Bodyweight generally refers to a person’s total mass, which is measured in kilograms. But that is not what you wanted to know. You are here to see if your weight is right for your body mass or height. Now there are several ways to measure your fitness.
Extra fat and weight can cause severe diseases such as cardiac arrest, low blood circulation, and so on, which could prove life-threatening. But you have been working hard and maintaining a strict diet to reduce the extra fat. Now you are looking to measure whether your fitness is good, or you need to shed some more weight. Well, these tips will help you.
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Why You Should Maintain Weight
Now you may ask, what is the necessity of measuring your fitness and health status. Why do I need to do it? Well, you do know about the phrase “Too much of anything is bad,” right? When your body gets too much fat or weight, it can cause severe problems.
Not only does it cause life-threatening cardiac diseases but also psychological problems. People struggling with too much weight generally are at a higher risk of developing depression. Obese people become lazy, inactive, thus harming their bodies even more.
It is not surprising that obese people have shorter lifespans than those who keep a well-balanced health status. So now you know why you need to measure your health status.
Using BMI methods
BMI or body mass index is the best way to measure and keep track of your body weight.
There are online calculators to do the math for you but you can also do it by yourself. First, use a kilogram as a unit and measure your total body weight then divide it by the square of your height, which has to be measured in meters.
If the BMI is high, that means that the body has a lot of weight and needs to maintain a proper diet and workout to shed off this excess weight, and if the BMI is low, that means the body is in good shape.
There are plenty of ways you can calculate it. There are even BMI calculators to tell you what the healthy weight for women and men is.
Here is a list of what BMI number shows
- If BMI is less than 18.5, it means that your body is underweight.
- If BMI is 18.5 to 24.9, it means your body is in perfect condition and in a healthy state.
- In case BMI is 25.0 to 29.9, it means your body is getting overweight and needs some attention.
- If BMI is 30.0 or higher, it means your body has obesity and needs serious attention immediately.
Now, most healthcare officials believe that BMI is an excellent way to measure fitness, but this is not the only way. Many experts do several tests to assess a person’s health status and risks with body weight. These measures differ from person to person.
Measurement methods for kids and children are not the same as the methods for grown-up males and females that are not pregnant.
Pregnant females and the elderly also have different methods for measuring their health status and fitness. Let us take a look at some of them.
Measures For Non-pregnant Women & Adult Male
1. Waist circumference in accordance with body
Waist circumference measurement is a great way to measure excess fat in your abdominal area or the middle part of your body, which is a significant health factor.
This method is inexpensive and a great way to measure obesity in the abdominal region for adults.
Waist To Hip Ratio This is another abdominal obesity measuring method, calculated by measuring the waist and the hips’ diameter and dividing the waist diameter by the hip diameter.
Although this is also a cheap method, there are several rooms for errors, as there are two measurements that need to be done before getting the actual data.
2. Skinfold Thickness
In this method, the researcher measures the layer of fat in a pinch of skin, typically in the trunk, the thighs, front and back of the upper arm, and under the shoulder blade.
This method is also an excellent way to measure health status but becomes problematic if the BMI is more than 35.
3. Densitometry
This method measures a person’s density by submerging them in water.
Everything from your body density, volume to fat percentage can be calculated. Researches have formulas to accurately determine that and use those data to detect health statuses.
4. DEXA
DEXA stands for “Dual Energy X-Ray absorption.” This is a scientific method that uses a method where X-rays are channeled through body tissues. These rays provide information about fat mass, bone minerals, bone density, and fat mass.
DEXA provides accurate information but can be an expensive
Methods For Kids & Pregnant Women
Air-Displacement Plethysmography
This method is somewhat similar to Densitometry but changed a bit to better fit children and pregnant women.
In this method, the air is used instead of water to measure people’s weight. 2 chambers are used. One stays empty and another has the person inside. The machine uses air pressure to determine body volume. This also is a quick and accurate way yet a very expensive one.
Hydrometry
In this method, the individuals have to drink isotope-labeled water and then go for a fluid sample test. The isotope is then analyzed to determine water levels in the body. Which can then tell you about the body mass and fat-free body mass.
Hydrometry is also an excellent method for children and pregnant weapons and is much less expensive than Air-Displacement Plethysmography.
Final Words
Now that you know how you can measure your health status to see whether you are leading a healthy life, why waste time? Get some tests done and work on building your body and health in a much better state. No one wants to suffer from cardiac diseases or be at risk of early death. Reduce those fats as soon as possible, so that you can add a few more years to your lifespan.
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