A healthy weight is not all about BMI

I’m a firm believer in the quote above, as I have used it to change my life and lose five stone, eight inches from my waist and, the most important change in my body composition, 30% bodyfat.

I now consider myself to be a fat loss specialist, having helped hundreds of satisfied clients achieve their bodyshape goals; from just a few centimeters to tone up or transforming their bodyshape to lose a few dress sizes or shirt/waist sizes.

I know how it feels to have a lack of confidence, not knowing which way to turn with conflicting information in the media about what to do to lose weight with fast fix solution shakes etc.

However, I have learned over the years and through personal experience that it’s not the excess weight that was the problem. The issue was with me and how I treated food; my lifestyle did not suit me. I was that yo-yo dieter.

I have realised that it’s not excess weight I needed to lose but excess body fat. I also needed tochange my bodyshape, lose centimeters and then turn those centimeters into inches.

I now help my clients do the same and, over the last four years, I have helped hundreds of clients change bodyshape and achieve their goals, resulting in new, improved, healthier and energised people.

The object of these weekly blogs is to provide you, the reader, with some kind of insight into how your body works, how it processes food and drink, and how important it is to get your body fuel right for you in combination with a healthy active lifestyle.

It’s not all about going to the gym or having personal training sessions, It’s what you do in-between those times that it is really important.

If you have any questions then just ask away and I will endeavour to answer your queries.

Let’s burn the fat together and break some myths about so-called healthy foods and speak about how best to get the most out of your workouts and everyday lifestyles.

What is your ideal weight?

In all honesty, I don’t know. Who really does know? A medical expert? You? Me? A nutritionist? A fitness expert?

Whenever, I sign up a new client, be it for a bootcamp, small group training or a one-to-one personal training session I take their measurements for the first time.

Most of the time I am asked one of the following: What should my weight be? I want to lose a stone, as that’s what I was a few years ago, how do I do this?  I need to lose weight for my holidays, can you help me? Is this weight good or bad?

In my opinion, everybody is pretty much obsessed with their weight, without understanding what your weight actually means to your body and well-being, what your bodyweight comprises and also how your body actually works to control your weight.

I must admit, when I was much larger and heavier I was obsessed with my weight. I was never bulimic or anorexic, so I didn’t have an eating problem....or did I?

However, I am now fully prepared to admit I did have an eating problem, I was addicted to sugar!I can say this now but, a few years ago, I would have never admitted that I had a problem with sugar.

I will explain more over the coming weeks and how I think that, as a nation, the UK is addicted to sugar and more importantly awful artificial sweeteners such as aspartame and other sugar substitutes.

Let’s break down the basics first.

Body weight actually comprises the weight of your

• Bones
• Lean tissue, in other words all of your muscles including your brain, heart and vital organs
• Body fat, including visceral fat (internal fat surrounding your vital organs and digestive system)
• Blood and other bodily fluids
• Skin
• Water mass – your body is made up of a lot of water, about 70%. It's contained in almost everything – muscle is 75% water, the brain is 90% water, bone is 22% water, blood is 83% water.

So, when you mean you want to lose weight, what is it you actually mean?

I would sincerely hope, that the only weight you want to lose is body fat.

It is your body fat levels and your muscular levels that pretty much determine your body shape.

So, let’s focus on your body shape rather than your weight. It really does infuriate me that the medical profession are giving out awful advice about body weight and how to lose so-called perceived weight. They are forever using BMI as a strict guideline, which to be honest is pretty pointless.

After all, the equation for BMI is your weight in kgs divided by your height in metres squared.

So, does this take into account somebody’s bodyshape? Their muscle mass? How much water they are retaining?

The plain answer is a resounding ‘No!’ Plus who are these ideal people that the figures that are based upon?

Also, to my knowledge, the BMI figures haven’t changed in the last 10 years plus, when the size of our population certainly has.

Whatever the message was that was meant to be sent out by the medical profession and government over the last 10 years plus has not worked at all.

More to the point we now have a completely confused population, fed mixed messages by the government, health service, media and mass-marketed unscrupulous business owners all wanting to cash in and make a quick few quid on the obesity problems of the nation; telling you if you just do this or just buy this product you will have amazing results, just like the fitness models who are employed and paid to advertise their products.

So, it’s left to us fully qualified registered fitness professionals to tell you the truth and unravel the mysteries.

I must tell you that there is no rapid fat loss pill; if there was then I would have invented it and I would be a multi-billionaire by now!

If you actually took the majority of our beloved Warrington Wolves team and used the BMI scale to assess whether they were at a healthy weight then the vast majority would come out as clinically obese.

This is because their muscle mass is very large, especially in comparison with their body fat percentage, as it is very low. However, a medical professional would ask them to lose weight. Doesn’t make sense does it?

It’s only the fact that they are professional athletes that nobody actually states this. So why should it be any different for you?

I am definitely not saying that if you know you need to lose significant body fat then it’s okay and you need not worry. Especially if you used to be smaller or you’ve always been overweight and struggling to not be out of breath climbing the stairs in your home or office.

This is because of the pressure on your heart and internal digestive organs that your body fat creates, which restricts blood flow to your muscles. Not to mention the links with cancer, heart disease and other respiratory issues.

What I am saying is that we need to re-address the situation and look at our bodyfat percentages in relation to our muscle percentages, overall weight, heart rate, blood pressure and basic cardio-vascular fitness.

These factors are also very much linked to our nutrition which, in these days of convenience shopping and rushing around, is adding to the national obesity epidemic.

Over the next few weeks I shall look to show you how to lead a totally new healthier lifestyle that will not cost you an arm and a leg and should actually save you money.

Speak again soon. Neil the fat loss personal trainer.

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