Here’s a stat that might raise your eyebrows – 90% of men and 80% of women in developed countries are what health researchers now call overfat. Not overweight. Not obese. Just… overfat.

Now, that term might be new to you – and a bit offensive, frankly – but stick with me. I have long said that waist size not weight matters, when it comes to health. And, many newsletters ago, I did write (quite angrily) about the tool that’s helped hide the truth for far too long? The Body Mass Index, or BMI.

BMI: The Blunt Tool That’s Long Overstayed Its Welcome

The BMI method  has been used for years, especially by the NHS, and is still the go-to method for measuring whether you’re underweight, “normal,” overweight, or obese. It’s a quick calculation based on your height and weight. Simple, yes. But also deeply flawed.

Here’s why:

🧠 It doesn’t distinguish between muscle and fat – Which means a bodybuilder can score as obese, while someone with low muscle but high belly fat could score as healthy.

📊 It doesn’t reflect fat distribution – And where you store fat matters a lot.

👥 It’s inaccurate for most demographics – The only group it partially correlates with is post-menopausal women aged 65-70. That’s it. For the rest of us, it’s about as helpful as a chocolate teapot.

In short: BMI is a blunt instrument trying to measure something very nuanced – your body composition and metabolic health.

Enter the Maffetone Method: Brutally Simple, Strangely Brilliant

So, what’s better? According to health expert Dr. Phil Maffetone and his research team, the real health issue is excess fat, especially around the belly. And they’ve come up with a dead-simple way to assess it – and it doesn’t involve scales at all.

Here it is:

🧍‍♂️ Measure your height
📏 Halve it
📏 Now measure your waist – across your belly button, not your jeans size!
🚫 If your belly measurement is more than half your height, you’re overfat.

That’s it.

No charts. No guessing. Just a tape measure and the truth.

Why Belly Fat Matters More Than Your Weight

What makes this method so powerful is its focus on abdominal fat, especially the dangerous visceral fat – the kind that wraps around your organs and drives up your risk of:

• Type 2 diabetes

• Heart disease

• High blood pressure

• 13 types of cancer

• Chronic inflammation

This type of fat often hides beneath the surface. BMI won’t spot it. But the Maffetone Method will.

Even people who appear to be a “healthy” weight on the BMI scale can still carry too much fat around the middle – and that’s where the real danger lies. Or conversely, as I was told in a doctor’s surgery not too long ago, that someone may be verging on being obese when they have been working very hard in the gym to get and maintain a low body fat percentage. 😡

The Beauty of the Belly Test

✅ It’s simple – No apps or online calculators needed
✅ It’s accurate – It aligns more closely with real health risks and it catches the internal fat that BMI misses
✅ It’s inclusive – It works across all ages, body types, and fitness levels

✅ It’s quick – No faffing with online calculators or body composition machines. 

✅ It’s actionable -You can track your progress without relying on scales
✅ It’s empowering – Take charge of your health from the comfort of your bathroom mirror.

Yes, it’s strict. And no, it doesn’t care how fit you think you are. But that’s exactly why it works.

In Summary: Measure What Matters

So, next time you’re told your BMI is “normal”, or that you are “obese”, take it with a hefty pinch of salt. Grab a tape measure instead and take a good look at your waistline – it might be telling you a very different story.

Because when it comes to long-term health, longevity, and avoiding preventable diseases, what’s going on around your middle speaks louder than the number on the scale.

Source: Maffetone PB et al. “Overfat Adults and Children in Developed Countries: The Public Health Importance of Identifying Excess Body Fat.” Front Public Health. 2017 Jul 24;5:190. PubMed: 28791284.