As with any health care plan, it is really beneficial if you have a healthcare
professional help you with measuring and recording the progress of your
healthy weight plan. Not only are they able to do the ground-work for
you, but they can be a great support in times when you need them most.
Invest in the confidence of someone you can trust to help you with one
of the biggest changes of your life!
IMPORTANT NOTICE
Losing weight can lower your blood pressure, your blood sugar and
/ or cholesterol levels so if you have these conditions you will need
to let your doctor and pharmacist know before you start losing weight
as they will need to monitor you carefully and may need to reduce
some of your medications.
There are numerous ways of assessing the benefit of your healthy weight management
plan and you will be surprised to know one of the least important measures is
your actual body weight!!
Some of the ways you can assess the benefit of your weight loss are:
Decrease in waist circumference OR
Decrease in BMI OR
Decrease in blood pressure OR
Improved blood glucose levels OR
Improved cholesterol and triglycerides OR
Your doctor reducing or stopping some of your medications OR
(REMEMBER – don’t adjust your medication yourself always discuss any changes to your medication with your doctor first)
Increased energy OR
Improvements in personal body image and sense of wellbeing OR
Decreased snoring OR
Less joint or muscle pain
Two of the most commonly used measurements to determine if a persons’ weight
is healthy or unhealthy are Waist Circumference and Body Mass Index.
Waist Circumference is a measure of the abdominal fat
mass of a person. As abdominal fat is associated with significant health
risks, this measurement alone provides a good indication of the health
risk associated with being overweight. Waist circumference has been consistently
shown to be closely related to an increased risk of diseases such as cardiovascular
disease and Type II diabetes.
The waist should be measured at the narrowest part of the torso (between
ribs and hips) when looking front-on at your body.
Waist Circumference and risk of metabolic complications associated
with obesity in Caucasian men and women
BMI is a calculation that is very well suited to assessing the levels of overweight and obesity in big populations. It adjusts for weight and height which allows people of very different body weights and heights to be grouped together into BMI ranges (see the examples below which show two people who are different heights and weights yet have the same BMI).
Body Mass Index =
Weight (in kilograms)
__________________________________________
(height in metres) x (height in metres)
Example 1:
Sarah weighs 84 kilograms and is 176cm tall. (176cm = 1.76metres)
(Sarah's height in metres) x (Sarah’s height in metres) = 1.76 x 1.76 = 3.1
Therefore Sarah's BMI = 84 / 3.1 = 27
Example 2:
John weighs 93 kilograms and is 185cm tall (185cm = 1.85m)
(John’s height in metres) X (John’s height in metres) = 1.85 x 1.85 = 3.42
Therefore, John’s BMI = 93 ÷ 3.42 = 27
Classification of weight by BMI
Classification
BMI (kg/m2)
Risk of co-morbidities and related disease
Underweight
<18.5
Low (but possibly increased risk of other
clinical problems)
Normal Range
18.5 - 24.9
Average
Overweight
>25.0
Pre-obese
25.0-29.9
Increased
Obese I
30.0-34.9
Moderate
Obese II
35.0-39.9
Severe
Obese III
>40.0
Very severe
So from the example above, both Sarah and John have the same BMI which is classified
as overweight (in the pre-obese range). From a health perspective this means
that they are putting themselves at greater risk of developing things such as
high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
Do not become obsessed with your scales!! Many factors
other than the dreaded number on the scales contribute to the potential
health impacts of being overweight. Some people will naturally weigh more
than others depending on muscle mass, fat mass and metabolic differences.
By all means have your healthcare professional measure your weight (or
do it yourself) at the start of any healthy weight program ("lifestyle"
program), but don't be fastidious about the loss in weight. Waist circumference
and BMI which are described above are both more useful when it comes to
good health.
And remember, this time it IS about good health - and not just dropping weight.
There are more reasons than just cosmetic ones as to why we should all manage
our weight – a healthy weight will help you maintain a healthy body and
a healthy mind.
