How Can I Lose Weight?

 Today I want to tackle the question I get most often, “How can I lose weight?” This is like solving a puzzle because everyone has a unique problem that has a different solution. But for 90% of the overweight population, we can generalize. Processed foods cause most of the overweight problems.

But just the words “processed foods” take in more than you think. If you take all processed foods out of supermarkets, you would be left with a produce market and a seafood and meat market. Everything in this new store would be fresh, nothing frozen. Frozen or canned products have preservatives. Things like bread, crackers, cookies, and cakes are all processed foods. Anything in a can or box is processed food. Even most dairy products are processed.

So, what’s wrong with processed foods? Manufacturers have to add preservatives to add shelf life and also add other things to give the product better taste. Most of these food additives are chemical. You can tell by the ingredient list on the label. It’s these chemicals that change your metabolism and affect  the way you burn body fat.

So now we learned that some foods will speed up your metabolism so you burn more fat and some foods actually slows down your metabolism, so you burn less fat. And that’s important because our diets are full of fat and your body will only burn a small number of grams a day. The rest is stored in fat cells and adds to your weight. When you consume more fats and carbs than your body can process that excess is stored in fat cells.

So what can you eat, that’s the question. Let’s look at the diet of a small region in Japan where a higher percentage of people live over100 years than anywhere else on Earth. Okinawa is a small island at the southernmost part of Japan. Most of the people are farmers and fisherman. Their diet consists of mostly fish, chicken, rice, eggs, and home-grown vegetables, tea and water.

I think the key to a long, healthy life might be to simplify your diet. Eat some basic foods, only a small variety of different items and stay with it. I believe the body has to get use to the foods your eating. If you’re constantly changing your menu everyday the body has to learn how to digest those new foods, but by that time you’ve changed your menu and it has to get use to another new menu.

I remember a post I read from WebMD that said you shouldn’t be discouraged if you don’t lose weight at the beginning of a new diet. Your body has to get use to this new way of eating. Sometimes this might take more than one week. A successful program might mean you’ll lose one pound a week. After about two months you might have lost 10 pounds and then you might hit a wall and stop losing. This is normal, I’ll explain. You start a diet weighing 170 and you are allowed 1500 calories a day. You lose 10 pounds so now you weigh 160 and you stop losing so what’s the problem.

The problem is that as you lose weight you have to reduce your calorie intake because you’re 160 so you might have to drop your intake to 1400 calories and continue on the same plan. After you stop losing you need to adjust again to continue losing weight. What’s right for the 170-pound body isn’t always right for the 160- or 150-pound body.

I’m not a believer in just cutting back on the same foods that you ate in the past. The foods you have been eating has put a lot of excess fat on your body. Cutting back on those same foods won’t help you lose weight. Eating smaller cheeseburgers and only half an order of fries, a small coke and small ice cream cone is not a good diet plan. The same foods in smaller amounts is just a way to starvation.

Learn to eat foods that are as close to their natural state as possible. Learn to eat your food with a little seasoning, no gravy or sauces and don’t drink calories. I do allow myself a glass of wine with dinner.

Food cravings are a big problem for dieters, but eating nutritious food will stop that. The first couple of week is the hardest until your body adjusts to your new way of eating. Don’t be afraid to fill your plate, when you eat healthy food you can fill up. I only eat two meals a day, noon and five p.m. Sometime I snack in the afternoon on a handful of mix nuts.

Losing body fat should be your goal. Read up on weight loss and losing body fat. It doesn’t cost money to lose weight. The internet is full of free information.

Follow me on Twitter @GertsRay70369

Look for my podcast by searching “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight” on the podcast app that you use. You’ll see a piece of my book cover.

If you really want to lose your body fat look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You’ll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com and other online bookstores. Just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page. 

Trying To Slim Down?

 

Are you trying to slim down, tighten and tone your body? You’ll lose weight more effectively if you create a weekly workout plan to lose weight. When you create a weekly workout schedule for weight loss, there is no last-minute guesswork when it’s time to exercise. And when workouts are planned in advance, it’s more likely that you’ll complete them and reach your goal weight. This doesn’t mean that you don’t have to change your diet. If you're going to lose body fat you have to stop eating the bad fats that can be found it all prepared foods. So, the answer to losing body is a combination of a meal plan high in nutrients and exercise. Today I’m going to go over the exercise part. For beginners this is the biggest challenge. How much is enough?

Weekly Workout Plan for Beginners

The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that you get 150- 250 minutes per week of moderate intensity exercise to lose weight.

