Does Your Waist Measure Up?
Date Posted:21 January 2015
As the joys of Christmas fade and we enter the new year, have you noticed an increase around your waist? Are your trousers fitting a little more snugly?
Typically the weight that is put on at Christmas time becomes the new weight for the coming year. Over the years, our waists expand as year on year our girth increases!
The objective way to see if your girth is putting you at risk is to check your waist size and your Waist Hip Ratio.
My Waist Size
What is healthy and what is not?
A waist size of less than 80 cm is desirable for a female
A waist size of less than 94 cm is desirable for a male
According to the National Institute of Health (USA), a high waist circumference is associated with an increased risk for type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia, hypertension and cardiovascular disease, when your BMI is between 25 and 34.9.
Waist Hip Ratio
Waist hip ratio is the measurement of waist circumference divided by hip circumference. It is used as a risk-factor assessment tool for heart disease, hypertension, and type-2 diabetes.
Excess body fat, particularly abdominal fat, is considered a risk factor for degenerative diseases. This measure is often used to determine the coronary artery disease risk factor associated with obesity.
A waist-hip ratio above 0.80 for women and 0.95 for men is associated with obesity and greater risk for health complications and diseases1
What Can I Do?
Reducing the waistline can be a daunting task and is an issue for many. Here are some helpful tips...
If you have an apple shaped body rather than a pear shaped body, that's something you inherited and have had since birth (your body type is more Kapha in nature) but you can take special care to keep your weight at a healthy level, eat nutritiously, exercise as appropriate, and maintain other healthy lifestyle habits.
Make it personal
In order to reduce waist size identify a compelling reason. Your compelling reason will help you keep going when it would be easier to stop and go back to old habits. For example, being able to walk without feeling dizzy or puffing; being alive for your child's 21st birthday, or birth of your grandchild. What is the compelling reason that helps you to maintain a healthy weight, or is prompting you to take action now?
Plan to succeed
Getting serious requires clear action steps with an achievable timeframe. Writing it down and sharing it with a significant other (partner, friend, colleague, manager, peer review) who can help as a buddy can help keep you on track.
Take herbals to support fat and carbohydrate metabolism and to reduce cravings. Here are some single product or combo products to help hasten your progress.
Be Trim 1 for normal appetite or the Be Trim 1 Booster Pack
Be Trim 2 for sharp or excessive appetite or the Be Trim 2 Booster Pack
Accountability
Taking time daily to write in a diary, or using an online tool will help you stay on track as it increases awareness and clarifies your next action steps all in one.
Recognise success and have strategies for the down times
When you fall off, get straight back on the horse again! Having short steps or milestones to focus on is a great way to support success. Be sure to reward yourself with something suitable. Remember that ups and down's are natural and accept relapses as being natural too. Work out what strategies help you get back on track when you relapse and above all, be kind to yourself.
Photographs help
Take photos to remind yourself of your progress. Congratulate yourself and celebrate each step of your journey towards your optimal waist measurement. You will feel better, look great and be optimizing your health all in one! See your changes as a way of being, that boosts your energy, mental clarity, vitality, health, happiness and productivity
As long as you avoid excess weight, being an apple shaped body or a pear shaped body doesn't put you at special risk - it's just one of those things to keep in mind. And even pear shaped people should take particular care to keep their weight within normal limits, to avoid the health problems associated with obesity.
Wishing you the bliss of balance
| Linda Sinden has been a practising Maharishi Ayurveda Consultant since 1990 and is a regular contributor to our weekly Insights. She has a practice in Auckland, New Zealand and also provides phone or Skype sessions for those who need assistance, but don’t have a consultant in their vicinity. Email: lindasinden@orbislife.co.nz Skype: Linda.Sinden Mobile: +64 212237525 |  |
Wayne, Linda, Theresa and Louise
The Get Balance Team [associated-products]