"You can be fit and fat and it is better than being skinny and desk-bound". Researchers have produced strong evidence in support of this claim. Consider some of their findings:

• A 1995 study found that fitness level was a better predictor of heart disease than weight.
  In other words, overweight men weren't necessarily at high risk for heart disease if they were fit.
• A study published in 1998 showed that of 21,000 men, unfit men were much more likely to die of heart disease than fit men - regardless of how much they weighed.
• A study published in October 1999 found that overweight men who exercised regularly had death rates, based on any cause, only slightly higher than those of unfit men of normal weight.

Obese men who didn’t work out had death rates two to three times those of the normal-weight men. Thus, exercise offered substantial protection even to very heavy men.

However, these findings haven’t convinced everyone. US authorities have changed the definition of a healthy weight thereby reclassifying 29 million additional Americans as both overweight and unhealthy. They concluded that carrying excess pounds raises a person's risk of heart disease, diabetes, and numerous other ailments.

But some have argued there is a crucial flaw in most of the studies from which the conclusion was drawn that "you can’t be fit and fat".

Many overweight people are indeed at greater risk of chronic disease. But most studies that have pointed to weight as a culprit in these ailments have not factored in physical fitness. Without a way to separate overweight people who are fit from those who are not, the conclusions can be misleading.

The Happy Medium

• particularly those whose excess weight is concentrated around their abdomen ;
• those who have even borderline high blood pressure or cholesterol ;
• those who have a family history of heart disease.

Regardless of inherited tendencies, size, or shape, doctors agree that maintaining a healthy lifestyle remains the single most important advice they can give to their patients.

In addition to regular exercise, doctors encourage their patients to eat healthful foods and to change unhealthy habits, such as cigarette smoking.

Along with the body mass index (BMI), the following factors are indicators of better health :

• Total cholesterol levels below 200 mg/dl ;
• Blood pressure below 140/85 ;
• Blood sugar level between 80 and 120 mg/dL (before meals) ;
• The majority of body fat occurring below the waist ;
• The ability to jog at a light pace for 20 minutes while holding a conversation.

Being fit makes you feel better and improves the quality of life. That is what matters.

9/08/03