There's no doubt that people who are too fat age faster inside than people of normal weight.  Their arteries fill up with plaque, the heart and kidneys work too hard, the gallbladder develops stones, the sex drive declines (sometimes men have a hard time even finding their sex organs!), cancer and diabetes can develop, the joints develop arthritis because they're over loaded, and the skin stretches.

  • If you're carrying around too much fat, you can be 30 years old yet have the body of a 70 year old. Your youthful years are less enjoyable, you feel old before your time. and you also die before your time.


The problem lies in the definition of 'too fat' and 'normal weight'. Those are terms that can be applied only to individuals, not to groups.

  • There is no average person; therefore, there is no average weight for a person of any height or build or sex or age. 
  • 'Too fat' for one person may be 'just right' for another. 'Normal' has such a wide range that you can't pin it down.


Heart disease and stroke are the leading causes of death and disability for both men and women in the United States. Overweight people are more likely to have high blood pressure, a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke, than people who are not overweight. 

  • Very high blood levels of cholesterol and triglycerides (blood fats) can also lead to heart disease and often are linked to being overweight. 
  • Being overweight also contributes to angina (chest pain caused by decreased oxygen to the heart) and sudden death from heart disease or stroke without any signs or symptoms.


The good news is that losing a small amount of weight can reduce your chances of developing heart disease or a stroke. 

  • Reducing your weight by 10 percent can decrease your chance of developing heart disease by improving how your heart works, blood pressure, and levels of blood cholesterol and triglycerides.


This is why you should have noticed by now that I am avoiding using the word 'overweight'. If your goal is to lose weight, then you're after the wrong goal.  Your goal should be to lose excess fat.


Your goal should be to build muscle and shed fat so that your muscle to fat ratio leans to the muscle side.  This is the area that Bushido Wellness can really help you.