Track Your Body Fat From or At Home

April 29, 2009

In this post of mine, I’m going to talk about obesity and some of the ways to reduce weight without the help of a medical practitioner. As you all know, obesity is a condition when excess of body fat gets accumulated in the body causing harmful effects. Eating unbalanced diet at improper intervals and lack of regular exercises are the main reasons for obesity. It teams up with heart diseases, type 2 diabetes, breathing problems during sleep, certain types of cancer, and osteoarthritis.

So, how can you get rid of excess body fat? Dieting and physical workouts are safe and reliable methods to shed down extra pounds. When your body fat monitor shows no significant change in your body fat percentage or Body Mass Index (BMI), then you should consult a physician and start taking anti-obesity drugs. These drugs cut down your appetite and arrest fat absorption in your body. It is only in extreme cases, bariatric surgeries are suggested to obese patients. Reducing stomach volume and bowel length is the aim of these weight loss surgeries. It weakens a person’s nutrient absorption. Although these surgeries are very effective, they are equally risky.

Coming to the ways of reducing body fat, you should have a positive attitude towards weight loss. Being fit and having a great shape or physique is not just for showbiz people, but also for every health-conscious person. Remember staying fit and healthy will boost your confidence level. Here are some tips to begin with:

1.  Consult your dietician and get a balanced diet plan chalked out exclusively for you.
2.  Do not fall for fad diets that promise fast weight loss.
3.  When you feel thirsty, drink plenty of water and avoid carbonated drinks.
4.  Include a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables in your diet menu.
5.  If you are a hard-core non-vegetarian, consume skinless poultry and fish cooked with less oil.

Last but not least, calculate body fat at regular interval to analyze the effectiveness of your diet. Buy a branded body fat calculator and chart your body fat measurements regularly to track your progress at your home in your convenience.

Burn off Your Body Fat Right Now!

March 20, 2009

The presence of fat is never a problem. You need some fat to remain healthy. The problem is the amount of fat that is present in the body. A high body fat percentage and a high Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 can turn out to be dangerous to the body and the health of the individual. By shedding this body fat percentage and boosting your lean body mass, you will also get that ‘dream figure.’ You can do this by using a body fat monitor.

By carefully avoiding foods, like those with a high level of starch and sugar, deep fried foods, and also heavily-preserved and processed foods, you can keep the body fat percentage under control. The very mention of cheese, French fries and potato chips might tickle your taste-buds. But beware! They have lots of trans fat or saturated fat that increase the amount of bad cholesterol in our body. To lose body fat, you must cut back on these bad fats and go for a high-fiber, low-fat diet.

Here are a few tips for you. Most of us use cream while preparing sauces and desserts. Evaporated skim milk can be an excellent healthy alternative to it. When it comes to your favorite recipes, in the place of every three eggs, try using six egg whites and a whole egg.

By expending more energy than what you are consuming, you will be able to lose the excess fat in your body. Regular exercise is the best means of doing it. Moreover, adhering to a strict diet without any exercise will not help you at all. In fact, it is likely to result in the loss of vital muscle content. If you are looking for a short cut to remove enormous amount of fat, then the only way out is a bariatric surgery. But you should only use it as a last resort when everything else fails.

Astonishing Facts about Fat!

The human body consists of two weights: the lean weight, which comprises of the weight of internal organs, muscles, and bones; and the fat weight, which is the weight of just fat. A pound of fat tissue stores an unbelievable 3,500 calories of energy! You need a weight scale to constantly measure the amount of fat in your body.

Contrary to popular belief, an adequate amount of body fat actually keeps you healthy. You need not get worried and exert yourself to lose this! It is only when it is in excess that fat can lead to a whole lot of related health problems, from heart diseases and diabetes to cholesterol.

If you were of the idea that a lot of exercising can help you get rid of the excess fat in your body, then you are wrong! One interesting fact that many are not aware of is that, the number of fat cells in the body cannot be reduced. Loosing body fat merely implies that the fat cells have become smaller and not fewer.

