Taking your hip circumference is easy.
- Stand upright and relaxed.
- Keeping the measuring tape horizontal, measure the widest point around your hip/buttocks area.
Related blog: How to calculate your BAI.
Archive for the ‘Anthropometry’ Category
How to take your hip circumference
March 6, 2011Body Fat Guestimations
March 5, 2011If you want a quick easy way to guestimate your body fat percentage then take a look in the mirror and then at these pictures.
What would you look like if you lost 20lb?
January 9, 2009Your Only Body
December 27, 2008“I’ve left my body to Science, but I’m afraid they turned it down”, Eric Idle
How well would you say you take care for your body?
Better or worse than you car? Pet? Children? House?
It is a little cliche, but worth being reminded of I think, that you only have one body, and so should take care of it. Almost daily we do things to our body that we know are bad for it: eating deep fried food, smoking, not exercising etc. Compare the care, time and money you put into looking after your car, pets and house. Imagine now how much better shape your body would be (both literally and figuratively) if you spent the same care, time and money on looking after your body.
And I don’t just mean buying a gym membership. Looking at the long term is important, but doing small things everyday is the real key.
If you feel like you have not been taking care of your body, and/or have not achieved your athletic/aesthetic/health goals then ask yourself the following:
- Do I take my time eating and stop when I feel full?
- Do I do some exercise most days?
- Do I never smoke?
If you answer Yes to all of those then great. (if you did not answer yes then your priority should be reminding the reasons why this is so).
Should fat people have to pay for two airline tickets?
December 26, 2008I have discussed before the issue of airlines policy on morbidly obese people.
Here is an interesting ‘review’ of the current situation by Dietblog.
Some of my thoughts:
- I am talking about seriously overweight people here – not your average 115kg person who has enjoyed too many big dinners.
- To me a seat as something you rent off the airline for the set trip. Much like shipping cargo, it makes sense to have to pay when requiring additional area and weight. If you need more than one seat it only seems fair to the people that would have otherwise been squashed up next you that you pay for additional area.
- It is not an issue about discrimination, or the cause of being severely overweight. The PC response will be that charging more for overweight people on an airplane is outrageous. But what about someone with long hair paying for a haircut, someone with lots of hair getting a full body wax, and someone putting their dog in a kennel for a few nights while they are on holiday? In these instances we accept the additional financial costs when the service provided has to cater for specific (additional) physical characteristics. Why should it be any different with people and airplane tickets?
Some issues I have with the idea:
- What about pregnant women?
- What if the severely obese person is traveling with a 60kg person with no bags who is happy to sit next to them?
- Where would you set the specific cut off in area/weight?
- What if it results in obese people self-inducing vomiting, and starving themselves before flights simply to avoid additional costs?
It’s not the eating, it’s how we’re eating
November 10, 2008In case you are reading this from outside of New Zealand, there has been a long lasting (anti-) binge drinking promotion here with the catch line: It’s not the drinking, it’s how we’re drinking.
I think a similar thing could be said about eating: It’s not the eating, it’s how we’re eating. More specifically, it is the amount we are eating, not the eating that is the main problem. And like drinking, it has a lot to do with culture.
I was reminded of this recently when I saw a man in the States had eaten a 20lb burger. The fact this is something society needs to celebrate and reward is funny for all the wrong reasons.
He won USD$400, and three t-shirts!!! Would the public tolerate drinking 2 crates of beer as we do this? I doubt it.
I am sure we have totally gorged ourselves on a food or meal that we love at one time, eating way more than we need just to satisfy our short term wants.
Feels good at the time, but soon after you get the eaters remorse! I don’t know about you but I find the marginal benefit I get from foods I love tends to decrease significantly the more I eat.
So what’s my point?
Rather than setting the totally unrealistic goal of never again eating (insert a food you love that you know is not ideal for you here) you should instead set realistic aims around exactly how much to eat. Realise that eating a smaller volume than your volume craving brain is telling you may be a good idea.
In case you are interested here are three of the ALAC ads:
The “Lisa” ad:
The “Dave” ad:
And the worst of the lot, the “Mark” ad:
Childhood Obesity: Is Exercise or Nutrition the cause?
October 23, 2008Increased TV watching, overly protective parents driving their children to school, fast food, unhealthy tuck shops, less PE class time are all factors that have been blamed for the rates of childhood obesity that we see today.
But what is the biggest culprit? Is it exercise or nutrition?
Amongst the experts it is pretty clear cut:
Much like their parents when it comes to weight control nutrition is by far the more important factor.
Heat Attacks and BMI
October 13, 2008Body Mass Index (BMI) as a predictor of health is a somewhat contentious issue. What we do know is someone who is heavier relative to height, has a heart attack 12 years earlier than a ‘normal’ weight person. Of note is that smokers suffer them only 10 years earlier – so in relation to age of heart attack, being heavier for height is more of a risk factor than smoking.
Of course this is based on averages, but what is unknown is the precise cause. For example, is it the amount of food, type of food, lack of exercise, genetics, a combination of above, or a totally different factor that accounts for the difference?
It would be great if this one factor was identified, then we could address that, but in the mean time it probably pays to eat good food, exercise a little, and not to smoke.
I hope these are not new concepts for you.
Diet Record Book / Diet Diary / Food Diary: Free Download
October 4, 2008Below is a Free Diet Record Sheet (aka Diet Diary). It is an incredibly valuable tool to use whether your goal is to prevent/cure disease, lose fat, or put on muscle (I would say one these three options covers over 99% of people who go to a nutritionist).
It is one I use when working with clients, and is far superior to any others I have seen. The reason is because it is extensive. Trying to formulate a plan for a client and having important data missing is frustrating. This Diet Record Sheet ensures that everything that needs to be recorded is recorded.
I have included the 3-day version, but if you are doing a longer record then you can simply print out more days.
Free Diet Record Book – Click Here
Remember filling this out is only the first step. Having your diet analysed and interpreted by a qualified person is the next…
