will make the next cue much easier.

5. Brace your core!  Try to create pressure in your core circumferentially, or all the way around – front, back, and sides.  This will help protect your spine, and control your pelvis.

6. Tuck your chin slightly!  Many lifters cue, “head back,” which works for powerlifters wanting to lift maximal weight.  But when longevity and health are your goal, squatting with a more neutral head is safer, and actually allows you to sit back into your hips more easily.

7. Eyes up!  Just because your chin is tucked, doesn’t mean you can’t look up.  Looking down at the ground can encourage you to drop your chest and fall forward.  Keeping your eyes up can help you “drive out of the hole” on your squat.

Once you have mastered the goblet squat, you have a couple of options for progressing:

1. Offset goblet squat – Hold a kettlebell in one hand when squatting, for more of a challenge!  Just make sure you drop the load around 30-40% when you first attempt these to ensure that you can maintain proper form!

2. Double goblet squat – This variation is exactly like the variation above, except you are holding two kettlebells instead of one, so you can use more weight.  You can also “mis-load” the weight and hold two different weights in your hands.

3. Band goblet squats – Put a mini-band on right under your knees to remind you to drive your knees out as you squat.

Alright guys – now that you know how to goblet squat, you have no excuses!!  Get after it!  And if you want to see more about squatting with a bar on your back, check out Part 3 of this series.

Do you goblet squat?  Do you do any variations not mentioned above?  Did you learn anything from this article?  We’d love your comments below!
© 2015 Girls Gone Strong  

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Apple Diet Weight Loss - How You Can Lose Weight on the Apple Diet

Apple Diet has become weight apple very popular with regard to weight loss, and there are variations of this scheme. Some of them work and  lose weight with apple cider vinegar some weight apple do not. In this article I will share with you the tips apple weight loss plan that has helped thousands of people lose weight quickly and easily.

Apple diet to lose weight

1. To lose lose weight with apple cider vinegar weight, eat apples, you must be committed to an important rule: eat an apple before each meal. Apples are an excellent source of nutrients weight apple, vitamins and minerals, and are a catalyst Bragg apple cider vinegar weight loss for fat loss. Fruits generally contain a large amount of water, which means they can easily be filled with unnecessary calories without consumers. Do not worry about the weight of the  water, because your body will naturally get rid of it through urine.

Two. Do not be lose weight with apple cider vinegar afraid to mix things up a bit. Some people are tired of the apple diet because they do not weight apple want to eat the same thing every day. While weight apple apples are the best, you can call it a weight  loss diet of fruit instead of a weight loss diet and an apple. Bragg apple cider vinegar weight loss All fruits have high nutrients, and if you are sick and tired weight apple of apples on a given day, then eating an orange or a banana to break the funk.

The apple diet can help you lose weight, but unfortunately, it is a solution in the short term and may actually slow down your metabolism, which is not weight apple good at all. If you need to lose 10 pounds quickly try the apple diet, but I would do something a little better

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