Having a Body Mass Index (BMI) of more than 30 is an indicator of high percentage of body fat. A quick and easy way to calculate your BMI is to multiply your weight (in pounds) by 703 and divide the resulting number by your height (in inches).

A body fat estimator helps you analyze your body fat percentage. If you are interested in finding out how much fat your body has, divide your total body weight by 3. You will be able to get a fair idea as to how much of your body weight is fat. If you want a more accurate number, then multiply your weight by 0.36 to get the exact figure. You will also be surprised to know that while an average American male has just 26% fat, the average American female adult has a bit over 36%.

How Does Near Infrared Interactance Help in Determining Your Body Fat Percentage?

March 3, 2009

As promised I am back with information on Near Infrared Intearctance (NIR), one of the techniques used to estimate your body fat percentage. This body composition analysis technique is completely safe, fast, inexpensive, and completely non-invasive, which to me seems the biggest factor working in its favor.

This method is based on principles of light absorption, reflectance and near infrared spectroscopy. The biceps of a person’s dominant arm is usually the site preferred for estimating his/her body fat using the Near Infrared Intearctance method.

A computerized spectrophotometer with a rapid scanning monochromator and a fiber optic probe helps assess your body fat. The monochromator, which is also called light wand, sends a low-energy beam of near-infrared light. This beam penetrates the underlying tissue before it is reflected back to the built-in detector of the wand, which measures the intensity of the re-emitted light. Using the shifts in the wavelength of this light the body fat percentage is calculated with the help of a prediction equation. The prediction equation also takes into consideration the person’s height, weight, frame size and level of activity to give a correct body composition analysis.

Near Infrared Intearctance is one of the popular body composition analysis techniques outside of the laboratory owing to its simplicity and speed, as I have already mentioned before. It is inexpensive too, You can easily get it done at health clubs and weight loss centers for something between 20 and 40 dollars.

But I must also make you aware of the downsides of this method. It is not one of the most accurate methods of determining your body composition, especially in case of lean and obese people. Further, the readings may vary depending on the amount of pressure applied to the probe. The skin color and hydration levels can also result in errors. The validity of a single-site measurement is also a major bone of contention. So, my concluding remarks would be that more research is required to prove the validity and accuracy of Near Infrared Interactance.

What is Body Fat Percentage?

Among the health conscious, fat is a taboo that has to be kept away from at all costs. But is it actually so bad? In this post, this is what I intend to take up. Read on to know more.

As much as the poor thing is detested, fat has an important role to play in the bodily functions. Fat is the main form of the body’s energy storage. It is the one that cushions and insulates organs and tissues inside the body. In addition, fat also regulates the body temperature. It is only when it goes beyond a certain level that it begins to spell trouble. In fact, it is the perfect example of the adage, “anything in excess is bad.”

I am sure that the term total body fat percentage needs no introduction. But for those who are hearing it for the first time, let me define it. A person’s total body fat percentage is simply the percentage of fat his/her body contains. Technically, it is the measure of the amount of fat mass relative to the rest of your body’s organs and tissue mass.

The total body fat percentage includes both the essential fat as well as storage fat. Essential fat is the amount of fat necessary for maintaining life and reproductive functions. This percentage is greater for women than men to meet the demands of childbearing and other hormonal functions. To give you a clearer idea, while the essential fat percentage is just 2-5% in men, it is 10-13% in women. The minimum recommended total body fat percentage is higher than this value. Storage fat, on the other hand, accumulates in the adipose tissue and helps protect the internal organs in the chest and abdomen. It is also used as fuel by the body in times of need.

The value of the total body fat percentage can’t be exactly determined, but can only be estimated. There are various techniques like near-infrared interactance, body average density measurement, bioelectrical impedance analysis, and anthropometric methods to do this. I have already taken up the bioelectrical impedance analysis, the others, I promise to take up in future posts.

So friends, in future before you decide on losing weight, chalk out a realistic weight loss goal by knowing your body fat percentage.

