Waist Size More Important Than Weight

If we could take only one measure, it would be the waist. It's not what you weigh that's important, but where the weight is. For most of us, we would be better off if we stopped jumping on the scale every day or week and, instead, pulled out the measuring tape and tracked our "weight" by our waist measurements.

A nine-year study recently found that regardless of weight, not only do older people with extra large waists double their risk of dying sooner, but the link is strongest in normal weight women!

If you're a woman your waist should be no more than 35 inches (doesn't matter how tall or "big boned" you are). For a man, the maximum is 40 inches. We can be even more specific in recommending that waist size should be no more than 50% of your height in inches to the maximums above. So, if you are 5'5" tall, your waist should be no more than 32.5 inches.

To keep belly fat down, implement a program of regular exercise 3-5 days a week. A great place to start is with a walking program most days of the week (you've heard of getting in 10,000 steps a day), along with some resistance exercise 1-3 days a week.

As good as apples are for us, we definitely don't want to look like one!