Body Composition

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Body Composition Weight Management Overview

• PEP 418
• University of Idaho

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What is Body Composition?

• Body Composition is
• The proportion of Fat and Fat-free Mass (muscle,
  bone, and water) in the body.
• Fat Mass Essential and Non-essential Fats
• Fat-Free Mass Muscle, Bone, Water, Tissues, etc.
  
• Body Composition is usually recorded as Percent
  () Body Fat.

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How much is too much?

• Overweight is the total body weight over the
  recommended range for good health.
• Obesity is a more serious degree of overweight.
• These two classifications can be estimated using
  either height weight formulas or body
  composition.

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What is a Healthy Body Comp.?
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So, what should I really be interested in?

• Body Composition measures are Far More Accurate
  than measures derived from height and weight
  alone.
• Therefore, Body Weight is Not As Important to
  know as Body Composition.

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We are getting FATTER!

• Is there any surprise by the fact that obesity
  and overweight rates have skyrocketed over the
  past 50 years?
• Consider this
• More time spent in sedentary
• work and leisure
• More driving
• Less PE in school and less
• exercise after high school
• Fast Food and Portion Sizes
• Supersize me Sucka!

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What does this mean?

• Obesity causes more than 400,000 premature deaths
  each year in the US.
• Obesity costs the US over 100 billion annually.
• If we continue on our current path, obesity will
  soon surpass smoking as the Leading Cause of
  Disability and Death among Americans!

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Obesity and Risk of Disease

• Obese people have a significantly higher
  Mortality Rate than non-obese people.
• This is probably due to the fact that blood fat
  levels are higher, which can Impair Heart
  Function, and Lead to CVDs.
• Obesity is also linked to increased hypertension,
  impaired immune function, sleep and respiratory
  disorders, pregnancy complications, etc.
• And the big winner obesity is a sure path to
  Type II Diabetes!

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What about being skinny then?

• Having a body comp. that is Too Low (Lower Than
  Essential) can also lead to problems.
• Extra leanness is linked with a multitude of
  reproductive, circulatory, and immune system
  disorders.
• Muscle wasting and fatigue are other possible
  complications.
• For women, too low body fat can contribute to
  Amenorrhea and Loss of Bone Mass.

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To effectively control your Body Comp., you must
know how to ASSESS it

• Body Mass Index (BMI)
• Body Composition Tests
• Hydrostatic Weighing
• Skinfold Measurements
• Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis
• Body Fat Distribution
• Waist Circumference
• Waist-to-Hip Ratio

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Body Mass Index

• Uses height and weight estimates to predict
  body fat based upon population norms.
• Advantages
• Convenient
• Can test large groups easily.
• Disadvantages
• Does not provide Body Fat.
• For average people it can be an OK indicator of
  body comp, AT BEST!
• For healthy, active people, especially those who
  lift weights, BMI can be extremely inaccurate!

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Body Comp. Techniques

• Hydrostatic/Underwater Weighing
• Weigh someone outside of water, weigh them in
  water, then use an equation to estimate Body
  Density, then calculate body fat.
• Muscle is more dense than water, fat is less
  dense compared to water, i.e. fat floats
• Advantages
• Considered the Gold Standard for indirectly
  estimating body fat (Error is 3).
• Disadvantages
• Difficult to test large groups efficiently.
• Equipment may be expensive and hard to come by.
• Experience is Critical (as a tester and a
  participant).

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Body Comp. Techniques

• Skinfold measurements
• Use calipers to pinch-n-pull skin and
  subcutaneous fat away from muscle, record Fat
  Thickness in mm.
• Using different sites and equations, sum of all
  the measurements estimates Body Density, then
  BF.
• Advantages
• More convenient, cheaper, and accessible than
  hydrostatic weighing.
• Can be fairly accurate when performed by an
  experienced tester (Error is 6).
• Disadvantages
• Tester must have a ton of experience to produce
  valid and reliable results.

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Body Comp. Techniques

• Bioeletrical Impedance Analysis (BIA)
• A small-voltage electrical current is sent
  through part of the body.
• Fat-free Mass conducts the current well, Fat Mass
  impedes it.
• The longer it takes the electrical current to
  pass through your body, the fatter you are.
• Advantages
• Most convenient, and potentially cost-effective,
  body comp. technique.
• Very little tester experience is required.
• Fairly accurate under the right conditions (Error
  is 3-5).
• Disadvantages
• Too many assumptions!
• Appendige-specific Equipment (upper vs lower vs
  full body).
• Hydration Status and Body Proportions
  significantly affect results.

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Body Comp. Techniques

• Other methods of body comp. assessment include
• The BodPod uses Air Displacement to estimate
  body density, then calculates BF.
• DXA technique uses X-ray Technology to estimate
  body comp.
• TOBEC uses Magnetic Field to estimate body comp.

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Body Fat Distribution

• Waist Circumference
• Waist-to-Hip Ratio
• Both rely on apple and pear morphology stats
  in formulas that estimate risk associated with
  Fat Distribution.
• Scores higher than the recommended cut-offs May
  Be An Indicator That You Are Obese.
• Advantages
• Convenient, cheap, and easy to assess.
• Can test large groups quickly.
• Disadvantages
• Assumes a lot.
• Does not provide Body Fat.

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How can I control my Body Composition?

• Good Nutrition, Regular Exercise, and Balanced
  Wellness are controllable factors AND THE KEY TO
  SUCCESS!
• It is important not to underestimate the role of
  nutrition in this equation!
• There is no spot reducing, no magic pills, no
  shortcuts, and no liposuction remedies that will
  reduce and/or keep body fat off in a safe and
  effective manner!

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