January, for the reason of the season, is Healthy Weight Awareness Month, but what does that MEAN?
Unfortunately, if you try searching for your healthy weight and ask someone outside of your body to define that for you, you will find all kinds of websites dedicated to finding your body mass index or setting a “healthy weight range” for someone your size.
But I would question all of that.
Body mass index does not take “type of mass” into account. It is a ratio of height to weight. What does that tell you? Almost nothing. People have different kinds of mass within that ratio, like fat mass, muscle mass, and bone mass. All of these are important. The ratio we are looking for is a happy ratio of all of it, and it doesn’t matter what “size” or scale number that turns out to be.
I have found in my practice as a personal trainer that there are many people who find their healthy weight after they have left the confines of what society and media tell them. “I should be a size 6” is a ridiculous notion, as is “I should weigh 120 pounds.” What I would rather you do is be healthy, strong, and comfortable in your own skin. The real healthy weight is mobile, free of disease, full of nourishment, and able to do what the person wants to do.
If you are looking to set a “healthy weight” goal this year, here’s what I want you to think about first:
Was there a time in my life that I felt really healthy and vibrant?
What was I doing at the time I felt really healthy?
How can I replicate that feeling in my life now?
It may be that you are looking for a new fitness program that reflects what you enjoy. It may be that you need to clean up some foods that are not serving you or make you feel less healthy. It may be that you simply need more joy in your life. But I would encourage you to not define that by a false number someone at an insurance company made up.
Find the size that you want to live in. It’s your body. It’s your joy. It’s your vitality.
Carrie Harper is an ACE Certified Pre and Post Natal Fitness Expert and Author of Flatten my Postpartum Belly. She can be found at www.carriefit.com.