Can One Be Both Fat and Fit?

August 1, 2007, U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona, MD called it the greatest threat to public health today. So why then has the AMA (American Medical Association) and Jama (Journal of American Medicine Assoc) both reported that one can be both Fit and Fat? As a personal trainer with a Cardio Vascular disease I believe it is irresponsible to give people false hope.

Body Mass Index is measured as {weight (lbs) x 703} / height (inches)

Generally speaking a BMI (body mass index) of 17 - 25 is considered "Normal" or fit, a BMI of 25 - 29 is considered "Overweight", a BMI of 30 - 40 is considered Obese and finally any BMI over 40 is considered Morbidly Obese.

Common risk factors associated with Obesity are: Cardio-Vascular Illness (hypertension, heart failure, varicose veins, etc), Issues with the endocrine system (type II diabetes, infertility, metabolic syndrome, etc), Gastrointestinal issues and many more.

This being the case, how can the AMA and JAMA say one can be "Fat:" and "Fit"? Well, they were only looking at one aspect of obesity related issues. According to a study performed by Benoit J. Arsenault, MSc; Dominique Lachance, BSc; Isabelle Lemieux, PhD; Natalie Almeras, PhD; Angelo Tremblay, PhD; Claude Bouchard, PhD; Louis Perusse, PhD; and Hean-Pierre Despres, Phd, FAHA.; it was determined an obese person with a healthy cardio-respiratory exercise program will have a slight decrease in coronary heart disease and type II diabetes.

The issue I have with the hype this study is generating is two fold. One only men were studied, and with a higher muscle (or lean fiber) in the body, their body will burn the "bad" fats quicker than a female. Furthermore, women are twice as likely to pass away from a heart attack. Secondly, this study does not address nutrition. If one were to continue to eat a high fat diet, than they would need an extremely active lifestyle to combat it.

The best anyone can hope for is a balance between activity and food intake. As my mother used to say, everything in moderation. Keeping a pedometer on your person will give you an idea of how much cardio-respiratory activity you've actually accomplished that day. Remember, one doesn't need to do 45 minutes on an elliptical to be labeled as Fit, only to total 45 minutes spread throughout the day.

JAMA & Archives
Arch Inter Med, 2007

American Medical Association