Why we want to focus on “body recomposition” — NOT weight loss
“Weight”: such a confusing word…
Let’s kick this off by starting at the very basics — searching the Merriam-Webster dictionary for the meaning of weight.
“a measurement that indicates how heavy a person or thing is.”
“How heavy” is really the defining phrase here. Not specifically “how much fat you have”, or even “how much your tissue weighs”. Why are we so obsessed with the number on our scale that doesn’t really tell us much? Well, let’s explore it!
Weight-loss has become an obsession in main-stream culture. Weight-loss workouts, weight-loss diets, weight-only scales… the list goes on. The reality is that we need to be taking a more “full scale” approach to making our body healthier. Therefore, we need to focus on a term known as “body recomposition”. With this approach, we focus on all the tissues of the body — not just our overall weight. And by doing this, we get a better understanding of our body while also getting stronger, faster, fitter and overall healthier.
Frankly, weight loss is such an easy number to track. It, by no means, gives us any sort of picture of our overall health or even our progression towards more granular aesthetic goals. We stand on the scale and if the number goes down, we “succeed” — if it goes up, we “failed”. It belies the more complex nature of how the human body undergoes change.
Just as Webster said: weight is just how heavy you are. But, what exactly makes up that weight? You have:
- muscle,
- bone,
- water,
- organs
- fat
So many categories… what should we really consider?
In fact, most of these categories fluctuate with our exercise and nutrition habits. We can mostly ignore organs, as an adult — unless there is a specific medical condition to consider (such as an enlarged heart or prostate). Bone mass increases/decreases with/without resistance training, and water mass changes daily (I can change 5 pounds in 24-hours, normally). So, that leaves us with the muscle and fat.
But, consider this scenario: You start doing some resistance training (weight lifting) program at the gym. At first your weight starts to drop, and you’re ecstatic! Then, horrifically, it goes up… After you smash your scale and cry deeply, you hit the gym harder. You then buy a new scale, and it keeps happening. So what’s the deal? Well, your muscle mass is increasing! And, your fat mass is actually decreasing (hence the initial loss of weight).
As you continue pumping that iron, your muscle continues to grow. And even though you feel leaner (muscle is denser than fat), your weight is increasing… that’s actually good!
So how do I measure my progress now? Use a Body Composition Scale!
These scales, (known as Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis scales) measure several categories — at the very least, fat, muscle, water and bone mass. Other than looking at your progress pics, now, we can see a more comprehensive picture of our body — and now we see that fat is actually decreasing, as muscle grows. So, pump on, warrior — you’re killin’ it!
So, now we understand the scale — and our focus has shifted beyond “losing weight” to “losing fat”. But, that shouldn’t be our only focus! Why? Again — we’re ignoring the other tissue of the body: Muscle! And gone are the days of only focusing on one thing in the world of health & fitness…
The “old-school” method of staying fit was also as simple as the weight scale: Cardio, cardio, cardio.
“But wait, are you saying cardio is ‘bad’?”
Whoa, don’t put words in my mouth…
We need cardiovascular training. It strengthens our heart and lungs, and increases our efficiency of utilizing oxygen. Without a cardiovascular base, you may be strong — but you’ll still get winded anytime you try to do any type of activity that lasts more than a few minutes. So, it is important to do 2–3 days of cardiovascular training a week. If you are just beginning, start slow! Work more on how long you can stay moving, rather than how intensely you can work. After you can move for about an hour without completely stopping (even at a walk), you can start to work on higher intensity at lower durations — then, work towards longer durations at a higher intensity.
Now, let’s talk about resistance training — the second piece of our exercise routine to achieve body recomposition. Now, listen, I’ve simplified the “rules of cardio” — and I’ll be doing the same thing for the “rules of resistance”. Understand that much smarter folks than I have written entire textbooks on both topics to fully explain them; and I’m not trying to explode your brain today…
So, if you are just beginning your fitness journey, its best to start with 2–3 days of a total body resistance training (i.e. weight, band or bodyweight) routine. This is so you don’t over-do it on any one muscle group or joint in a workout. You should also aim to space training days out to give yourself at least 1 day of recovery between resistance workouts.
When you do a total body routine, think about hitting the major muscle groups — make a checklist:
- Quads
- Hamstrings
- Hip Add/Abductors
- Calves
- Chest/Triceps
- Back/Biceps
- Shoulders
- Abdominals
- Low Back
A total body routine may incorporate all, or some, of the muscle groups on this list — as long as we have an even combination of different muscle groups. So, perhaps, we do 1 of each of these — so there are 9 exercises you do during that workout. But, 9 exercises might be a little too much for your first workout. So, in the very beginning, shoot for 2 days of weight training. Split it up into equal upper/lower body movements, and split up the muscle groups themselves so that you only hit each group once per week (this is known as a “split routine”).
Put these things together, and you’ll be on your way to achieving total “body recomposition”!
