Are You Skinny Fat?

Even if you're not overweight you may still be skinny fat. Here's what you need to know about this common condition.

There are plenty of people whose weight is normal or low based on Body Mass Index (BMI) or height and weight charts but they're actually not very fit or healthy.

This is because they're skinny fat, which means they have poor body composition - a high amount of body fat compared to the amount of lean mass (muscle, bones etc.).

For example, a 5'5", 110 pound woman with 35% body fat would be considered underweight based on BMI, but almost 40 pounds of her total weight is body fat.

People whose weight is normal or low but who have a high amount of body fat have the same increased risk for health problems such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease as overweight people.

In addition to increased health risks, people whose weight is normal or low but who have a high amount of body fat have bodies that are soft and flabby. They look okay in clothes, but they don't look very good in a bathing suit or when naked.

Many people are skinny fat because they lead an unhealthy lifstyle, and a lot of overweight people end up skinny fat because they go about losing weight the wrong way - they go on a very low calorie diet and do little or no exercise.

When you drastically reduce calories in order to starve away body fat, you also starve away lean muscle mass. Many people on very low calorie diets lose more lean muscle mass than body fat. When you lose lean muscle mass, your body becomes softer, flabbier and weaker, and your metabolism slows down.

The way to lose body fat without ending up skinny fat is to combine a fat loss nutrition plan with a fat loss exercise routine.

A fat loss nutrition plan is based on cutting back on calories, not on drastically reducing them. It's also based on eating certain healthy foods that are less likely to be converted to body fat. A fat loss nutrition plan is not a temporary way of eating like a diet is, it's a permanent way of eating that can be followed for a lifetime.

A fat loss exercise routine that includes aerobic exercise and strength training enables you to lose body fat without losing lean muscle mass. There are also plenty of health and fitness benefits associated with aerobic exercise and strength training.

A great resource that shows you how to create a fat loss nutrition plan and a fat loss exercise routine is Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle. To learn more about Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle, Click Here.

Are You Skinny Fat? > Weight Loss Articles

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