Archive for the ‘Anthropometry’ Category

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Mirror muscles

February 17, 2008

The ‘posterior chain’ is just a slightly fancy name given to the group of muscles which run down your back – Calfs, Hamstrings, Gluts, Lower back etc.

In forward running these muscles account for approximately 80% of the power you can produce.

Not to confuse my beliefs around measuring body composition during fat/weight loss, this is one good reason to not spend too much time looking in the mirror judging your athletic ability.

Sure it may look good to have nice toned abs, a big chest and hulking quads, but sadly they do very little for you running forward.

Posted in Anthropometry, Athletics, Exercise, Fitness, Gym, Rugby, Running, Sport, Weight Training | Leave a Comment »

Curls for the girls… And your life

November 26, 2007

This title caught my eye:’ Big biceps, trim waist mean longer life for men‘.

Many people see little benefit in resistance training, some even think it is only for posers and athletes. Well, now there is another good reason. In a study involving over 4,000 men researchers found the best predictors of longevity (not dying) over the 6 year period was having large arm muscle mass and slim waists. In fact the chance of the man dying decreased as his muscle mass rose (the more the better).

Another interesting find close to my heart: BMI was not a good predictor of anything… Unless you are a underweight person with an increased risk of dying anyway.

Can there ever be a better advert for resistance training than this?

This is not an excuse to just train arms in the gym though. As stated, the overall risk decreased as muscle mass increased. If all you do is train your arms all day then you may have big arms, but you are unlikely to have a slim waist!

Also, there is a large school of thought that the best way to make one body part ‘grow’ is to train the whole body. Said another way, there may be a mechanism in the body which stops you from putting on too much upper body weight if the lower body can not support it.

Translation of above paragraph: Train your legs too.

Posted in Anthropometry, Diet, Exercise, Fat Loss, Fitness, Food, Gym, Health, Nutrition, Weight Gain, Weight Loss, Weight Training | Leave a Comment »

Mirror muscles

October 2, 2007

I wrote recently about how I think the mirror is more valuable as a body composition measure than the regular scales. My justification for this is that I could judge someones ‘body composition health profile’ better by looking at them in their underwear than I could by knowing how much they weigh.

The big problem with my method is the potential for people to only look at their front in the mirror, which may lead to people only training and worrying about the ‘mirror muscles’. I classify the mirror muscles as biceps, chest, abdominals and quads. It may feel good to look good in the mirror, but it is important that you train what you can’t see so easily – behind you. There are a few very good reasons for this:

  • Balance: You do not want muscles on one side of a joint disproportionally bigger and stronger than the muscles on other sides. This may lead to imbalances and/or injury.
  • Aesthetics: Having a big chest and a small back just looks silly to anyone in the know! Likewise someone who only works out their upper body whilst neglecting their legs.
  • Athletic functionality: If you are interested in running faster and jumping higher (I would say that is 99% of athletes) then the ‘posterior chain’ muscles play a much more important role than the muscles on your front.

Posted in Anthropometry, Athletics, Exercise, Fat Loss, Fitness, Gym, Health, Weight Gain, Weight Loss, Weight Training | Leave a Comment »

Measuring Body Composition

September 26, 2007

What is the best way to measure your body composition and/or health?

I have written recently about how I am not a big fan of the scales. So what do I recommend?

You could take your BMI, get some skinfolds done, or take your waist circumference. All valid, good methods.

But if all you are interested in is health and fitness, I would be more inclined to measure your fitness specifically (physical test), and measure your body composition with the mirror test.

To take the mirror test do the following: Strip down to your underwear. Relax (don’t suck anything in) and take a look in a full length mirror – front and back – and see what you think. Now to get slightly controversial I could say get someone to take a photo. I have never done this, but it certainly would be more objective, and would give you something to compare to in the future.

My intention in giving you this advice is to provide you with a simple, easy, cheap method of measuring your body composition. I also think it is a much better way to measure than the scales. It is not to create insecurities, disorders or arguments that go along the line: “does my butt look big in this?”. Use this advice with caution!

Do this test at most once a month. Of course it is hugely limited in its application – primarily because your perception may not quite be right. If you are male and want something to compare to check this out.

If you are after a totally objective, ‘gold standard’ body composition assessment then get a dexa scan done. You may struggle however. Some radiology departments in the area I live use their equipment solely for bone mineral density analysis.

Posted in Anthropometry, Bodybuilding, Diet, Exercise, Fat Loss, Fitness, Gym, Health, Sport, Weight Gain, Weight Loss, Weight Training | 1 Comment »

Don’t judge a book by its cover

July 26, 2007

Being fit and slightly overweight is a lot more healthy (less chance of disease) than being the correct weight, but not fit. There was more evidence out today backing up this theory:

Waist circumference study

Taking your own waist circumference is pretty easy:

Stand upright and relax. Measure the narrowest point between your bottom rib and belly button. Make sure the tape is kept horizontal, and is tight without depressing the skin.

You are deemed ‘high risk’ if you are over 102cm (men) or 88cm (women).

Posted in Anthropometry, Diet, Exercise, Fat Loss, Fitness, Gym, Health, Nutrition, Weight Gain, Weight Loss, Weight Training | 2 Comments »

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