As a nation, we overindulge in eating many times throughout the day, above and beyond overeating during our normal 3 meals a day. Not only do we eat too much, we eat a lot of the wrong foods loaded with fat, calories and things we just don’t need. Not only does this make us overweight, but it puts those people who are dangerously obese at danger for some very serious health problems.

So how do we find out how fit we really are? One way is through a BMI, Body Mass Index test. This test can tell you exactly how overweight you are based on your current weight and your height. Scores will range on a scale from -1 to 3, with -1 being underweight, 0 being ideal weight and 1-3 showing levels of how overweight you are. Any BMI in the 2 to 3 range is regarded as obese. If you score a 2 or 3 you carry the greatest risk of health problems.

This lets us know how losing those extra pounds not only makes us look and feel better but it also increases our life span. Carrying around all those extra pounds has a terrible effect on our hearts. They force it to work harder in order to move blood through our system.

All of the fat deposits and cholesterol build up from eating poorly can place us in a high-risk category for heart disease and heart attacks. Simple activities like walking after eating and taking stairs instead of the elevator every day can, over time, strengthen the heart and help shed some extra weight.

If you scored a 2 or 3 on the BMI test your first destination is the doctor. Sometimes weight issues are related to medical conditions and need to be treated in a specific way. Also, not eating is no way to lose the fat. You have to keep your metabolism up by eating healthier, smaller meals three times a day with a couple of healthy snacks in between.

Tags: finding out my BMI, how much should I weight, how overweight am I, what is body mass index