LA fitness news

How Do You Measure Up?

January 29, 2010

“In the Middle Ages, they had guillotines, stretch racks, whips and chains. Nowadays, we have a much more effective torture device called the bathroom scales,” says Stephen Phillips.

If the needle points in the right direction, it’s going to be a good day, if it doesn’t, the four horsemen of the apocalypse start saddling up as the end of the world approaches.

Fortunately, there are a few other ways of measuring your progress. Body Mass Index (BMI), which measures the height to weight ratio, is one of them, as is the waist-hip ratio (WHR). A waist-to-hip ratio of 0.9 for men and 0.7 for women has been shown to correlate to good health. My personal default mechanism in the weighting game is how my clothes fit. Baggy trousers good, tight trousers - must have shrunk in the wash. Remedy: Loosen belt and review exercise and eating programme. Want our advice: get rid of the scales, find a measurement that you are comfortable with and stick with it but do not, under any circumstances, let it dominate your life.

For more information, consult Winnie the Pooh in the video gallery above.