Fit Test

In the interest of honesty, I've posted these pictures. I want something to compare when I've reached my goal weight. Let me say that I haven't worn those shorts in public since probably 11th grade. I usually try to find an excuse NOT to go to the beach or a pool or really anywhere where I know there's going to be a lot of people and I'm going to be wearing about this much clothing. And this is 17 pounts down. So even though they are very difficult to post, this blog is about honesty. What's more honest than photos?

And on that note, the results of my fit test. I'll give you all the stats first.
VO2 max (maximal oxygen consumption) - 32.83 (below average)
Body Mass Index (weight vs. height) - 34.70 (Grade 1 Obesity)
Blood Pressure - 114/72 (Optimal)
Body Fat % - 37.90% (Well below average)
Waist to Hit Ratio - .82 (barely average)
Flexibility - 19.6 inches (average)
Upper body strength - 15 pushups (well below average)
Core body strength - 70 crunches (well above average)

Okay, so some explanation of what all that crap means.
The VO2 max is the maximal rate at which oxygen can be taken up and used by muscles during physical activity. Basically, it depends on how efficient your heart, lungs and musculoskeletal system can work. It's a measurement of Cardiorespiratory Endurance (CRE), which is the to ability work out at moderate to high intensity for extended periods of time. The higher your CRE, the higher your VO2 max. Why does all this matter? People with low VO2 max are at a greater risk for early death from cardiovascular disease. Now, mine is 32.83. Average, for my age, is 35.2-38.0. My level is average for women 40-49. That was an eye-opening number. I'd hate to know what it was before I started working out regularly. But I look forward to see how fast the number goes up - I'll have another one of these in 3 months I think. The girl that did my fit test said it's very possible at my age to get to the "well above average" level, which is 44.1 and up because I'm young. But at this point I'd be happy with average.
Body Mass Index is pretty self explanatory - weight relative to height. Average for women is between 18.5-24.9 kg/m2. I'm .2 away from being at Grade 2 Obesity, which comes right before Morbid Obesity. So I'm sure glad I'm heading the opposite direction at the moment.
Blood Pressure - everyone knows this is important. Mine is good! Hooray!
Body Fat Percentage - this is the women's scary area. Now, according to the paper I received with all this information on it, I'm considered "well below average." "Average" is between 19.1-22.1%. The girl that gave me the test, however, told me that 32 % or less is healthy, 20-25% is fitness level and less than 20% is athlete level. So, I'd really like to be 25-27%. We'll see how that goes!
Waist to Hip Ratio - this is a valuable way to measure changes in body composition. It measures overall distribution of fat. If fat is stored in the abdominal region, you're at higher risk for developing hypertension, Type II diabetes and heart disease. I'm just barely average - which means I probably was high risk 17 pounds ago. But again - headed in the right direction!
Flexibility is important because it can prevent injury. I'm on my way to being above average - the Body Flow class I'm taking is a big help.
Upper body strength - this is always women's weakness. Average is between 26-31 pushups, so that's my goal. Today I worked with a trainer to get a couple of arm exercises that can help me reach this goal.
Core body strength - I ROCKED this section. In fact, I maxed out the test. Heck yeah - doing abs everyday that I'm at the gym is paying off!!

I took this same test in 2005, when I weighed around 190. Just for comparisons sake, here are my results from then. The test has changed a bit, so they didn't measure my VO2 max, but here's everything else.
Body Mass Index - 31
Blood Pressure - 102/60
Body Fat Percentage - 29%
Waist to Hip Ratio - .84
Flexibility - 15.7 in
Upper body strength - 17 pushups
Core body strength - 56 crunches

My waist to hip ratio is actually lower now than it was, even though I weigh more now. I'm going to guess that this is due to my intense ab work lately. Or perhaps I gained more weight around my hips this time than last time. Let's hope for the former. My flexibility is better now (thanks to the Body Flow class and my diligent stretching), as is my core body strength. I don't think my upper body strength is actually worse - I just have more weight to push up now.

In other news, I think things are going well! I went to a small superbowl gathering and managed to stay within my weekly points. I've eaten out a couple more times this week than last week, and I may have underestimated the points on some items. And I didn't go to the gym Saturday, even though I had plenty of time to. Friday I usually have time to go, but I had a gig so I couldn't. Anyway, if I work out tomorrow I will have only worked out 4 days this week. I guess I'll see how it all turns out on weigh-in day! Lastly, at the fit test, the girl said I should do 45-60 minutes of cardio 5-6 days a week. I should be doing strength training 2-3 times a week. I think these are possible most weeks. I also set 3 goals for myself to reach in 3 months:
1) run for 5 minutes straight
2) reach 190 pounds
3) fit into the size 12 clothes I already have in my closet!

As always, thank you for supporting me and continuing to read!