Ever wonder what the number on the scale actually means? The answer lies in your body composition.
First, let's sort out the difference between body weight and body composition (not to be confused with body mass index, which is your body weight divided by height). Your body weight is simply your body's total mass. Body composition is what your weight is made of—muscle, bone, water, and fat.
Sounds great, but why should you care? Knowing where you stand is the first step to getting where you want to go.
Asphalt Green personal training staff share what you gain by knowing your body composition:
- Body composition gives you a clearer picture of your health. A person can be in a healthy weight range but practice a sedentary lifestyle, which is more common than you may think. Over 150 million Americans do not get enough exercise, leading to health issues like heart disease, diabetes, and high cholesterol. Body composition is a clear indicator of whether your body fat percentage is in a healthy range—10-20 percent for men and 18-28 percent for women. This knowledge is important to determine how to reduce or prevent the risk of developing these diseases.
- Know your strengths and weaknesses. Everyone has muscle imbalances, and a body composition analysis, like the one completed on Asphalt Green's InBody scale, pinpoints your strengths and weaknesses.
- Body composition helps you determine the right approach to exercise. Fitness is personal. Knowing the amount of fat and muscle in each limb will help determine the most effective approach to exercise for you. For example, an individual with higher levels of body fat but average muscle mass would benefit from workouts that get the heart rate up (lower weights, higher repetitions). Conversely, an individual with average fat percentage and lower muscle mass would get more out of a strength-building workout (heavier weights and lower repetitions).
You're convinced, now what?
Asphalt Green offers a body composition analysis as part of the new-member personal training session.Contact the fitness departmentto schedule yours today.
