Does Thin = Fit?
In the world of super-models, being thin is superb. For me, I never liked the thin look, but the fit look. Of course, that is just a personal preference.
The purpose of this blog is explain that just because you’re thin, it doesn’t mean you’re fit. For nearly a decade, I have been testing body fat of individuals. Many of them were thin. However, their body fat was just as high of that of those that would be considered obese. These types of individuals are coined as “skinny fat.” Some of those I tested were in disbelief and flabbergasted.
A study at the University of South Carolina is showed that this phenomenon as fact (related article). It has long been considered that weight and body mass indexing (BMI) were sufficient in determining health risks. Most of your diet centers and doctors offices only look at these numbers. Joe Schmoe fitness coaches (such as myself), have always known this to be false.
Though I have found that external fat (fat just underneath the skin) can be very high in skinny individuals, this study shows that internal fat (fat in muscles and intra-abdominal fat) can be very high as well. This means the risks of heart disease, diabetes, and other diseases associated to obesity can be just as high in non-exercising thin people. The study also states that active “overweight” individuals can be at less risk of disease.
The point that needs to be taken from this is that weight is not the tell all, end all, factor to being fit. Instead of weight, what you have to consider is body composition. At the end of the day, you can be skinny, but that doesn’t mean you can run a mile any better or decrease your risks of chronic disease.
Kelly Huggins
Exercise Science, B.S.
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