How to Improve Body Composition, Based on Science

Many people dread stepping onto the bathroom scale.

It can be very frustrating to exercise and eat a healthy diet only to see the number on the scale stay the same.

However, just because your body weight isn’t changing doesn’t mean that your hard work isn’t paying off. Especially if you are exercising, your body composition may be improving.
This article will explain what your body composition is and how to improve it, based on science.

What Is Body Composition?

While the scale will tell you how much you weigh, it doesn’t tell you what your body is made of.

Body composition refers to everything in your body, split up into different compartments. Two compartments are commonly used: fat mass and fat-free mass.

Fat mass refers to all the fat tissue in your body. Fat-free mass is everything else, including muscle, organs, bone and fluid.

If both change at once, you might not see any changes in body weight.

For example, if you start exercising, you may gain two pounds of muscle in the first month. At the same time, you may lose two pounds of fat due to burning more calories through exercise or changes in your diet.

Since your fat-free mass increased by the same amount as your fat mass decreased, your body weight won’t change.
If you focus on the number on the scale, you may become discouraged or frustrated because your program “isn’t working.”

This is one example of why knowing your body composition is much more useful than knowing your body weight.
SUMMARY:
Knowing your body composition is more informative than focusing on your body weight, since you can measure both fat mass and fat-free mass.