Dieting for Wellness

The higher your percentage of fat above average levels, the higher your health risk for weight-related illness, like heart disease, high blood pressure, gallstones, type 2 diabetes, osteoarthritis, and certain cancers. Also, the higher your percentage of fat (and the smaller your percentage of muscle) the less calories you need to maintain your weight and therefore the easier it is to gain weight. This is because muscle is more metabolically active than fat tissue.

Body Fat Percentages and Lean Muscle Mass

When in ideal shape, body fat will make up about 15% - 18% of a male's body weight and 18% - 22% of a female's. The remainder of the body's 'lean weight is composed of water (55%-60%), muscle and other lean tissue (10%-20%), and bone and minerals (6%-8%). In other words, a 150-pound woman who is within or close to her ideal body fat composition range at 22% will have approximately 33 pounds of fat, 86 pounds of weight composed primarily of water, 20 pounds of muscle and other lean tissue, and 11 pounds of bone and mineral weight. This total then makes up her total weight of 150 lbs.

Now take the example of another woman who weights 150 pounds, but has 30% fat on her body. She would have 45 pounds of fat on her body, and the rest of her weight would be divided among muscle, bone and water. Her non fat body composition might look like this, 79 pounds of water (53%), 17 pounds of muscle (12%), and 9 pounds of bone and minerals (6%). Both women weight 150 lbs. and are about the same height, but one looks much different because she has less body fat.

Body fat percentage is generally accepted as a better gauge of weight loss progress and fitness than scale weight. The method of calculating body fat from body measurements as used by HealthSmart Nutrition is the fourth most accurate method. Hydrostatic testing underwater is first. Electrical testing of body mass resistance is second and body fat measurement by caliper is third. Although it is not the most accurate, if you record your measurements carefully and consistently using the measurement taking instructions given, you will have a good relative gauge of how much body fat you are gaining or losing. To our knowledge, the http://www.sellshareware.com/CustomView.asp'PrID=40222&