Time to chuck away those diet books...

[ajva]

...and hit the gym instead?

clarification: The main point of this for me is that, should these findings be confirmed and the idea that fit=healthy whatever the weight be more widely accepted (and I don't see why not), then it will invalidate all pro-diet arguments which rest on the premise that it is unhealthy to be overweight.

Comments

[adjectivegail]

There was also this article in The Guardian last month that made me think quite a bit...

[valkyriekaren.livejournal.com]

It's the proportion of body-fat to muscle that's the problem; you can have very little fat, but if you have no muscle either you're not in good shape, however slim you look.

I'm earmarking some of the cash I'm getting soon for joining a gym - probably the Fitness First one in Leyton as it's handy. I may not be particularly overweight, but I don't want to be a 'fat thin person'.

[ajva.livejournal.com]

I know this is an important issue, but the article I quote seems to go a little further than that. For example, this:

In the first [study], published in Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology, levels of C-reactive protein, a risk factor for heart disease, were measured in a group of young men; the lowest readings were recorded in those who worked out most often, regardless of how much they weighed.

I don't see that this is necessarily directly related to the fat/muscle ratio, although of course it may well be - I'm no expert. The emphasis given to cardiovascular exercise in the article also seems to suggest that, say, resistance training alone won't cut the mustard either. The important point, though, seems to be that, if one is worried about the supposed health implications of being fat, then losing weight per se is pointless because it won't improve health. It is the exercise level that matters.

Interesting, no? :o)

Of course - it's only a couple of studies and you can't take them in isolation blah blah and so on.

[jhg.livejournal.com]

Can I just say 'well DUH!'

That is remembering, of course, that it's still very important to eat the sort of diet which ensures you get enough fat, protein, carbohyrates, fibre, vitamins, minerals etc.

I tend to err on the side of too much of everything, rather than too little of everything!!!


J