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How to measure your body shape

There are many ways to calculate your size and weight. Weight is easy with a scale but the way to measure your size is usually done using the Body Mass Index, a measurement I have never been a big fan of. Here is that and more. This info is from Health Canada but even if you are not a Canadian I think it is still relelvent.

Body Mass Index
The body mass index (BMI) assesses body weight relative to height. You can calculate your BMI by taking your weight in kilograms and dividing

it by your height in metres squared (BMI = kg/m2) or your weight in pounds divided by the square of your height in inches and multiplying that number by 704.5 (BMI = Ib/in2 x 704.5). But you don’t need to do the math yourself. You can check your BMI on a standard BMI table found in many pharmacies and medical offices. If you have access to the Internet, there are many interactive BMI calculators that will do the math for you after you enter your height and weight.

How to measure your body shape

Once you know your BMI, you can use it to help determine how healthy your weight is in relation to your height.

  • BMI below 18.5 is considered underweight.
  • BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 is considered the normal, healthy range.
  • BMI between 25 and 29.9 is considered over­weight.
  • BMI over 30 is considered obese.

The BMI is only one indicator of a healthy weight. It has limitations and does not apply to children, pregnant women, or people with very muscular bodies. If your BMI falls outside what is generally considered healthy, ask your doctor what would be a healthy range for you.

Hip-to-Waist Ratio

Fat stored around the abdomen (the “apple­shaped” body) raises the risk of cardiovascular disease more than fat stored in the hip area (the”pear-shaped” body), so the hip-to-waist ratio (HWR) can be a useful tool in determining your risk of weight-related health problems.

To calculate your HWR, measure your waist at the smallest part-generally a few centimetres above your navel-then measure your hips at the widest point, including your buttocks. Now divide your waist measurement by your hip measurement to determine your hip-to-waist ratio.

Women with an HWR greater than 0.8 and men with an HWR greater than 1 .0 have a higher risk of developing heart disease and type 2 diabetes and should try to reduce their abdominal body fat.

Waist Circumference

Another easy tool for determining if your weight is in the healthy range is the waist circumference (WC). A WC of 88 cm (35 in.) or more in women or 102 cm (40 in.) or more in men carries a higher risk for health problems.

Achieving a Healthy Weight

To encourage healthy eating, Health Canada has developed Canada’s Food Guide to Healthy Eating, which outlines the four main food groups and explains which foods fall into which group and how many servings we should choose from each group every day. A copy of this guide is available at www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/food-guide­alimenVindex_e.html. Recently, the Food Guide was expanded to include a variety of multicultural variations. They are available in a number of languages at www.nutritionrc.ca/guide.html.

One of the keys to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is portion control. A number of studies have shown that many people under­estimate the number of calories they consume daily, primarily because they don’t understand how much is in “a portion.” Here is a practical way of estimating the size of a portion of some common foods.

  • Vegetables fruit: about the size of your fist
  • Pasta or rice: about the size of one scoop of ice cream
  • Meat, fish, or poultry: about the size of a deck of cards or the size of your palm (without the fingers)
  • Cheese: about the size of a pair of dice or the size of your thumb from the tip to the base

Physical Activity

Although dieting alone can help you lose weight, adding exercise into your daily schedule can speed up the process. The goal of exercise in a weight loss program is to help burn more calories. Exercise itself, apart from its role in weight loss, has many health benefits-even for people whose weight is in the healthy range. But before you start any exercise program, check with your doctor to make sure that the activity you are planning is appropriate in terms of your age, overall health, and state of physical fitness.

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Weight Loss Exercise

Why Your Waist Size Is So Important for Your Health


While a lot of people place emphasis on losing weight, you don’t see much as much press about waist size. However, the fact of the matter is that having a suitable waist size is even more important than being the right weight. This is because a big waist circumference is linked to a variety of health problems, such as diabetes, heart disease, and other obesity-linked disease. What’s more, a study found that people with bigger waist sizes had twice the risk of dying compared to people with smaller waistlines. This shows how dangerous it can be to have a big waist.

To clear things up, the waist is the area between the bottom of your ribs to the top of your hips. You may call this your abdomen or belly area. Most of the time, people with large waists tend to have an apple-shaped body, as opposed to a pear-shaped body when more of the body fat is stored in the hips. If you have an apple-shaped body, you should certainly measure your waist size and ensure that it is not too big.

You must be wondering what a ‘large waistlineâ? means. In general, if you are a man and your waist circumference is more than 37 inches, and if you are a woman and your waist circumference is more than 32 inches, you already have a higher risk of contracting diseases such as diabetes and heart disease. The risk is heightened even more if your waistline is above 40 inches (for men) and 35 inches (for women). So, try your best to reduce your waist size to below the mentioned levels.

A bigger waist means more of your fat is stored in your abdomen, on and around your organs. This can impair the ability of your organs to function properly, which is why many health problems afflict people with bigger waistlines.

It’s important to know that you cannot target weight loss to happen around your waist only. The only way to drop the fat is to eat a lower-calorie diet and do regular exercise to burn overall fat. Generally, fat burns off last from the abdomen, so you will have to work on it if you are going to reduce your waist size.

It won’t be easy, but for your health’s sake, strive to achieve a healthy weight as well as a healthy waist size.


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10 Ways to Lower Stress



Not all stress is created equal. You can feel stress from work, home, family, friends, and yourself, but you can also experience stress from winning the lottery and moving into your new mansion. Long term stress, however, can even contribute to health problems if not dealt with.

While it is normal to have some stress, most of us tend to have too much of it. Here are some suggestions for relieving your stress. What is relaxing to one person may not be so relaxing to another, so use the techniques that appeal to you.

10 Ways to Lower Stress

Ways to Lower Stress

1. Laugh – What makes you laugh? Your puppy, a funny movie, a comedy routine? Make some time to laugh; it can be an instant stress reliever.

2. Exercise – Perhaps a brisk walk in the park or a game of tennis with a good friend. Fire up those endorphins while enjoying nature or companionship.

3. Massage – See a professional. Better yet, have one come to your home. If you can’t afford it, get a 15 minute shoulder massage at the mall or coax your spouse into doing it.

4. Music – A fast beat can make you dance, and it’s hard to feel stressed while you’re dancing. At the other end of the spectrum, calm music will help you feel calm.

5. Discussion – Talk out your problems with the people who can help you solve your problems, whether it be your spouse who IS the problem or a professional who can give you coping methods.

6. Yoga – This combines several stress relieving modalities including breathing, meditation, and stretching.

7. No – Learning to say no to people and situations will help you to stop heaping so much on your plate. Step back and look at your 24 hours and decide where you want your priorities to lie. Weed out everything else.

8. Deep-breathing – Breathing deep can bring quick relief from an immediate stressful situation and allows you to focus. Plus it oxygenates the blood.

9. Entertainment – Let others take the stress on their shoulders as they entertain you. Get out of the house or office, and away from the stress and take in a movie, a nice restaurant dinner, a tour of the city, or a concert.

10 – Journal – If you don’t want to talk about it then write about it. Keeping a journal of your concerns and stresses will help you get a clearer picture of your issues and might help you come up with a plan to get to a place of less stress.

Even if you can’t remove all the stress in your world, you can certainly lower your stress levels when you try some of these tips. These 10 ways to lower stress should get you on your way to a healthier and happier life

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