HOW FAT ARE YOU? Pounds are not the only guide
About the article
This is a digitised version of an article from The Cayman Compass's print archive. Occasionally, the digitisation process introduces transcription errors, or other problems.
See the article in its original context from September 1981.
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The next time you get on the scale to weigh yourself, you might want to consider how much of that weight is actual fat, and how much is the lean muscles, skeleton and organs of the rest of your body. In other words, what percentage of you is plain fat, compared to how much of you really works?
A young moderately active woman may have a fatratio of 25 percent which means that one pound of every four, or one-fourth of the total body weight, is fat.
Recent percentages of fat formulas have been developed, and at present if fat accounts for 20 percent of the total body, the person is considered to be in the "lean" category, but if it rises to 30 percent, an "overfat" condition exists.
Of course, most people can tell simply by looking in the mirror whether they are fat or not. however, it is interesting to determine your own fat-ratio, if for no other reason than to stimulate a new incentive to lower it. Excess fat anywhere on the body is damaging, but there are particular areas that cause more trouble than others. Extra fat that inhibits proper functioning of vital organs, such as the heart, liver and kidneys, or clogs up arteries can do a lot more damage than the fat that distort facial or body appearance.
Psychologically the outward fat is damaging by causing depression, but it all adds up to the fact that the body needs to rid itself of the harmful excess fat. There are some simple tests you can do for yourself that will help you determine your own fat ratios. I would urge you to take a few minutes, and see how your body compares.
First test: Measure your waist one inch above your navel (pull tape measure horizontal and firm, but do not indent the skin), then measure your height (without shoes). Subtract the waist measurement from the height measurement. If the difference is less than 36 inches you are probably overfat.
Second test: Woman: A woman who is 5 feet tall should weigh about 100 pounds nude. Add five pounds for every inch taller.
Man: A man at 5 feet tall should weigh about 106 pounds nude. Add six pounds for every inch taller.
These are only guides to determine ideal weight levels, and vary with age and body build. Two people may be exactly the same in height and weight, yet have very different shapes. One may have a big chest and small hips, while another may be the opposite, with huge hips and small shoulders. (Scale weight alone is not always an accurate guide to the degree of over- or under-fat on the body.)
A heavily muscled athlete with no extra fat can weigh as much on the scale as a sedentary, moderately obese person, who is the same height as the athlete. One is fat, the other is normal. This points out the importance of fat and its relation to the total body mass, and not merely how much one weighs.