Does that sound like too much? Don’t worry. When you are first starting your weight loss workout plan, you’ll start at the low-end of that recommendation.

As a beginning-level exerciser, your main goal should simply be to complete some exercise on most days of the week. Choose activities that you enjoy and that are easy for you to do.

Walking is a great choice for many new exercisers because you can do it almost anywhere and it doesn’t require any fancy equipment. Online workouts and home strength training workouts are good for your body, too.

Before you start any weekly exercise program you should check with your doctor and follow his or her guidelines or restrictions to stay healthy. Then you can combine several different activities to create a full body weight loss workout schedule to lose weight and burn fat.

Monday (30 minutes): Moderate intensity walk
Tuesday (20 minutes): Simple home strength training workout
Wednesday (30 minutes): Moderate intensity walk
Thursday (20 minutes) Simple home strength training workout
Friday: (30) minutes) Moderate intensity walk
Saturday (20 minutes) Online relaxation yoga
Sunday: (30 minutes) Fun and easy cross training day (bike ride, swim or online aerobics class)
Total weekly exercise: 180 minutes

Weekly Workout Plan (Intermediate – Advanced)

As you get stronger and more fit, you’ll be able to add a few minutes to each of your daily workouts.

Be sure to add minutes gradually to avoid burnout. Eventually, you want your weekly workout plan to total 250 minutes or more for effective weight loss.

Your weight loss workout plan should also get harder as your level of fitness increases. The best workouts to burn fat are more difficult to do. As you get stronger, you’ll be able to include them in your exercise program as long as you are healthy enough for vigorous activity.

This sample weekly exercise routine includes strength training to build muscle, aerobic workouts to burn fat and flexibility training to reduce stress and keep your body healthy. As you read further, you’ll realize this workout is more for the workout enthusiast. You’ll need a gym membership, or your own workout room and you’ll need to be in pretty good shape to accomplish this 7-day routine.

Monday (45 minutes): Moderate intensity circuit workout with weights
Tuesday (20 minutes): HIIT workout at home or outdoors
Wednesday (30 minutes): Easy recovery day stretch and walk
Thursday (45 minutes) Moderate intensity circuit workout with weights
Friday: (20 minutes) High intensity day walk/run intervals
Saturday (30 minutes) recovery day relaxation yoga
Sunday: (75 minutes) moderate intensity jog, hike or walk
Total weekly exercise: 265 minutes

Weekly Workout Schedule Results

Many exercisers want to know how long they should stick to their weekly workout plan before they begin to see weight loss results. The answer depends. If you work out on a daily basis, by the second week you should begin to see improvements in the way your body looks and feels. Of course, the amount of weight you lose will also depend on you creating the right energy balance for weight loss. In other words, be careful how much you eat.

To make your workout plan more effective, make sure you combine your exercise program with a healthy diet full of lean protein, fruits and veggies. One of the most common mistakes that dieters make is to overeat after exercise. Don’t fall into that trap. Exercise daily, monitor the amount of food you eat every day and stay on track to get results. I think this is where the five small meal a day plan will fit in to the program. You eat only 300 calories in a meal and eat 5 or 6 meals a day 3 hours apart.

Beginners at exercise always fall into the same trap. After an intense workout they overeat. No matter how intense your workout even the most experienced athlete only burns about 350 calories an hour. And how much food is that? About one protein shake is 300 to 350 calories.

If you participate in a complete and balanced exercise program, you should see significant improvements in your body composition, your size and your weight in one to three months. You may even reach your goal weight in that period of time. But remember that to keep the weight off, you’ll need to continue to exercise on a regular basis. Make adjustments to your weekly workout plan and find new activities that you enjoy staying healthy and fit.

Losing body fat should be your goal. Read up on weight loss and losing body fat. It doesn’t cost money to lose weight. The internet is full of free information.

Follow me on Twitter @GertsRay70369

Look for my podcast by searching “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight” on the podcast app that you use. You’ll see a piece of my book cover.

If you really want to lose your body fat look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You’ll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com and other online bookstores. Just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page. 

Is Eating Over Rated

 I ask this question now because Obesity is running ramped. North America may have the most serious problem with their weight. What is causing this severe health problem? Why are Americans looking to food at every opportunity? 

Some doctors believe it could be a food addiction. The foods we buy have a chemical content that can be addictive. Others think it can be a way to relieve stress. We know that as a society North Americans are running the rat race. We have always been pressured to do more, to make more money, to be more productive. 

