[Newsletter] The Smartest Coach in the Room

Body fat and your health Every Saturday, The Smartest Coach in the Room delivers helpful takeaways on the hottest nutrition and health topics and the world’s most effective coaching techniques. (Did some amazing friend forward this to you? [Subscribe here]( What can someone’s body size tell us about their health? The short answer: maybe not as much as you think. The truth is though, people in larger bodies are much more likely to face stigma (poor treatment) about the way they look, and ungenerous assumptions about the choices they make. However, stigma doesn’t help anyone—and it definitely doesn’t “motivate” someone to take better care of themselves. (Research shows that being the recipient of anti-fat stigma is associated with disordered eating, emotional eating, increased calorie intake, and weight cycling.) Besides, to our original point, being larger or even fatter doesn’t necessarily mean that someone is less healthy than someone who appears to fit a physical ideal. A quick tale of two bodies… Meet Nidhi. She’s a working model with a “work hard, play hard” lifestyle, and travels around the world for shoots and shows. She regularly stays out late, binge drinks, and rarely has time for regular exercise. (She feels like she spends half of her life sitting in a buckled airplane seat.) Although Nidhi appears lean, her muscle-to-fat ratio is quite low. She gets winded walking up the stairs, and she has fatty deposits in her liver and deep in her abdomen (called visceral fat). Her blood sugar levels put her in the “pre-diabetic” category, and her cholesterol is creeping up too. [An image showing a diagram of a woman who appears lean, her muscle-to-fat ratio is quite low.] Then there’s Vanessa. She’s a competitive powerlifter who trains hard, and recovers harder. Her sleep is “bear-like,” her diet is colorful, varied, and nutrient-rich. And of course, her physical fitness is on point. In addition to her five weekly weight training sessions, she also walks most everywhere. She’s always been “big”—but increasingly, she’s also strong. The fat on her body is mostly on the surface (called subcutaneous fat), which poses less of a risk for chronic diseases. Her blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and inflammatory markers are all in the “normal” range. [An image and diagram of a woman and her health.] Yes, Nidhi and Vanessa are fictional characters, but they represent real clients—and the real effects of lifestyle behaviors on physiology. Habits trump appearances. As the chart below shows, having either a low BMI or a high BMI is associated with—but doesn’t necessarily cause—certain negative health outcomes. [A chart showing the negative risks of having a low BMI and the negative risks of having a high BMI.] In terms of predicting someone’s short- and long-term health, body size can only take us so far. Instead, research shows that the behaviors people practice have the biggest impact on their disease risk and mortality. In one study that tracked 11,761 adults over the course of 14 years, people who didn’t smoke, drank alcohol in moderation, ate five or more servings of fruits and veggies a day, and exercised at least three times per week lived longer—regardless of their weight. What does this tell us? Unless a client explicitly asks for help losing weight, size-neutral coaching is probably a good idea. If a client comes to you wanting to improve health, de-emphasize the pressure to lose weight, and focus instead on those beautiful, universally beneficial, fundamental habits: ▶ Getting at least 7-8 hours of sleep every night ▶ Eating a diet composed mostly of minimally-processed foods (with plenty of protein, fruits, and vegetables) ▶ Staying adequately hydrated ▶ Exercising at least 20-30 minutes most days ▶ Prioritizing positive social interactions and relationships ▶ Practicing good stress management and recovery practices ▶ Developing a positive mindset and feeling generally optimistic about life If a client has all of those things firmly in place (and this can take a lifetime to master and enjoy, so it’s perfectly fair to stop at this list), their overall health is likely in a good place. For more on what body fat tells us—including an overview of different types of body fat, plus a few ways to assess if body fat is affecting health—check out our infographic: [What Everyone Needs to Know About Body Fat]( Finally, be sure to check out our [Level 1 Nutrition Coaching Certification]( where you’ll learn the science of nutrition, along with the art of coaching, so you can help clients make empowered choices and lasting positive changes that support their overall health. [Become a Certified Nutrition Coach - Join the presale list for the #1 rated PN Level 1 Nutrition Certification]( Take care, Alex :) --------------------------------------------------------------- Alex Picot-Annand, PN2, Holistic Nutritionist Editorial Director Precision Nutrition Home of the world’s top nutrition coaches --------------------------------------------------------------- What did you think of this email? 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