About 5 years ago I found a funky machine called the Bod Pod on the list of wellness options in my University of Utah Well U Program.  I love working for an institution that collaborates with its many programs to offer the most extensive array of health, wellness, fitness, nutrition, personal training, and even more programs to stay healthy, all in exchange for a fantastic discount on your health insurance.

The year I found the Bod Pod I was interested in losing about 25 pounds.  It seems like the older you get the weight slowly creeps on when you aren’t paying attention to yourself.   I had a group of friends that were joining me so I made an appointment for the Bod Pod – Body Composition Tracking System Analysis.  You sit in this machine for about 50 seconds and it analyzes almost every aspect of your body.  My main focus was my actual percentage of muscle versus fat, and my weight.  The two areas I was monitoring were broken down into two categories:

“Body Fat:  A certain amount is absolutely necessary for good health.  Fat plays an important role in protecting internal organs, providing energy, and regulating hormones. The minimal amount of “essential fat” is approximately 3-5% for men, and 12-15% for women.  If too much fat accumulates over time, health my be compromised.

Fat Free Mass:  Fat free mass is everything except fat.  It includes muscle, water, bone, and internal organs.  Muscle is the “metabolic engine” of the body that burns calories (fat) and plays an important role in maintaining strength and energy.  Healthy levels of fat-free mass contribute to physical fitness and may prevent conditions such as osteoporosis.”   (PEAK Fitness)

 I then proceeded to jump head first into a program that was nutrition and walking/cardio machines.  After 4 months I’d lost 24 pounds and maintained that weight over the year.

Very proud of myself, the next year I went back to be analyzed in the Bod Pod. What I found out was that I lost mostly muscle mass/weight and very little body fat percentage or pounds.  This was a bit distressing.  In talking with the PEAK Fitness office I decided to sign up for the free weight training program.  For those of you who know me, the rest is history.  For those of you who don’t, I fell in love with the free weight room — dumbells and barbells — for building strength/muscle, endurance, and transformed my body.  Over the years I’ve added muscle and burned off some fat.  Although my weight has hit a plateau, my clothes fit better.

However, I’m always experimenting on myself to be the healthiest and most fit I can be.  I still want to lose about 10-15 pounds, but only in the body fat department.  I’d like to see my body fat rating around 25%, the middle of the moderately lean category.  So back to the Bod Pod I went the other day.  I have my starting point and will be working on this from a holistic standpoint over the next 8 months.  The end of December I’m going back to check my progress.  Every couple weeks to a month I will add on and remove something as I tweak my way back to the vibrant health that will take me through my Sassy 60’s and beyond!

Stay tuned as I pull together my wellness plan from every angle and blog about my progress and insights along the way.

When you get on the scale do you really know what you are weighing ?  Check and see if there is a Bod Pod in your area.