Are You Lean Or Skinny Fat?

The saying "Looks can be deceiving" is truthful not only in social situations, but in the fitness industry as well. Many people can appear to be slim and have a healthy weight for their height yet can be deceptively high on the body fat percentage scale. If you are carrying extra body fat around, you could be at risk from a variety of health-related problems that are associated with obesity.

While the term "skinny fat" may sound unfamiliar, it is estimated that over 10 percent of the American population may fall into this category. To check if you fall into the skinny fat category, determine what your body fat percentage is. Anything higher than 20 percent for a male aged 20 - 40 or over 31 percent for a female aged 20 - 40 constitutes an overweight or potentially "skinny fat" person.

Not only does a high body fat percentage signal a "skinny fat" person, a waistline of above 33" can cause health issues such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and increased cholesterol.

Changing your body from skinny fat to lean, especially since you already have achieved the basic lean profile, will only be a matter of adding in 30 minutes of moderate intensity aerobic activity, such as brisk walking, five days per week - and that 30 minutes doesn't even need to be consecutive. Once your body has become accustomed to the quick pace of a power walk, adding in a day or two per week of high intensity interval training can be a great way to trim fat.

The best way, bar none, to tackle a higher body fat percentage problem is to lift weights. Normal weight training will help you burn fat and gain muscle mass, which can ultimately help quicken your metabolism. A faster metabolism means that you will burn more calories on a continuous basis and that there is less of a chance of you storing fat as opposed to burning it off as energy.

To burn the most calories and fat, aim for multi-joint or compound movements which utilize more than one muscle group at a time. Good examples of compound movements include squats and lunges, chest presses, chest flys, rows and even deadlifts. These types of movements also provide the perfect stimulus for muscle growth when each set is performed with a weight that pushes to momentary muscle failure. This means pushing each set to the point where you wouldn't be able to do one more rep with good form. Only with enough stimulus will you push your muscles enough to experience results that will change your body from "skinny fat" to lean and defined.