“Fullness does not mean illness!”

Psychologies: Many refer to the body mass index (weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in meters), which divides us into thin, ideal, overweight, or obese. Is this system reliable?

Jean-Michel Lecerf: This formula, unfortunately, is constantly exploited by the media, it is used by many doctors, although it tells us little about a particular person. This indicator alone is clearly not enough. Doctors simply state: if the body mass index (BMI) is not too high and not too low, then there are usually fewer health problems. But these are too generalized conclusions! BMI does not take into account the history of this person, the evolution of his weight, the ratio of muscle and adipose tissue in the body, the localization of fat deposits (stomach or thighs) … Meanwhile, these are the most important elements that determine the relationship between weight and health.

Is there an ideal weight for each of us?

No, this concept is meaningless. Therefore, I am waging war against the “obirologists” who indiscriminately claim that kilograms must be fought. On paper, the ideal BMI is 25 in youth and 30 in adulthood, but these are just statistics! Knowing it is certainly useful for promoting healthy eating, but, unfortunately, doctors rarely adapt their advice to the individual characteristics of patients.

So you can be fat and healthy at the same time?

Yes, you can. Being overweight is not a disease! Health is too complicated a thing to be reduced to the number of kilograms. In particular, weight says nothing about the percentage of body fat and its distribution, and this factor is sometimes a threat to heart health. One of the most important indicators is muscle mass. But muscle is heavier than fat, so weight per se is not a reliable indicator.

You even claim that excess weight can protect against certain diseases. How is this possible?

It may seem incredible, but people whose excess weight is concentrated in the lower body, primarily on the buttocks and thighs, have a 30% lower risk of heart disease than thin people! This is a female – “gynoid” – distribution of fat. It increases insulin sensitivity and helps fight insulin resistance, the metabolic disorder that leads to diabetes. Moreover, this type of excess weight increases the level of so-called good cholesterol.

It turns out that those who, according to BMI, are considered fat, or, more precisely, overweight people, actually have additional protection against cardiovascular diseases. Riding breeches are an excellent metabolic defense mechanism, and this must be accepted. Women seeking to get rid of the “riding breeches” can sit on the most cruel diets as much as they like without achieving results. Or the result is disproportionate to the effort: they starve themselves, which reduces the level of good cholesterol and dramatically increases the risk of heart problems.

Not only that, as soon as they stop dieting, thigh fat will return. Therefore, it is better to listen to the arguments of reason and think about how lucky your heart is … If we talk about weight gain during menopause, then this is a natural reaction to a lack of estrogen. In addition, it is noticed that “thin” people live less than people with “normal weight” and even with “slightly overweight”.

So, is it good to be fat?

It is not necessary to divide everything into white and black. Being thin or fat is not a defining criterion. Neither is good or bad in and of itself. People in general are rarely born fat: they become fat, and then get fat (or not get fat) further. The dynamics of weight is important: is it stable or not? If the weight suddenly changes in any direction, this indicates that not everything is in order.

You don’t have to worry about being overweight. Call “Let’s all be fat!” just as pointless as the current “Let’s all be thin!”. Of course, there are unacceptable extremes. If you are 1,5m tall, 1,5m wide and weigh 150kg, something needs to be done.

Let kilograms not destroy health, but they reduce self-esteem. What would you say to those who suffer from their thickness?

Do not confuse two things. If such a person thinks: “I am unhappy because I am fat,” then this is most likely a mistake. Will they really be happier by shedding their pounds? Absolutely not necessary! All problems are not resolved simply because a person has lost weight. You need to understand the situation, ask yourself: do you consider yourself fat or your spouse? Do you have problems in relationships with colleagues or loved ones?

All this is important. When you start to lose weight, it is important to understand that the weight you are aiming for is a compromise. You need to say to yourself: “This is the maximum that I can achieve with my data.” It is better to keep a few extra pounds than to part with them and shorten your life. The ideal weight is one at which the body and mind feel good, even if reconciling them with each other is not always easy.

So it’s pointless to try to lose weight at any cost?

There is nothing worse than losing weight on the principle of “all means are good”! As you lose pounds, it is necessary to restore balance, both somatic – bodily and psychological. After all, losing weight means losing balance, therefore, it is necessary to find it again. By the way, a thinner fat man has not yet become a thin person. He can easily put on weight back, and this is very harmful to the heart and health in general.

Finally, the concept of “fat” should be considered in connection with age: a little extra weight is already useful in youth and even more useful when we age. Leaving aside the two unhealthy causes of thinness—heavy smoking and weight loss disease—it turns out that the death rate among the thin is higher than among the rest. And the health of a muscular fat man is at significantly lower risk!

So it’s better to do more sports than to starve yourself…

The more rigid the diet you follow, the more noticeable you lose weight and the more difficult it is for you to break the vicious circle. But sports can only be welcomed: it eliminates extra pounds, increasing muscle mass and improving all indicators, including the level of good cholesterol. The key to balance is primarily physical activity, not diet. The diet itself is much less important.

So who, after all, is our enemy?

This is not fat and not weight, but the reasons that lead to excess weight. Basically, of course, a sedentary lifestyle – there is nothing worse! and unbalanced diet. Let’s be blunt: when they start screaming about the horrors of obesity, in the end it’s not the extra pounds that get it, but the people. The shift is happening very quickly: wrong eating is perceived as wrong behavior, and one who eats poorly is equated with a bad person. We must abandon food terrorism, whatever form it may take!

“I had to hide my weight”

Cholesterol is normal, blood pressure is excellent, there are no complaints: 44-year-old Natalya is a plump woman in perfect order. Which, however, was not enough to reassure bankers and insurers.

“I have always been full. Not “chubby,” as they say in women’s magazines, if you can’t count your ribs. And not greasy. Just a full woman – Renoir with a bias towards Rubens. For me this has never been a problem. I have never experienced discrimination based on weight, either in my professional life, which is going very well, or in my personal life, in which I am very happy.

I’m not an athlete, but I love to move: I love to dance, ride my bike, climb the stairs twenty times a day, walk whenever possible, and living in the city, I only use my car on the weekends. In addition, I almost do not get sick.

Recently I came to a doctor friend with a pile of referrals for examinations. I needed a mortgage loan to buy an apartment, and since I had already passed the fatal milestone of forty years, the bank demanded a bunch of tests and certificates from me. “You’re all right,” my police officer said. – The results of the tests are perfect, the pressure is excellent, cholesterol is normal. So you can be congratulated. But we will not report your real weight to the bank, otherwise you will not receive a loan. Write in the questionnaire for fifteen kilograms less.

So I learned that for banks and insurance companies, my weight is a risk factor. Item 1.4 of the Loan Borrower Life and Health Insurance Questionnaire asks: “Have you ever been advised to… lose your weight?” I can brandish ideal analyzes as much as I like – this will not convince. I heard something similar from a doctor at my work. Every two years he complains: “Still, it would be nice for you to lose weight, you will feel better …” The question is: better compared to what?

There was another therapist who, in response to my complaints about joint pain, sadly remarked: “Your body reacts this way because it can no longer carry extra pounds on itself.” Meanwhile, it was enough for me to exclude milk from the diet for the pain to disappear.

Today I have already learned my lesson. I notice that I’m scared to go to the doctors. I am sure that they will firmly and decisively attribute all possible illnesses to weight: “This is because you have extra pounds.” Yes, I myself am beginning to think that there is some truth in their words. Neither fashion magazines with their ads, nor shop assistants with their sympathetic remarks, nor female friends with their ridicule could do what people with medical degrees have been able to do: turn a self-confident plump woman into a fat, body-shy one.