Weight is not going to tell you about health
For years, Jorge in particular has had a personal battle over weight control. The nightmare of "how much weight do we weigh?" is always on our minds. I don't know if it's happened to you, but just picking up the scale and standing on it causes a certain amount of anxiety.
Our endocrinologists, Ricardo Rosero and Pedro Sánchez, have been insistent in reassuring us that we shouldn't worry about our ideal weight. To be frank, it wasn't easy for them to convince us, much less for us to raise our awareness. We still struggle, but we're increasingly less concerned about our weight and much more about our ideal body composition.
Today we understand better that "Weight is not an indicator of health nor is it an indicator of habits," The key is not to lose weight just because, or at any cost (muscle). How many times did we stop eating and try all kinds of diets, like the pineapple diet, the tuna diet, the water diet, the astronaut diet, the protein diet, and any number of other diets we encountered? We did lose weight, but we gained it back just as quickly, never ensuring a stable weight, and putting our own health at risk.
I don't know if you know this, but a poorly managed diet can make you sick, lower your immune system, and lead you into a vicious, not virtuous, cycle. This is precisely what we want to talk to you about today, thanks to countless experiences we've had with doctors, like those mentioned above; reading books written by Carlos Jaramillo; videos; and studies with other health specialists.
A thousand thanks to all of them, as they are responsible for our new habits, or at least for a greater and better awareness regarding our diet and health management.
"Weight is not an indicator of health nor is it an indicator of habits."
We had the opportunity to have a Facebook Live with endocrinologist Pedro Sánchez, where we talked about the importance of body composition, beyond weight.
From this conversation, we were able to conclude, first of all, that weight doesn't indicate your health; perhaps being overweight may be obvious. However, if you want to know yourself better, there are more precise indicators. The number itself isn't the same for everyone; there are no standardized measurements, much less an "ideal" weight, but there are references that allow you to be healthy.
Secondly, the most important thing is to avoid being misled by incorrect or biased information; assessing your body fat percentage and composition will allow you to properly assess the state of your health and your body.
From the above, it is worth highlighting the need for us to understand what the term “body composition” means, which is nothing more than determine he percentage of fat and muscle separately to obtain the body mass index (BMI). These can be distributed differently in people of the same size and weight. Body mass is divided into two large groups: fat mass and fat-free mass.
Fat mass refers to adipose tissue, very useful for providing protection, warmth and energy, as long as it is necessary, and can be found distributed in different areas such as the muscles, under the skin (subcutaneous) or around the organs (visceral fat). A certain amount of fat mass is essential for the proper functioning of the body.
Fat-free mass It includes all other body components, including bones, organs, fluids, muscles, and tissues. It is also known as "lean tissue." At the metabolic level it is more active than adipose tissue.
You might be wondering: What is more important, weight or body composition? The percentage of fat is more valuable than our body weight, because it can have a higher risk of diseases, whether it is higher or lower., everything in excess is bad.
If the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and body fat is evaluated with mortality, it can be shown that those with a low BMI but a high percentage of body fat are at greater risk of contracting serious diseases, while having a high BMI is not associated with the risk of disease.
Excess body fat is often associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease; on the other hand, muscle mass is essential for ensuring mobility, posture, and a better quality of life in old age.
Photo: www.pexels.com
Continuing with the conversation with Dr. Sánchez, we come to the frequently asked question that doctors are usually asked: “They told me that my ideal weight is x”Let us give you some great news: The ideal weight does not exist! much less in the standard way it's thought of, that is, that because you're a certain sex and a certain height, you must weigh a certain number of kilos. While there is a relationship, it goes far beyond analysis.
There may be a specific weight for each person, depending on multiple factors such as age, bone structure, diet, and metabolism, among others. However, it's much more appropriate to talk about a "healthy weight," that is, a "weight" or body composition that will help reduce the likelihood of problems such as high blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes, arthritis, and osteoporosis.
Another important point discussed in the Live It is related to the meaning of understanding that the nature of life is based on the body undergoing changes over the years. This transformation is affected by external factors that intervene in positive and negative ways, such as exercise, diet, illness, and emotions that act, in one way or another, at each stage. However, an ideal weight can be maintained despite these factors, as long as we manage them in the best possible way.
We hope this information is useful and that you can put it into practice. If you have any questions, please leave a comment or contact us on our social media.
