Body Fat vs. Body Weight: What is the Difference?

Body fat percentage refers to the amount of body fat mass in relation to total body weight. Percentage of body fat is important for 2 reasons. First, the higher the percentage of fat above average levels, the higher the health risk for weight-related illness like heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Second, the higher the body fat percentage the lower the metabolism (your body requires fewer calories to maintain your weight).

Weight alone is not a good indicator of our physical health. Two people could be the same height and weight, and have completely different body fat percentages. In this case, the amount of muscle mass is usually the factor determining the difference. Muscle weighs more than fat which is why it is possible to lose body fat and still gain weight. Following a consistent exercise routine can lead to an increase in lean muscle mass. This is the ultimate goal because muscle mass is metabolically active tissue resulting in an increase in strength, endurance and metabolism.

Your body was designed to store fat so it would have reserves of energy during famine; when you take in fewer calories than you expend, your body burns these fat reserves. However, if you eat too few calories (fewer than 1,200 per day) or cut out all carbohydrates, the weight you lose will likely be water and muscle, not fat. So, not only are you not losing body fat, but you are also slowing down your metabolism from the loss of muscle mass. Take you time; focus on the lifestyle change, not the diet itself. Lose weight slowly-one to two pounds per week-and continue exercising to maximize fat loss and minimize muscle loss.

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Benefits of Workplace Yoga Classes

Office workers face many physical demands which add pain and stress to their bodies hindering their wellness. This stress inevitably takes its toll on employee's emotional and physical health  As more employees are required to work longer hours and handle greater amounts of work, more companies are trying to make the workplace a friendlier, healthier place by providing on-site amenities, such as yoga classes. Having yoga on company grounds helps employees improve their productivity and mental clarity while reducing the number of sick days.

A recent study by the Health Education & Behavior Journal found that twenty minutes per day of guided workplace meditation and yoga combined with six weekly group sessions can lower feelings of stress by more than 10 percent and improve sleep quality in sedentary office employees. This leads to more productive and less stressed employees. Yoga at work also provides both the physical and mental components that can help reduce the common aches and pains created through tight muscles and repetitive use patterns, while strengthening the body and having it be in correct aligment. Workplace yoga is also convenient, affordable, and easy to set up.

One or two classes a week will develop concentration, focus and mental flexibility. It will strengthen the immune system, reducing absenteeism from work. It will also compliment the company's working community and team building efforts, provide each staff member a time for personal development, and can be used as a recruitment and retention tool.

Bringing yoga to the worksite gives employees the break they deserve. Energy in Motion provides that benefit with cost effective workplace yoga classes allowing employees to take an active role in their health. Held in an empty conference room, yoga classes enable participants to return to work with a calm focused energy. All classes consist of breathing exercises, warm-up stretches, flowing sequences, and exercises that build strength and stamina. Each session ends with a relaxing guided meditation designed to decrease stress and promote physical and mental wellness.

Please contact us if you would like further information on any of our programs. We welcome all of your inquiries, comments and suggestions.

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Does Running Burn More Calories Then Walking?

This answer is not so clear-cut. Generally speaking, running does burn more calories than walking. But...not always. Efficiency of movement will help us understand why.

Walking is a more efficient way of moving and involves fewer muscles than running. This efficiency means less calories burned. With running, as your lead foot comes down, it is absorbing more than your body weight due to the effects of gravity. This force on the leg muscles varies depending upon how fast you are running. When you run faster your stride becomes longer. A longer stride equals more force with each stride. A lot more calories are required to absorb these higher impact forces and to propel you forward with the next stride.

However, the number of calories burned during walking and running is not a static number. It is a dynamic measure that will increase as your speed and effort level increases. At a speed where walking becomes challenging, less efficient, and has a higher effort level, more calories and burned then a jog at the same speed. This "cross over" speed, where walking becomes very strenuous, occurs somewhere at around 4 to 5 miles per hour for most people. Jogging at speeds slower than your cross over will feel easier and burn fewer calories than walking. Walking at speeds faster than your cross over will feel harder and burn more calories than running.

If this is confusing, let me simplify it. Walking has the advantage of being easy to do and virtually injury free. Running can burn more calories but is harder on the joints.

So you need to determine what's best for you. For most of us, a mix and match approach is probably the best. Or, you may find that the small amount of extra calories burned while running are not worth the impact on your joints. The choice is yours.

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