Waist Size Matters

THE BODY PROJECT GUIDE TO ACHIEVING A HEALTHY ONE

When it comes to our physiques, unsurprisingly what people tend to focus on the most is their weight on the scales. While it is good to be aware of your weight, it really only tells us one part of the story. Just as, if not more, important is your waist circumference. While a neat waist feels good (who likes the ‘digging-in-feeling’ of too-tight jeans) it is also extremely important that we maintain a lean middle, as fat around the centre is not just the most uncomfortable, it is also the most dangerous, with excess belly fat linked to diabetes, cardiovascular disease, some cancers.

A waist circumference of over 32 inches for women and 37 inches for men puts you into either the overweight or obese range. Many people are fooled into thinking they are in the safe zone as regards their waist due to confusing waist circumference with their waist size in clothing, but not so.

Finding out your waist circumference

To find your true waist circumference you’ll need to look a little higher. Take a measuring tape, wrap it around your waist, running the tape level with just over your belly button. Don’t pull it tight but rather allow the tape to sit softly, against the skin. Now you have your waist size.

Waist away!

Though many of us have a less than trim middle, the good news is that with diet correction and increased, or more effective, activity we can rapidly drop inches from our waist.

Diet:

Most of our extra padding comes not from inactivity, but from overeating, and typically foods that are highly processed. Equally most fat loss comes from changing diet for the better. Ditch high carb, processed foods and switch to foods that are as close to their natural state as possible, think vegetables, fruit, eggs and nuts, fish and meat (with vegetables forming the foundation of your diet). Within days you will notice a flattening of tummy and each week you will experience a drop in belly fat.

Exercise:

First and foremost you can’t spot reduce body fat, meaning that focussing your exercise on a trouble spot won’t exclusively reduce the body fat in that particular area- good news for those of you who dread sit ups! One of the best forms of exercise to burn body fat from your middle, and your body generally, is HITT — high intensity interval training. In 45 minutes or less you can burn a serious amount of calories and leave your metabolism boosted for up to 24-hours post workout. Of course this is not the only way to burn body fat, and the most important thing is to find a form of exercise you can enjoy. Enjoy it, and you’ll do it more, and frequent exercise, no matter what form it takes is key to weight loss and weight management.

Stress:

Chronic stress is one of the big contributing factors to weight around the middle, not just because stressed people often grab high-carb comfort foods to salve their addled minds (bar of chocolate anyone?), but also because stress is associated with raised cortisol levels. Under stressful conditions, cortisol unlocks the glucose needed to get us through the stressful event. However, cortisol encourages your body to store fat — especially fat around the middle, and with many of us operating with a low-hum of stress almost constantly its bad news for belly fat. Frequent exercise and a healthy diet won’t eradicate stressful events from your life, but will improve your reaction to and perception of these events.

Follow these simple guidelines, and soon your jeans will be fitting more comfortably than they have done in years.

Good luck!

Gillian

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