Waist-Hip Ratio
Waist-Hip Ratio (WHR) simply divides your waist circumference by your hip circumference. This is an important tool to determine overall health risk. Studies show that individuals with high fat content around the waist area can be at more risk for lifestyle related diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and strokes. WHR is considered to be a very reliable predictor of preventable diseases, in 2008, the World Health Organization published a report of expert consultation, and confirmed that WHR can substanitally increase your risk for death, heart disease, and stroke.*
Instructions
- While standing, measure your bare waist at the most narrow point, this will be above the umbilicus (belly button)
- Stand with your feet together and measure the maximum protrusion of the buttocks (the biggest part of your butt), be sure that the tape measure is even all the way around to ensure an accurate measurement.
Analysis & Recommendations
Moderate Risk Classification: There's really two aspect of waist-hip ratio that must be considered, one; the abdominal fat (your waist) and secondly, your hip (gluteus muscles). The good news that you're in the moderate risk classification, which means you're most likely making good health choices, understand the difference between good and poor nutrition and have some understanding of the importance of activity. On the flip side, you're also likely to be in a category of a weekend warrior or the typical busy person who has a job and a family to spend time with, which ultimately limits your ability to workout and eat right all the time.
Moderate Risk Recommendations: Irrespective of what's keeping you from optimizing your health and not going on the wrong direction, something is limiting you. Often times all we need is a plan, we plan our day, we plan our meetings but do we plan our fitness, I'm not sure when and how our health become a luxury but obviously it's not. Work on creating a simple plan, write it down, mark your progress, this will help you to become engaged in your well being and not just hope you're improving. For example, you can download my Level 2 Walking Cardio program and see if that helps you stick to a plan, or if you enjoy recreational activity, commit to 1-2x a week of that.
Often times people don't think of having a bigger butt as an indicator of health, but in fact, building a muscular butt is one of the most difficult things to do! A variety of factors have to come together i.e. sufficient calories, proper overload (a fancy word for a lot of weight), proper technique and proper recovery. Base strength exercises, such as squats, deadlifts, lunges, and step ups are the best way to build strength and muscle in your lower body, I would recommend you find a good trainer who can help you build strength in these key lifts.
High Risk Classification: There's really two aspect of waist-hip ratio that must be considered, one; the abdominal fat (your waist) and secondly, your hip (gluteus muscles). The fact is that you are at an increased risk for many preventable diseases and this is attributed to too much fat in your abdominal area and not enough muscle in your glutes.
High Risk Recommendations: See recommendations for Moderate Risk.