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Understanding Body Composition

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Understanding Body Composition

Body composition is an area most runners focus on but maybe for different reasons. 

For some it may be about losing body fat to reach an appropriate weight, for others it may be to lose body fat to alleviate or prevent certain health concerns….and for others still it may be more about optimising lean body mass to support run training and performance in races/competition. 

So, to help you understand the importance of APPROPRIATE body composition depending on your goals we will address the following 3 questions:

  1. What is BODY COMPOSITION and how is it measured?
  2. Why is it important for health and running?
  3. Which foods/nutrition could support appropriate/optimal body composition?

SHOW NOTES

(06:57)

Defining Body Composition as determined by the Oxford Dictionary of Sports Science and Medicine before moving on to highlight different approaches to measuring Body Composition  

(11:34)

Outlining factors to consider when deciding which method of measuring Body Composition to use. For example; cost and accessibility then moving on to discuss the most popular method i.e. Body Mass Index (BMI)

(15:19)

Moving on to discuss the advantages and drawbacks of two other popular methods of measuring Body Composition. They are: Skinfold Assessment and Bio-electrical Impedance Analysis (BIA)

(25:25)

Delving into the WHY of appropriate body composition for general health and running performance with a focus on the importance of adequate body fat levels for energy production and hormonal function amongst other roles. But also outlining the detrimental effects of excessive fat mass.   

(32:51)

Body composition is dynamic and everchanging so here we look at factors that may influence the degree of fat mass for any given individual

(35:31)

FEMALE FACTORS

  1. Weight gain appears to be more significant in women compared to men as they age
  2. Due to human physiology, women have a higher value of fat mass than men, BUT, in general it is thought that more men are overweight and obese besides women
  3. With age women tend to show a gradual increase in Fat Mass with a simultaneous decrease in Free Fat Mass and Total Body Water. There is a theory that in the post menopause phase when the production of oestrogen from the ovaries declines that fat cells manufacture small amounts of oestrogen and this may be a reason women have increased fat mass at this time of life
  4. Men, on the other hand tend to significantly decrease in Fat Mass after 40 years of age with a simultaneous increase in FFM and TBW. This is thought to be due to the fact that in men, the peak of body weight increase with age occurs much earlier followed by a normalisation or decrease in body weight

Note: Fat accumulation in both sexes will proceed with different intensity, depending on their:

(40:13)

Nutrition to support appropriate Body Composition: Focusing on Carbohydrate and its influence on circulating insulin levels and the impact of that. 

(47:16)

Nutrition to support appropriate Body Composition: Focusing on Protein and its influence on muscle protein synthesis and lean muscle mass

(52:28)

Nutrition to support appropriate Body Composition: Focusing on the different types of Fat and their influence on body fat mass 

(57:48)

RELATED TOPICS:

Eating Enough to Run