What is the relationship between LBM, bodyfat, and weight?
A. Many women, because of the cult of slenderness in many societies, fall prey to worrying about numbers on the scale. However, weight alone does not account for how fit and fat one may be. LBM is denser than bodyfat, so a more muscular woman with lower bodyfat may weigh the same as a woman with less muscle and more bodyfat, yet the first woman will look and be leaner. Some women will even increase their weight when they engage in a training program because they are gaining muscle, but they often lose inches while doing so. Most charts of “ideal weight”, whether medical or from a fashion magazine, do not take into account relative amounts of bodyfat and LBM. Great numbers of very fit and lean people would be considered overweight by these charts. Thus, while numbers on the scale can be a means by which to gauge progress, it is more accurate to track changes in LBM and bodyfat. It is more useful to think in terms of “overfat” rather than “overweight”. Additionally, slenderness alone is
