Obesity and overweight are two major health concerns around the world. It has also been established that losing just five to 10 percent of your excess weight can set you back from health problems that can further snowball into chronic metabolic syndrome affecting your life, family and community as a whole. can increase. With the busy urban lifestyle, we can see drastic changes in our eating patterns. The habit of doing regular exercise has also decreased. As a result, we started gaining weight, which has resulted in running a thriving business community – all trying to provide quick and easy solutions to shed those extra kilos. This brings up the question – is just losing weight enough or do we need to lose fat as well? Does reducing fat lead to weight loss? What is different and why can’t we do both together? To understand this, we must first know the science behind it.
Understanding Weight Management:
Weight is the sum of all within the human body. It is measured in kilos or pounds. WHO and other scientific communities have recommended weight for height based on population studies.
As scientific evidence pointed to the fact that overweight and obesity were a major contributor to various diseases, he developed a body mass index (BMI), which is the ratio of weight to the square of height. BMI helps to classify different stages ranging from overweight to obese to morbid obesity. This is the best guideline for a healthy weight range for your height.
Normal BMI: 18.0-22.9 kg/m2, Overweight: 23.0-24.9 kg/m2, Obesity: >25 kg/m2
Further scientific evidence points to an increased risk for health depending on your body size. So, waist/hip ratio was defined as a marker for intervention.
Less than 1.0 in men and less than 0.85 in women indicates abnormal fat accumulation.
It also found that overall body fat was a significant marker for an increased incidence of chronic health issues such as diabetes, insulin resistance and cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, body composition analysis (BCA) was found to be of vital importance in planning health visits.
Simply put, our body is made up of fat, protein, minerals and water. BMI takes everyone into account, while BCA calculates each individually.
Age wise: 20-39 years age group should be 8-19% for males and 21-32% for females
40-59 years age group to be 11-21% for males and 23-33% for females
60-79 years age group should be 13-24%, and for women should be 24-35%
Read also: Lose Weight: The Best and Worst Foods for Stubborn Belly Fat
Understanding Weight Loss:
Losing weight, that is total weight, has been the focus of most individuals. The basic premise is that when you control food intake to a level where a negative calorie balance is achieved, weight loss will occur. The formula used here is that a daily negative balance of 500 kcal translates to 3500 kcal/week, which is the amount needed to lose 0.5 kg/week for healthy weight loss. This negative balance can be created by reducing 200-300 kcal from your diet and 200-300 kcal through exercise.
Weight Loss Benefits:
it’s a gentle weight loss, which is sustainable and focuses on a balanced diet from all food groups, eliminating empty calories. It focuses on an overall healthy lifestyle and has many benefits.
Disadvantages of Weight Loss:
In addition to overall weight loss, loss of healthy muscle mass can also occur if macronutrients are not planned well. Negative energy balance diets don’t focus on fat loss.
Understanding Fat Loss:
Fat is an essential part of body composition. it exists as essential fat, which is present in the bones, liver, kidneys, intestines and muscles and is important for the functioning of the body. The other type of fat is storage fat, which is found in adipose tissue. It surrounds the organs and provides cushion to them. It also insulates the body while maintaining the temperature. Excess food gets converted into fat stored in the body. diet that focuses on fat loss Focuses on overall calorie intake with an emphasis on the right amounts of macros, especially protein, moderate healthy carbs and fats, and the timing of each of these.
Benefits of Fat Loss:
It is well established in terms of better insulin resistance, lower risk of heart diseases, diabetes and improvement in overall health.
Disadvantages of Fat Loss:
It needs constant monitoring and attention. Losing fat can be exhausting and weight and fat regain is a reality on the sly.
conclusion:
Weight is a health issue, but reducing obesity is definitely more beneficial for health. However, overall weight loss is also good. So first get all your body composition numbers, consult a qualified nutritionist, plan and set your goals and follow them judiciously.
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