by Tracey Lloyd

Created on: October 17, 2008   Last Updated: October 30, 2008

Fat and Fit most people would believe that this is an oxymoron. However it is possible to be fat (even clinically obese) and still fit. Recent research by Rachel Wildman of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine found that 51% of overweight and 31% of obese people were metabolically healthy. Interestingly, 23% of normal weight people were found to be metabolically abnormal.

To determine metabolic health, the researchers considered blood pressure, cholesterol and triglyceride levels, blood glucose levels and insulin resistance and systemic inflammation (swelling in the body). Participants were considered metabolically healthy if they experienced less than 2 abnormal states in the above conditions. The study's participants were defined as normal weight, overweight or obese by calculation of BMI measurements. (The full study is available at www.archinternmed.com

Another large study undertaken in America during the 1990s found that in 20,000 men, rates of death increased as level of activity decreased and there was no difference between death rates in fit and lean or fit and fat.

Although it is possible to be healthy regardless of your size, being a couch potato doesn't cut it if you're large or normal sized. Wildman's study found that 1 of the reasons some large people were metabolically healthy and some normal weight people were metabolically abnormal was the amount of physical activity undertaken. The metabolically healthy large people were physically active and the metabolically abnormal smaller people were less physically active.

Even if you are fit, if you are carrying too much weight you are still at risk of the complications of obesity such as heart disease, Type II diabetes, stroke and high blood pressure. You may also not reach your fitness potential - losing as little as 10% of your body weight over the course of a year can help you to decrease your risk of disease and increase your fitness.

The human body is designed to move and every person regardless of size is able to achieve a level of fitness attaining 30 minutes of moderate intensity exercise on each day of the week will help you to start a fitness program if you are overweight which will, in conjunction with a healthy diet, lead to a reduction in your body weight and a decrease your likelihood of experiencing a serious illness which may curtail your lifestyle or even your life.

If you are one of the many overweight people, who are regularly active and can put skinny minnies to shame at the gym congratulations you are already reducing your risk of lifestyle related illness. However you too can benefit from losing 10% of your body weight. In an already fit individual, a decrease in body weight will lead to an ability to increase your fitness as you will find it easier to move your body around.

We are all at risk of experiencing a serious lifestyle related illness however research suggests that physical activity can decrease our risks and that it is better to be active and fat than lean and a couch potato.

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