Welcome to Let's Get Healthy and Stay Healthy with NP Kearney!!
- E B Kearney
- Sep 10, 2023
- 4 min read
Hey everybody! I'm NP Kearney. This is my very first blog ever and I'm really excited. I'm here to help others obtain their best life and their best weight! So, let's get started!
Today I want to discuss the topic of the hour and the reason we are all here...body fat.
HEAR YE, HEAR YE!! YOU ACTUALLY NEED SOME FAT!!
Yes, it's true. In today's world of the modern bandwagon, in spite of what everyone is saying or injecting, we actually need some "good weight."
Wait a minute now. NP Kearney, are you saying, while we are living in the land of the Semaglutides, that I don't need to lose weight?
No, that's not what I'm saying at all. What I'm saying is, the weight that you want to lose and the weight you need to lose, may not be the same.
What is body fat?
Let me explain...body fat or adipose tissue act as our body's "cushion" to help protect our internal organs. Adipose tissues are found throughout the body and are located under the skin (subcutaneous fat), between internal organs (visceral fat), and in the inner cavities of bones (bone marrow fat).
Body fat communicates through hormone signals, with other organs throughout the body, and with the central nervous system, to regulate metabolism (the chemical process within cells that converts nutrients into energy for the body). It also responds to insulin [which is produced and released by the pancreas] to help digest food, by converting excess blood sugar to lipids and storing them away for future use."
Where are adipose tissues found?
Adipose tissues are found in places like around your spine, between your muscles, in breast tissue, in the palms of your hands and soles of your feet. It can be found around your heart, even in your eye sockets. Therefore, a healthy amount of body fat is needed to sustain a good overall health status.
So, what's the problem?
The problem begins when you have too much body fat, or not enough. Obesity occurs when the body runs out of fat cells to store lipids.
Why can't the fat cells store lipids? Because you are born with a limited supply of fat cell availability. When all the fat cells you have are filled at max capacity, with lipid molecules, because of food consumption and digestion, your body no longer has room to store more lipids or fat.
As a result, the fat cells grow, or enlarge, which produces inflammation throughout the body, causing multiple metabolic chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and fatty liver disease (in which we will discuss in another blog because you guys really need to know all about it). When someone does not have enough overall body fat or fatty tissue available to store lipids, due to undernutrition, they too, can still have some of the same chronic metabolic issues. However, not all people that are overweight or obese have metabolic issues.
How do I manage my body fat/weight?
The Body Mass Index (BMI) chart can serve as a guideline for a healthy amount of body fat, based on your height and weight. Low body fat is corrected by increasing the caloric intake and/or adding supplemental nutrition to your daily diet regime. High body fat is managed firstly, with exercise and decreasing the daily caloric intake.
Daily maintenance includes eating a balanced diet and regular exercise. It is recommended for adults to perform a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate activities, five days a week. Moderate intensity activities include taking a brisk walk, biking, jogging, swimming or water aerobics, line dancing, cleaning the house or mowing the lawn. Vigorous intensity activities include running, aerobic dancing, heavy gardening, strength training, and playing sports like basketball and can be limited to two or three times a week.
Oftentimes, people are unaware of unconscious behaviors that lead to weight gain/loss such as emotional eating. Daily stress, boredom, and anger can serve as triggers to emotional eating. The difference in regular eating and emotional eating is that regular eating satisfies hunger. Emotional eating very rarely produces any lasting satisfaction, which can lead to overeating; hence, weight-gain and developing an unhealthy amount of body fat, which may cause obesity.
Getting the proper amount of sleep every night will also help you to maintain a healthy weight. Adults should attempt to obtain at least 7 to 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep nightly. Become conscious of any unhealthy routines that may hinder or interrupt your sleep, such as eating large meals or drinking substantial amounts of fluids, one to two hours prior to going to bed. Shifting your bedtime to an earlier time at night can help you to reduce your eating consumption and allow you to sleep more.
If you are challenged with maintaining a healthy amount of body fat, you should consult with your primary care physician, for realistic goal setting to gain or lose weight.
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References
Adipose tissue (Body fat): Anatomy & function. (n.d.). Cleveland Clinic. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/24052-adipose-tissue-body-fat
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