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Four indicators to test your weight loss effect
Obesity ≠ Overweight
We often say: "I have gained weight recently, three or four pounds." ". Because weight can reflect our fatness and thinness, and it is very convenient to measure, we often use it to measure fatness or thinness. In fact, this concept is not advisable - weight is affected by many factors. Physical condition, bone size, muscle specific gravity, water content, etc. will all affect the weight, but it cannot accurately reflect the fatness or thinness of the body. Therefore, we say that obesity ≠ overweight. It is very unscientific to use weight as the only indicator of obesity.
Lose weight ≠ lose weight
When losing weight, the scale is often the thing we miss most every day - any small change on the pointer becomes a reflection of our daily mood. wind vane. However, because weight is affected by many factors, the purpose of losing weight often leads to great deviations in our weight loss - the fluctuation of weight affects our confidence and determination to lose weight; the simple pursuit of weight loss leads us to adopt rapid Methods to lose weight, and most of these methods lose muscle and water, so it is easy to regain weight. So don’t rely so much on your scale needle, sometimes it can lie to you! So, how do we know whether we are fat or thin, and how do we test our weight loss results?
Obesity = too high fat rate
Our goal in losing weight is to ultimately have a beautiful figure and a healthy body. Every action taken during weight loss is an effort to achieve this goal. From the perspective of body composition, our body is mainly composed of several major parts-bones, internal organs, muscles, water, and fat. Obviously, the first two parts are basically fixed; muscle is the main place for calorie consumption, and its reduction will lead to a decline in metabolism, so you cannot lose muscle when you lose weight; the water content will change, and it is easy to be excreted from the body and increased by supplementation. ; And fat not only has a great impact on our appearance, but also has great harm to our health, so the fundamental goal of losing weight is: lose fat! Obesity does not simply mean being overweight, but refers to abnormal or excessive fat accumulation. To measure whether you are obese, you can measure the proportion of adipose tissue in your body, that is, your fat rate.
Weight loss = fat loss
When we lose weight, we use fat rate as another indicator, which can better reflect our weight loss effect and weight loss than simply using weight as the only criterion. is the direction correct. What you must remember is that every action you take to lose weight is to reduce fat, not to lose weight. Therefore, some behaviors, such as reducing water or reducing muscle tissue (muscle is the main place for calorie consumption, reducing muscle is equivalent to suicide in weight loss), are against our goals and even hinder our weight loss.
Measuring the effect of weight loss
From the above we can see that our weight loss is actually to reduce fat content, not to reduce weight; traditionally, weight is used as the only indicator to measure the effect of weight loss. , there are big misunderstandings in this method. In order to better measure our weight loss effect and test whether our weight loss direction is correct, combined with the advantages and disadvantages of various measurement methods, it is recommended that you use four changes as indicators to measure the weight loss effect - changes in fat percentage, changes in weight, Changes in moisture content and changes in circumference of various parts of the body (especially waist circumference).
If your weight has dropped, or your body water content has increased, but your fat content has not changed (when your body water content is normal, the same below), or even increased, don’t be overjoyed—it’s very possible. You are losing water and even muscle, not fat!
If your fat percentage decreases appropriately, then your fat will also decrease. At this time, even if the weight does not decrease temporarily, the circumference will continue to decrease, and the goal of weight loss will be achieved.
If your weight (or body water content) drops too quickly, you should rethink your weight loss methods. Because fat loss is generally not that fast, you may lose more water or muscle. If you lose more than 2 pounds of weight per week, it usually means that lean muscle tissue has also been broken down-at this time, your metabolism will decrease, that is, when you are quiet and still, your body's consumption will change. few. So from the perspective of continuing to lose weight and maintain body shape, even if your weight loss effect seems to be good on the surface, if the lost muscles are not replenished in time, it will become more difficult to continue losing weight and maintaining weight.
The recommended weight loss rate is 1-2 pounds per week, which is also a healthy fat loss rate.