Know Your Body Mass Index. Know How Much Weight to Lose

February 25, 2009

If you’re gaining weight, you don’t need somebody to tell you that. More than just the look on your friend’s face, you will know it from the way you feel. There are several indicators, like an increasing waistline, clothes size, and so on. As the popular saying goes, health is indeed wealth. To stay healthy, you need to maintain your weight using a body fat analyzer.

Interestingly, it is not simply your body weight but the relationship between your height and weight, which will tell you exactly how much you should weigh. This is where body mass index or BMI comes into play. Typically, the BMI, which is also known as Quetelet index (after the inventor, Adolphe Quetelet) is the statistical measure that compares a person’s height and weight. So, one has to know one’s height and weight in order to calculate the BMI.

The increasing awareness about good health and general fitness has made BMI, a common term. It is used not just by dieticians, doctors, and health care professionals but also by laymen. There are a number of BMI calculators available in the market today to help people determine their BMI. These BMI scales can accurately determine your BMI from your height and weight. The universally-used body mass index formula is a person’s body weight divided by the square of his height. The BMI value differs according to age and gender.

As it is very easy to measure the BMI, it has become the most preferred diagnostic tool to recognize overweight and obesity problems. All said and done, one should remember that BMI calculation is not an appropriate final indication for diagnosing people, especially athletes, children, and elderly people. This is because, BMI calculation does not consider factors, like frame size, muscularity, varying proportions of fat, bone, cartilage, water weight, and other things.

The Dangers of Visceral Fat

February 10, 2009

When health or fashion gurus mention apple-shaped and pear-shaped body types, they are actually talking about the location of fat deposit in an individual’s body. Apple-shaped obesity or central obesity is the accumulation of fat in the center of the body, which results in an increase in the waist size and causes the abdomen to protrude. In contrast, pear-shaped obesity is characterized by concentration of fat around the hip and buttock area. The only problem is that normal weight scales can’t pick up on the difference.

In general, fat is classified into different types, depending upon their location in the human body. Abdominal visceral fat is packed in between internal organs in the torso. Subcutaneous fat collects under the skin and intramuscular fat is scattered in the skeletal muscle. As visceral fat is more deeply embedded in the body tissues, it is difficult to lose it. The liver metabolizes visceral fat and releases it into the blood stream in the form of cholesterol. It is the bad cholesterol or Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL) that builds up in to a plaque and clogs up arteries. Gradually, this causes a range of ailments, like hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and stroke.

Bear in mind that the visceral fat deposit is not always clearly visible. The visceral fat level range can be accurately measured by an imaging machine only. Even if you are within the healthy weight range, you might still have high abdominal visceral fat level. For visceral fat makes up your body weight rather than muscle mass. Nowadays, there are body fat scales that help you accurately measure the body fat percentage and specifically visceral fat. Omron HBF 500 Fat Scale is a perfect body composition monitor, which has a range of features to help you keep a tab on various parameters, like skeletal muscle and resting metabolism, in addition to your body weight, body fat, and visceral fat.

To reduce the abdominal visceral fat, fairly fast-paced walking for half an hour a day has shown effective results. So, put on your walking shoes for some brisk walking to control visceral fat level. The Omron HBF Body Fat Scale will tell you how much to reduce!!

Seca Cursa 818 Scales with Pedestal-mounted Display Unit for Your Convenience

January 20, 2009

Seca weight scales top the list of choices among weighing scales for both professional and personal use. Seca manufactures a wide variety of scales, which share several user-friendly features, the hallmark of Seca products. But each Seca scale is a distinctive product in itself, incorporating traits to suit individual requirements as well. From floor scales to half and full pedestal scales, they come in variety of shapes and sizes for you to choose from. These precision scales provide accurate reading and are ideal for use in hospitals as well as fitness centers.

You may be monitoring your health or perhaps working towards a healthier lifestyle. Either way, Seca Cursa 818 Digital Personal Scale is the ideal one for you. With an integrated body fat/body water function, this high-capacity scale can precisely measure the fat and water content of your body and thereby determine your health status. A user is uniquely identified by personal data, such as gender, age, and height.

