Body Composition: BMI, Metabolic Rate & Fat Metabolism

Body composition analysis relies on BMI calculation, understanding BMR/RMR standards, and identifying the biochemistry behind fat metabolism and lipolysis.

Pregnant Woman holding hands on belly

Soft Belly Fat vs. Hard Belly Fat

Being able to pinch an inch at your waistline may be upsetting to you. That pinchable fat is soft belly fat, also known as subcutaneous fat, acts as insulation and a source of energy for your body.

Read more →
Closeup of a Asians weighed

13 Day Metabolism Diet

Losing up to 22 pounds in 13 days certainly sounds like a winning diet if you want to lose weight fast. However, the 13 Day Metabolism diet is a fad diet with strict rules and severe calorie restriction that you may have a hard time following for the allotted days.

Read more →
Nervous businesswoman pulling her hair out

Does Stress Increase Metabolism?

Stress affects people in a variety of ways. Some may lose weight, while others may gain. Both epinephrine and cortisol are adrenal stress hormones that might be partly responsible for these reactions. Cortisol increases your metabolism, but it also makes you hungry.

Read more →
Children's football team running drills

Body Fat Percentage for Children

Like adults, more and more children are having a hard time managing their weight. And an overweight child is more likely to become an overweight adult, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Figuring out your child's body fat is one way to assess your child's health risk.

Read more →
Attractive woman

How to Take Waist & Neck Measurements to Determine Body Fat

The extra fat that hangs over your belt is not only uncomfortable, it's also unhealthy. There are a number of ways you can test your body fat to see where you stand, but some tests, such as bioelectric impedance and hydrostatic weighing, require special equipment.

Read more →
Different types of vinegar

Does Vinegar Burn Belly Fat?

While a link may exist between vinegar and fat metabolism, you need to do more than add vinegar to your fries to lose belly fat. No one food, special diet or exercise can help your body burn fat in any particular area.

Read more →
Woman putting her wrist on the other hand

How To Measure Wrist Size for Body Frame Measurement

You may want to look like the supermodel on the cover of your favorite fashion magazine, but you might not be built quite the same way. Measuring your wrist to determine your body frame size can help you develop ideal expectations of a healthy weight specific for your height and build.

Read more →
Woman & man working out on crosscycle at gym

How to Maximize Fat Burning Rate

Losing weight is about shedding fat, not muscle. To maximize fat burning, you'll want to strategically combine diet and exercise. You need to reduce calorie intake enough, but not too much, and do two kinds of workouts -- high-intensity interval training and strength training.

Read more →
Workout fitness sports woman standing with dumbbells full body portrait

How Much of Your Body Mass Is Actually Muscle?

If you're working out to build muscle, don't be upset if you don't like the number you see on the scale. While it may tell you how much you weigh, it doesn't tell you how much of that weight is muscle vs. fat. When it comes to health, body composition counts.

Read more →
Senior Couple Walking In Park

Do You Burn Fat When Your Glycogen Stores Are Full?

Just as your car burns gasoline to move forward, your body requires energy to keep your metabolism humming. That energy comes primarily from glucose, which is stored in the body as glycogen, or from fat.

Read more →
Healthy Salad Lunch

How to Detox Your System's Metabolism

Trendy detox diets are meant to help your body rid itself of harmful substances. Your metabolism is your calorie-burning system. While certain diets may affect your body's metabolic rate, you cannot "detox" your metabolism; however, low-calorie detox diets may slow it down.

Read more →
spoon fork and knife on empty white plate

Does Not Eating Slow Your Metabolism?

To lose weight you need to eat less, so skipping meals or eating little or nothing for a day may seem like a good idea. But not eating intensifies your hunger, and regularly eating too little or skipping meals can slow your metabolism.

Read more →
Acronym BMI - Body Mass Index

What Does a BMI of 26 Mean?

Your weight is a good indicator of your health. If you maintain a healthy weight throughout most of your life, you may be able to reduce your risk of a chronic illness such as heart disease. Body mass index, or BMI, is a tool that helps determine health risk based on a calculation using your height and weight.

Read more →
Dieting woman on bathroom scales

What Is a Healthy Weight for a 25-Year-Old Woman?

As a 25-year-old woman, your concerns with weight may be more about aesthetics than your health. But you might be surprised to learn that a healthy weight is not one that requires a starvation diet. A couple of methods are available that you can use to determine your healthy weight, based on your height.

Read more →
Glucose model

Does Fat Convert to Glucose in the Body?

Your body is an amazing machine that is able to extract energy from just about anything you eat. While glucose is your body's preferred energy source, you can't convert fat into glucose for energy; instead, fatty acids or ketones are used to supply your body with energy from fat.

Read more →
Woman biting an apple

Baby Fat in Teenagers

Influenced by what he sees on TV and in magazines, your teen may worry that he's not thin enough. Some teens take longer to grow into their adult height than others and may continue to harbor some of that "baby fat."

Read more →
Doctor talking to patient in hospital room

What Is the Difference Between Slow & Fast Metabolism?

The metabolism gets blamed for weight issues on both ends of the spectrum. If it's too slow, you may battle to lose weight; if it's too fast, you may struggle with gaining. Whether it's slow or fast, tweaking your diet and exercise habits may help you manage your metabolic rate.

Read more →
hungry

Can I Get Fat From One Day of Binge Eating?

At one time or another you probably ate way more than you intended to eat. One day of binge eating may add a pound or two, but it's temporary water weight, not fat. Continuously eating more calories than your body needs -- day after day -- is what causes fat gain.

Read more →
Woman handing young girl in kitchen an apple out of grocery bag and smiling

Things You Can Eat That Won't Cause You to Gain Weight

If you dream about being able to eat whatever you want and not gain weight, you're not alone. While no miracle foods are available to help you lose weight, filling your diet with the right foods may help you get to and maintain a healthy weight.

Read more →