In addition, in order for us to compare changes in these indicators, it is more meaningful to measure them at the same time every day (or every week), in the same environment and physical condition.
Weight is more affected by other factors, and human body metabolism is also slower. It is more appropriate to measure once a week (fixed day); fat rate and water rate are the indicators of weight loss, 2-3 times a week. The measurement can promptly check whether the weight loss direction is correct. As for girth, it is an indicator that is not limited by time and place, and it is more convenient to measure.
Fat percentage - the most faithful indicator of fatness and thinness
There are many misunderstandings in the traditional use of weight to measure weight loss results. Losing weight is to reduce fat. Weight can objectively reflect changes in fat, but it is affected by many factors. However, the fat rate can more directly reflect the changes in body fat. It is the most faithful indicator of our weight loss effect.
Fat percentage refers to the proportion of adipose tissue in body composition. Measuring fat percentage can better reflect the body's fat level (obesity level) than simply measuring weight.
Fat percentage can be measured using a specialized health scale or other methods.
From the current measurement technology, the bioimpedance method is mainly used. The principle is that muscles contain more water such as blood and can conduct electricity, while fat is not conductive. Therefore, the resistance can be calculated by passing a small electric current through the body, and the fat percentage can be measured from this.
However, since accurate measurement of this technology requires advanced technology, it is recommended that you choose a trustworthy brand when purchasing measuring instruments (such as health scales).
In addition, this method is greatly affected by factors such as the person's physical condition. When comparing measurements, it is best to use results taken at the same time and when the body was well hydrated.
Obesity standards of the World Health Organization and some Asian obesity societies:
Standard table for female fat status Standard table for male fat status
For adults, fat If the rate exceeds the standard level, it means that you are more likely to suffer from many chronic diseases than ordinary people. For children or teenagers under 18, this standard cannot be used as a reference because their fat cells have not yet fully matured.
TIPS for measuring body fat percentage: When using a fat scale, measurements should be made at the same time of day, in the same environment and physical condition, and to observe changes in body fat content is more meaningful; when measuring fat percentage , will be affected by factors such as body moisture, alcohol consumption, medication, exercise status and environment. Therefore, it is necessary to view the changes in fat rate correctly. Measurement 2-3 times a week under normal circumstances can better reflect the changes in fat rate; affected by estrogen, the fat rate measured during a woman’s menstrual cycle may also be higher. It is not recommended to use fat scales for pregnant women and people with implanted heart rate regulators or other electronic devices. Because current fat scales are generally measured using the bioimpedance method, a weak current will pass through the body, which may cause interference and cause major harm to these people.
Treat your weight correctly
In the process of losing weight, the change of the pointer of the scale always affects our mood every day.
In fact, weight is affected by many factors. Excessive concern about weight often causes us to deviate from the direction of weight loss and even lose confidence.
We need to eliminate these interfering factors so that these naughty little guys no longer disturb our vision and divert us from the direction of fat loss.
1. Combine with other indicators to see the weight loss effect
Each fat and thin measurement method has its advantages and disadvantages. In order to better measure our weight loss effect, we should check whether our weight loss direction is Correct, we can use four changes as indicators to measure the effect of weight loss - changes in fat rate, changes in weight, changes in water content, and changes in the circumference of various parts of the body (especially waist circumference).
The combination of the four indicators can better reflect our weight loss results, and avoid a single weight-oriented wrong weight loss method (such as losing water or muscle, although the weight has dropped, but Not good for weight loss).
Especially during body shaping, your weight will not change much. At this time, you should prefer to use the other three indicators as a reference.
2. Measure at the same time every week, in the same environment and physical condition
In order to exclude the influence of food, water, exercise, environment, etc., select the When the time period is the same, the environment is the same, and there is no big difference in physical condition, the real weight loss effect can be compared.
Before breakfast is a better time to measure. At this time, the body has been resting and adjusting for a long time, the condition is relatively stable, and it is less affected by eating.