The elegant and attractive design of Seca Cursa 818 Body Fat Scale features a plastic base covered with a thick and transparent glass platform robust enough to withstand heavy duty use.

You must be wondering as to what is it about this Seca Cursa 818 water scale that makes me this excited. After all, the features I have discussed up until this point are nothing extraordinary. Well, it is about the position of the display and keyboard unit. It is mounted on a knee high column, which is slightly tilted towards the user. The large and clear display is easier to read. You also don’t have to bend on your knees to operate the keyboard. How many times has an inadvertent step on the keys changed the reading and you had start all over again? With the arrival of Seca Medical Body Water Analyzer, this will be history.

HoMedics Body Fat Health Station: Your Health and Fitness Partner

January 13, 2009

In my previous blogs I have mentioned that your body weight, though is one of the key indicators of your health, is not the only one. My regular readers will have guessed by now that I am talking about those indicators, like

• body fat
• body water
• Muscle mass
• basal metabolic rate (BMR)

There is no dearth of analyzers, scanners and scales in the market to help you get a detailed analysis of these pointers. Let me, in this post, introduce you to HoMedics products. They are superior body composition scales and prove very helpful in the field of health management. They utilize cost-effective Bioelectric Impedance Analysis (BIA) to estimate your body composition. The innovative KnowledgeBook technology is also used to measure your body fat, body water, muscle mass, and BMR. These digital body fat scales have a large display for easy reading. They also come with instant-on and auto-zero feature for your convenience.

I own a HoMedics SC-505 body fat analyzer and I am so very happy with it. In fact, I would recommend it to anyone thinking about getting one. It displays my body fat status in an easy-to-understand graphical format. I can also choose between two different modes -normal and athlete. My analyzer comes with four memory settings, so that three more people can also keep track of their fitness levels.

If you are looking for a more sophisticated and sleek looking scales, then you must check out HoMedics SC-535 Body Composition Scales, which use invisible electrodes to measure various health parameters. They offer three fitness levels and can be used for storing details of up to 10 users. HoMedics SC-540 Body Composition Scanners are regarded as outstanding weight management products due to their daily calorie predictor, which also includes a health status indicator.

So, see how much progress you’ve made towards achieving your fitness goals and celebrate your success with HoMedics body fat scales.

Omron Body Fat Loss Analyzers: Partners for a Healthy Lifestyle

January 9, 2009

A healthy lifestyle is the key to a long and happy life. Monitoring your progress in this area is as much essential as it is motivating, like in any other activity. Your body fat composition is an important parameter of your well-being. Measuring it is crucial to know if your exercise regimen has made any impact at all. Any Omron fat loss monitor can help you measure your body fat so that you can plan your workout sessions accordingly for getting the best results.

The Omron HBF-306C is a body fat analyzer that calculates your body fat percentage and body mass index. All you need to do is enter your personal data, like gender, height, and age and hold the hand grip electrodes before pressing the START button. In just seven seconds you can see an accurate reading on the display of this hand-held body fat analyzer. With the facility of storing nine profiles, you can keep a track of your progress along with eight others. There is a special athlete mode too for those workout sessions. I do not have to stress on the convenience of having a weighing scale combined with a body fat analyzer. There are also models like the Omron HBF-500 that measure a host of other important indicators, like skeletal muscle mass level, visceral fat, and resting metabolism and categorize them based on different age ranges. These help you determine appropriate intake and exercise levels. You can track your progress by comparing your current reading with the previous ones stored in the memory.

The hand grip and foot electrodes of the HBF-500 model provide measurements for the upper and lower body for a complete analysis. The electrodes use Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis for accurate body fat measurement. The large display can even be pulled up with the handlebar for a clear view. These affordable body fat analyzers can be used in the privacy and comfort of your home. So, monitor your progress towards a better way of life with Omron products.