I believe our eating habits are a combination of chemical dependence, a way to relieve stress, and just bad habits. I examined my habits and found that years ago when I smoked cigarettes I didn't crave food but I did crave cigarettes. I stopped smoking in 1975 after a long stay in a hospital with a broken leg. In the years that followed, I gained almost 50 pounds. I never returned to smoking. For the last 40 years, I battled with my weight. 

I can't deny that during the years I worked my life was stressful, trying to manage my business and my personal life. I did live through those stressful years paying off my debt and getting my girls through college, and it did take a toll on my body. Fortunately, I accomplished my goals before the age of 50. 

After that, I spent a few years traveling deciding what I would do next. I wanted to try the retail busy and spent 13 more years in retail. Because I was debt free the retail business was tiring but much less stressful. It was fun and we did travel a lot to trade shows and had more time for vacations. 

After I sold the store I retired for good. For the first time, I got serious about losing body fat. After trying dozens of different things, I decided the problem was mostly about my choices of food and drinks. You can't exercise away a bad diet. I learned that the hard way. After gym memberships and dozens of exercise videos, I decided I would stop eating everything I had bought. I threw out so much food and drinks and decided all I was going to eat was chicken and green vegetables, and I stopped drinking calories,  

You might think that's hard to do when you eat out every day, but it's not. A good restaurant will always have chicken and some type of green vegetable. My friends asked me if I would get hungry? I asked No, I would eat two dinners about 6 hours apart. I ate as much as I wanted. I usually, made two vegetables. I finished each meal with a cup of tea. Tea will eliminate the food taste and stop the cravings. I like green tea, no cream or sugar, and not too strong. I might drink coffee in the morning but after that it's tea all day. 

I decided that my food cravings were more from an addiction to things like sugar and salt and not because I was hungry. The new diet I was trying, Chicken and vegetables, worked for me. I lost 20 pounds, 175 to 155, in about 2 months. The only exercise I did was some extra walking. I was training my body to burn body fat instead of body fat instead of the food I was eating. It's a method that works time and time again. Some foods add fat to the body and some foods help the body burn your body fat.

Look for my podcast by searching “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight” on the podcast app that you use. You’ll see a piece of my book cover.

Also, follow me on Twitter @gertsraymo70369 to get a link to my latest posts.

If you want to lose your body fat look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You’ll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. 

Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com and other online bookstores. Just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page. 

Sugar Detox

 If you watch the Today Show you probably know that the whole group decided to do a sugar detox for 10 days. My wife happened to be watching the show and she decided she wanted to do it too. So when she wants to do something then I have to do it too. I wasn’t wild about it because first of all you only cut out real sugar or added sugar. If you ever talked to anyone who did a “real sugar detox”, they give up all sugar and products with sugar.

The first day wasn’t so easy, let’s just say I ate a lot of fruit. The second day was much easier and that’s as far as I got so far. I should mention that most of the people on the Today Show didn’t make 10 days without cheating. That first day you can definitely tell you’re having withdrawals. I had an addiction and didn’t know it.  I don’t really have a lot of extra weight. I’m not a heavy person. For my size I’m in the middle, not heavy, not a light weight. I watch my diet so why do I have a sugar addiction?

It’s the food additives and restaurant food. We all eat out several times a week. We buy food in the grocery store that’s pre-made. All of us look for anyway possible to save a little time. But what’s really the point, do we actually get more work done or are we just trying to carve out more time to watch TV or surf the internet.

Maybe what I need to do is try to simplify my life by trying not to do so much in one day and what I can do, do those things better, like making meals at home. Making my own meals will save money, will help me to eat better. Eating a better-quality food is key to losing body fat.

I read a blog from one of my readers yesterday and she talked about buying groceries. “If you don’t buy it you won’t eat it.” Very true words, so what she is saying is that you need to use your willpower in the store. Most of us buy things out of habit, not necessarily because we want to eat those things but maybe someone in the house wants them. And once it’s in the house sooner or later the temptation will become to great.

A good way to stop buying snack food and other processed foods is first to have a talk with your family. I’m going to start buying fresh foods and making meals and sometimes I’ll be making meals at night for the next day, so if you want to snack do it before you come home because I’m not buying anymore junk food or soft drinks.  We’ll snack on fruit, plain popcorn and nuts and we’ll be drinking things like water or plain carbonated water, iced tea or coffee, no drinks with sugar.

You’re going to get a lot of complains but after the first week you’ll see a change in behavior, a change for the better. The whole idea is to break the sugar habit and reduce the food additives in their diet.  After a while your family will feel better and have more energy, be more active and start to lose body fat. Without them even knowing, they’ll become healthier and happier, and you might even save a little money in the process.

