Not all bodies are created equally. Have you ever wondered why two people can weigh the same but look completely different? The answer lies in body composition. Body composition refers to the different components that make up an individual’s body weight, primarily muscle, fat, bone, and water. This is important because while two people might have the same weight, their body composition can vary significantly, influencing their overall appearance, health, and physical capabilities.
Understanding body composition is essential for a comprehensive view of health and fitness. It’s not just about the number on the scale, but about what that number is composed of. I had the amazing opportunity to sit down with two body composition professionals, Elliot and Nikki from Evolt360, to explore the complex world of body composition and how they make it accessible for coaches, trainers, and their clients.
What Is Body Composition?
According to WebMD, body composition “refers to the percentage of fat, bone, and muscle in your body.” By understanding body composition, we get a better overview of our health and wellness from an inside and outside perspective. From a health perspective, it is clear that lean muscle mass is an indicator of long-term health. One study found that low skeletal muscle mass was statistically significant in its association with a heightened risk of all-cause mortality.
Why Does Body Composition Matter?
Body composition tells a detailed story about the body. When it is properly assessed, a body composition scan can tell you incredibly intricate things about your body that can help you work towards optimal health.
Understanding body composition helps with grasping and assessing:
- Health Indicator: Looks at overall health better than solely looking at a number on the scale.
- Disease Risk: Helps assess risk for conditions like heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension.
- Metabolism: Influences metabolic rate and energy expenditure.
- Physical Performance: Affects strength, endurance, and overall physical abilities.
- Aging: Helps monitor changes in muscle mass and fat distribution for best results for longevity and health maintenance with age.
- Weight Management: Assists in setting accurate and realistic weight loss or gain goals.
- Nutrition Planning: Guides dietary and nutritional adjustments.
- Psychological Well-being: Can influence self-esteem and body image.
- Personalized Fitness: Tailors exercise and fitness programs to individual needs.
- Internal View: Displays indicators of what is happening inside of the body that may be affecting health or wellness goals.
How Do You Track Body Composition
There are several ways to track body composition, each with its own advantages. Common methods include skinfold measurements to estimate body fat, Air Displacement Plethysmography (commonly known as the Bod Pod), and Body Mass Index (BMI). While BMI has been a longstanding tool that calculates body fat percentage based on height and weight, it has its limitations. For instance, BMI assigns a number correlated to categories such as underweight, normal weight, overweight, and obesity. However, it doesn’t account for muscle mass. A shorter linebacker with a high muscle mass might be categorized as obese by BMI standards, even though he could be healthier than the average person.
So, how can we get a more comprehensive view of body composition? According to Nikki and Elliot at Evolt360, the Bio Wellness Indicator (BWI) is a promising alternative. Proprietary to Evolt360, BWI examines over 40 different metrics to track overall health and wellness, providing a more detailed picture than traditional scales.
Evolt360 aims to revolutionize health and wellness tracking through advanced technology. To date, Evolt360 has conducted over 5.5 million scans worldwide, resulting in over 6.6 million pounds (3 million kg) of fat loss and over 3.3 million pounds (1.5 million kg) of muscle gain. These impressive results highlight the importance of lean muscle mass, a key indicator of longevity.
How To Use Body Composition for Business
There are many ways this technology can benefit anyone in the health and wellness business. These scans are generally available at health and fitness clubs where a trainer can facilitate the body scan and help the client track their tailored goals and progress based on their age, height, weight, goals, and body type, among others. The scanner tracks these 43 metrics to identify “optimal ranges” for where each person’s health markers should be.
This also allows for higher client retention. The results can be more immediate, impactful, and encouraging than trying to watch numbers change on a scale or attempting to see each new ounce of muscle fill out. It also helps with retention, as the client and trainer are looking three to six months into the future each time they take a new scan.
This is important in a shifting health and fitness industry. While being skinny was an ideal of past generations, today’s ideals consist of more health and strength based goals. Evolt360 is assisting the shift by taking beauty standards out, presenting hard facts and focusing on health-based outcomes.
Conclusion
Understanding body composition is crucial for a comprehensive view of health and fitness. It’s not merely about the number on the scale but about the intricate details of what that number represents. Body composition assessments provide valuable insights into an individual’s health, physical capabilities, and overall well-being. Through innovative technology like Evolt360, professionals and individuals can gain a detailed understanding of their body composition, leading to better health outcomes, personalized fitness plans, and improved client retention in the fitness industry.
Embracing this advanced approach can significantly enhance the effectiveness of health and wellness programs, shifting the focus from superficial standards to genuine health and strength-based goals. Learn more about how Evolt 360 technology can revolutionize your health & fitness business today.
Elisa is a curious and versatile writer, carving her niche in the health and wellness industry since 2015. Her lens is rooted in real world experience as a personal trainer and competitive bodybuilder and extended out of the gym and on to the page as a writer where she is able to combine her passions for empowering others, promoting wellness, and the power of the written word.