3. Measure your weight once a week
If you think about it carefully, you will find that our week is actually a small cycle. Different living habits will of course cause changes in weight. Measuring your weight once a week on a fixed day (for example, Monday) can avoid the interference of this lifestyle habit.
In addition, the body's metabolism is a relatively slow process, and the effect of weight loss is not only affected by one or two days of behavior. Looking at the weight every day will make us doubt our weight loss effect - in fact, every day Changes in weight are more the result of various factors. But when you measure your weight once a week, the change trend is relatively clear.
4. Lose 1-2 pounds per week
The essence of weight loss is to reduce fat. 1-2 pounds per week is a healthy weight loss rate.
Under normal circumstances (without the action of external force, such as liposuction), the body's own fat decomposition is not that fast. If it exceeds this speed, you will lose more water or muscle.
If you lose more than 2 pounds per week, it usually means that lean muscle tissue has also been broken down-at this time, your metabolism will decrease (or be disordered), that is, when you are not resting, When you move, your body will consume less. So from the perspective of continuing to lose weight and maintain body shape, even if your weight loss effect seems to be good on the surface, if you do not replenish the lost muscle, it will become more difficult to continue to lose weight and maintain weight.
If the weight loss rate exceeds 3 pounds per week, it means that the body will be lightly or severely damaged, and the resistance will be reduced.
5. Correctly view the impact of women’s menstrual cycles on weight
Women’s menstrual cycles also have an impact on weight. Women often find that they lose weight more quickly on some days and gain weight on other days. In fact, we don’t have to be so sad and happy at all. This is entirely due to the estrogen in our bodies.
Generally speaking, about a week before menstruation, due to the influence of hormones, more water will be retained in the body, and weight will increase at this time; while other times, the body water will return to normal levels, especially the week after menstruation. , generally the metabolism will be slightly faster and the weight will change more. Therefore, there will be a weight fluctuation of 1-6 pounds in a menstrual cycle, but this does not reflect the quality of weight loss.
6. Correctly view the weight change trends in each weight loss stage
Even with the same weight loss method, weight changes will be different at different weight loss stages.
A single weight loss method (especially a method based on diet or exercise) is easy to lose weight quickly in the early stage. However, as the weight loss decreases, the body slowly adapts to this method and the metabolism changes. Due to reasons such as slow (muscle loss) and lax execution, consumption will become less and weight loss will also be slower.
In addition, the body decomposes various substances and combines different amounts of water, and the body automatically adjusts and adapts, etc., which will also cause the weight to drop faster at the beginning, but as the weight is lost, more and more weight will be lost. , the decline will generally be slower. Of course, another reason for this is that as you become familiar with the weight loss plan, there will be a lax implementation.
7. Different effects under the same weight
Sometimes there will be a situation like this: the weight has not changed much, but the pants are loose, and I feel very uneasy, not knowing whether the weight loss is effective. .
In fact, under the same weight, the substances in the body may be different. To give a simple example, under the same weight, the volume of fat is about 4 times that of muscle. In other words, under the same weight, people with more muscles will make people with more fat look thinner, and it will be easier to lose weight. In addition, people who use dehydration to lose weight (such as losing weight by eating only certain things when they are thirsty or hungry) may lose weight, but it is easy for them to regain weight because water is easily replenished.
This needs to be combined with other indicators to judge our weight loss effect, not just looking at changes in weight.
Measure your body moisture rate
Since water accounts for a large proportion of the body, measuring the moisture rate can also reflect your fatness and thinness level. Changes in water content measurement results during weight loss can also reflect whether your weight loss is in the correct direction - blindly reducing body water content during the weight loss process will actually increase body fat rate. If there is a significant loss of water during weight loss, it may mean that your weight loss method is somewhat biased, and you should adopt a healthier weight loss method of reducing fat rather than reducing water. Therefore, while persisting in recording body water and body fat changes, you need to use healthy methods to lose weight.