Ship-Shape or Ship-Shaped?

Week 2

Current Weight: 82.4 kg/ 181 lb

Weight Lost: 0.9 kg/ 2 lb

Weight to Lose: 33.4 kg/ 73.5 lb

Like I promised in my first post, let’s talk about waist circumference. I measured mine and holy shit! My waist circumference is 41 inches i.e. 105 cm! I always shy away from the measuring tape and it’s been ages since I bought ‘real’ trousers. I’m ashamed to admit I still wear my maternity pants at times, and the rest of my pants have an elasticized waist. But this is about looking myself in the eye, so I dug out the tape and measured myself. I knew I had a paunch, but 41 inches!!!

And honey, it’s not just about not qualifying for Supermodel of the Year. Your waist says a lot about your health. And mine is saying I’m at a huge risk for chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiac diseases, etc. Actually, I already have hypertension (high blood pressure), so that puts me at increased risk.

What is the desirable waist circumference?

Well, in case of men a waist circumference above 94 cm (37 inches) puts their health at risk, and above 102 cm (40 inches) at high risk. In case of women, their health is at risk if their waist circumference is over 80 cm (31.5 inches) and at high risk if it is over 88 cm (34.5 inches). Looks like I’m breaking all records here.

Find out how you measure up. The correct way to get the measurement is to undress so there is no restrictive clothing around your abdomen or hips. Let the bottom of the tape lie where your hipbone starts, and look in a mirror to make sure the tape is parallel to the ground on all sides.  Usually that will make the tape lie just above your belly button. Take 2-3 normal breaths and measure on the exhalation of the last breath. Don’t pinch the skin or pull too tight.

What does increased girth tell you?

A waist circumference above the normal cutoffs indicates central obesity which is more dangerous than overall obesity. Abdominal fat comes in different forms. Some of it is located just beneath the skin (subcutaneous fat). It’s not very different from the fat present elsewhere in the body. Of course it’s not good, but it’s not especially dangerous either.

But the fat inside the abdomen (visceral fat) is a different story. It wraps itself around the internal organs.  It is the scary fat. The mechanism behind its scariness is a concept called lipotoxicity (lipos = fat, toxicus = poisonous). Normally fat is stored in adipose tissue, but when there is excess of fat, it spills over and starts accumulating in other tissues such as the liver, heart, skeletal muscles, pancreas and kidneys. When the capacity of these cells to store fat is exceeded, they start dying. Visceral fat has properties that promote lipotoxicity. Ultimately, this results in a higher risk of heart disease, hypertension, insulin resistance, and Type 2 Diabetes.

And no, doing 100 crunches daily does not get rid of abdominal fat! 

Where Am I Today and Where Do I Want To Go?

Week 1

Current Weight: 83.3 kg/ 183 lb

Target Weight: 49 kg/ 108 lb

Weight to Lose: 34.3 kg/ 75 lb

Ok. That sounds pretty daunting. But somehow, today, I’m in a good mood. I think it’s doable. Not in the short term, but in the long term. How much time will I need realistically? At a steady, slow pace of 2 kg/month, it’s gonna take me 17 months from today. Say 18 months, to make it a round figure (pun not intended). That’s 1 ½ years from today or 22^nd of March 2016. On that day, I ought to weigh 49 kgs.

Now let’s see why my target weight is 49 kg. I am 152 cm tall. My current BMI (Body Mass Index) is 36.1 kg/m². That puts me in the Class 2 Obese category.

Hey, do you wanna know how to calculate your BMI? Take your weight in kg. Divide it by your height in metres once, and then once again OR divide your weight in kg by the square of your height in metres. So, my weight 83.3 kg divided by the square of my height 1.52m i.e. 2.3104 gives my BMI as 36.1 approximately.

I’m giving the WHO classification of BMI below, so you can check where you fit.  

Classification	BMI range
Underweight	<18.5
Normal	18.5 to 24.99
Overweight (PreObese)	25 to 29.99
Obesity Class 1	30 to 34.99
Obesity Class 2	35 to 39.99
Obesity Class 3 (Morbidly Obese)	≥40

For Asian Indians however, the BMI ranges are:  Normal BMI: 18.0-22.9 kg/m², Overweight: 23.0-24.9 kg/m², Obesity: >25 kg/m². So for my height, the ideal weight range is 42.7 kg to 52.9 kg. So the target I’ve set myself is in the middle of the normal range, at an approximate BMI of 21.

Wish me luck, folks!

Let’s talk about waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio the next time.

Mindless Eating Vs. Mindful Eating

I ate a handful of masala peanuts today. And then another handful. And then another one. And this on a day when I started a new exercise programme (more on that later). I exercised, had a healthy breakfast, and later binged on peanuts. Why?

Let’s see. At first, I got upset with myself for doing it. Then I decided it was a good opportunity to analyse my behavior. This time I’m in for good. So I’ll take my goof-ups and use them.

So, why did I binge on masala peanuts? Firstly because they were there in plain sight. Since I don’t wanna eat stuff like that, I shouldn’t have left it out there in plain sight or anywhere I could find them, for that matter.

But most importantly, I ate so many because I was reading a book and munching on the side! I wasn’t really paying attention to the peanuts, I was engrossed in the book. And I kept eating.

And I realized that happens with me a lot of times. I eat in front of the TV, very often while reading a book, sometimes even while I’m talking on the phone. And it’s usually when I’m snacking on something. Because when I have lunch or dinner, I serve up a plate and don’t go for seconds. It’s the snacking that does me in.

So one, I snack on the side, and two, while snacking I don’t have any control over portions. Since I’m not paying attention, I stop only when the whole packet or whatever is over.

What I snack on is another issue altogether. For now, the lesson I’ve learnt is mindful eating – I resolve not to eat on the side. When I eat, I’m gonna pay attention to my food, and focus on eating. And secondly, even while snacking, I'm gonna serve out a portion and refrain from seconds. That should do it.