Follow me on Twitter @GertsRay70369

Look for my podcast by searching “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight” on the podcast app that you use. You’ll see a piece of my book cover.

If you really want to lose your body fat look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You’ll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com and other online bookstores. Just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page. 

Tired Of Hearing About BMI?

 I read an article earlier this week about BMI. If you haven't heard of BMI it's a measure of body fat that is used by doctors. The idea is that if you are someone high in body fat then your doctor should be educating you on the health problems that you could be facing in the future. 

Today, doctors and other experts are saying the BMI method of calculating body fat isn't accurate enough. This very old method is based on your height and weight. Now experts are saying that in many cases it's better to be examed by a doctor and let the doctor make a decision based on your overall health. You don't have to be shaped like an apple to have too much body fat.

Having too much body fat can be causes by the foods you eat. Some foods add fat to the body and some foods burn body fat. Most people with excess body fat are just eating the wrong foods. 

Yes, some things can be blamed on genetics, but genetics could put your fat cells in the same places as your mom, for example, if your mother had big hips and thighs then you might also have big hips and thighs if you add fat. 

That example assumes that you have the same eating habits as your mom. The amount of fat you put on your body is a result of the foods you eat. But where genetics comes in play is that siblings that eat the same foods for all the years they live at home will not always add the same amount of fat. We all have some fat, but in the cases of siblings one can turn out to be heavier than the other. That was true with me and my brother. Even if your sibling is eating the same foods in the same amounts, we don't all burn calories the same way or in the quantity. That we do get from genetics. Everyone is different in some ways even if you both have the same parents. 

You can do something about body fat no matter what size or age or sex. It's never to late to make a change.

Follow me on Twitter @GertsRay70369

Look for my podcast by searching “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight” on the podcast app that you use. You’ll see a piece of my book cover.

If you really want to lose your body fat look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You’ll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com and other online bookstores. Just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page. 

Work All The Muscles In Your Body, Not Just Your Abs

I follow this lady, who is a trainer, author who always has good advice for those of us who are trying to lose body fat. 

 Doing crunches every morning and every night? When you're down to your final inches of belly fat, countless crunches won't necessarily help you reveal a six-pack. It's time to switch it up. 

"You can't spot reduce," said Jill. In other words, you can't tell your body where to lose fat—even if you exercise your abs every day, that doesn't always make them flatter. Instead, Jill suggested doing functional exercises that use the muscles of your entire core—abdominals, back, pelvic, obliques—and other body parts. 

"These exercises use more muscles, so there is a higher rate of calorie burn while you are doing them," said Jill. 

Jill noted that planks are her favorite functional exercise. They activate your core muscles and your arm, leg, and butt muscles. Add some movement to the plank with shoulder taps or leg lifts, and you up the ante even more.

Remember to feel the burn, the burn is telling you that the muscle has been torn down and needs to rebuild. The muscle will start to burn the body fat in that area. the more core muscles that have been torn down the more body fat will be burned. This is really the only way to get rid of body fat through exercise. The other way is by diet.

Watch on YouTube: The 10-Move Stomach Workout You Can Do at Home for a Stronger Core.

Follow me on Twitter @GertsRay70369

Look for my podcast by searching “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight” on the podcast app that you use. You’ll see a piece of my book cover.

If you really want to lose your body fat look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You’ll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com and other online bookstores. Just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page. 

Your BMI and Why It's Important

If you have trouble losing weight, it may be that you don't understand the science behind weight loss. Why does any of this matter? 50 percent of American are obese. That means you have too much body fat. Why Is That Important? Because excess body fat causes extra stress on the body. Your heart has to work harder which means your heart probably won't last as long. More stress on the heart can causes high blood pressure, and heart disease. Also added weight will cause stress on other organs like your liver. 

 You may have heard of BMI — body mass index. It’s based on your height and weight, and it’s widely used by doctors to tell who’s obese, who’s overweight (but not obese), who’s at a normal weight, and who’s underweight. But BMI has some drawbacks. It may not be the best way to size up your condition. And it says nothing at all about your fitness level. So how useful is BMI really? And what else might you use? First, you should know a little more about BMI. This is a measurement of your muscle mass vs. body fat. The idea is that your doctor should know your percentage of body fat and keep track of it. Why, you might ask. The more body fat you have, the higher risk you are for diseases.

First, you should know a little more about BMI. This is a measurement of your muscle mass vs. body fat. The idea is that your doctor should know your percentage of body fat and keep track of it. Why you might ask. The more body fat you have, the higher risk you are for diseases like heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure etc. As you gain weight or just get older, being overweight become a serious problem to your health.

I found this article on WebMD and it’s well worth reading. I wrote a post a few days ago about BMI and how Doctors and insurance companies use it.

BMI, calculated from a person’s height and weight, breaks down into four categories:

Underweight: BMI below 18.5
Normal: BMI ranging between18.5 and 24.9
Overweight: BMI ranging between 25 and 29.9
Obese: BMI of 30 or higher

“Probably for 90% or 95% of the population, BMI is just fine as a general measure of obesity,” says Richard L. Atkinson, MD, director of the Obetech Obesity Research Center. But some critics take a different view. Scott Kahan, MD, MPH, director of the National Center for Weight and Wellness  believes that BMI has merit, particularly for scientific research.

“When you take a big population — thousands of people, tens of thousands of people — as part of a research study, it’s extraordinarily difficult to use anything more advanced than BMI,” he says. “BMI is cheap, it’s quick, and on average, it gives a reasonable measure that can be useful in most situations.”

But for you, or any other individual? BMI might not be the best.

Kahan specializes in helping patients manage excessive weight that can lead to health problems, including diabetes and heart disease. He notes that although BMI is useful as a quick screening tool by a doctor or nurse, it’s not enough just to look at a number. “Traditionally, we define obesity by a certain cut-off on the BMI scale,” he says. That amounts, he says, to judging whether a person is obese based only on that person’s size, something Kahan calls “antiquated and not terribly useful.”

You can find BMI calculators on the internet and you should know your number, but you want to remember that your number is only an indicator of your risk for diseases, it doesn’t tell what condition you're in. Your condition depends on many other factors. One very important factor is where your fat is located.

Are you shaped more like an apple, or a pear? The location of your fat may make a difference to your health.

There are exceptions, but generally, it’s the abdominal fat or the “apple” shape, that’s metabolically riskier. When fat settles around the waist instead of the hips, risk of coronary artery disease and type 2 diabetes is more likely.

“That tends to be more metabolically active fat or fat that deranges your metabolism and your health parameters and ultimately leads to more risk,” Kahan says. The doctor is a little technical, but to put this in layman’s terms, “belly fat is more dangerous than fat on the hips or thighs.”

Fat that accumulates on the hips and thighs — the “pear” shape — isn’t as potentially harmful. “Many women have lower body obesity, so their hips and thighs are larger, but their waists are not so big,” Atkinson says. Fat lower down on the body doesn’t carry the same risk as belly fat, he says.

Other Ways to Measure

What else is there besides BMI? You may want to get out your measuring tape.

Waist Size: This is as simple as it gets: wrapping a tape measure around your waist. For an accurate waist measurement, Kahan says the tape measure should encircle your waist at the top of your hip bones in your lower back and go around to the belly button.

Men should limit waist size to no more than 39 or 40 inches; women, no more than 34 or 35 inches, Atkinson says.

Again, there are some racial differences. For example, the Joslin Diabetes Center states that Asian men should keep their waists no more than 35.5 inches; Asian women, no more than 31.5 inches.

Is it useful? Yes. “The data show that waist circumference can be very valuable,” Kahan says.

Waist-to-Height Ratio: This compares your waist measurement to your height. It may be even more helpful than waist circumference alone, according to Kahan. The goal is for your waist circumference to be less than half of your height. The last sentence may be the most important part of this article. This, in my opinion, is more important than BMI and easier to keep track of. 

Waist-to-Hip Ratio: This compares your waist measurement to your hip measurement. Kahan doesn’t recommend this method. “We do have good data that using waist-to-hip ratio is not any more valuable than just using waist as a measurement,” he says.

Bioelectrical impedance scales: These scales send electrical currents through the body to assess fat and lean mass. They may be useful, according to Atkinson.

There are also better methods to measure body fat, such as MRIs and DEXA scans. But for most people, scans are not practical. “These things are much more accurate, but they’re much more expensive and much more difficult to do, so those are not likely to be reasonable options in the future,” Kahan says.

If you’re interested in learning more about BMI, I devoted part of my ebook on the topic.

Follow me on Twitter @GertsRay70369

Look for my podcast by searching “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight” on the podcast app that you use. You’ll see a piece of my book cover.

If you really want to lose your body fat look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You’ll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com and other online bookstores. Just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page.