Reviewed by Eric Helms, PhD, CSCS
Originally published October 2023. Last reviewed and updated by the Precision Nutrition editorial team, May 2026.
About a year ago, a plus-sized yoga teacher caused a minor scandal.
Specifically, Gatorade ran a series of ads that featured Jessamyn Stanley—an established yoga instructor, author, and body positivity advocate.
The backlash was brutal.
People stormed social media, arguing that someone with so much visible body fat was a poor choice for an “athlete,” let alone a “healthy” person.
On the other end of the debate were people who said Stanley’s body size had no connection to her overall health. Some of these folks suggested we do away with medical categories like “overweight” and “obesity,” which they say underpin anti-fat bias and stigma.
Who’s right?
As our infographic reveals…
When it comes to body fat, the truth about its effects is highly nuanced—and highly individual.
Before you dig in, we’d like to acknowledge a few things.
▶ Like most health topics, the connection between body fat and overall health is complex.
As your body fat levels rise, so does your risk of developing metabolic disease. At the same time, you can get healthier without losing weight or body fat—just as you can lose weight or body fat without getting healthier.
▶ Weight stigma does exist.
And, it’s rampant in the fitness and nutrition industry. It’s likely because of this anti-fat bias that body fat discussions become so heated. People in larger bodies are stereotyped as lazy, weak, lacking in willpower, and low in intelligence.
That’s hurtful and plain wrong—and it gets in the way of having real, fact-based debates.
▶ Stigma doesn’t help anyone.
“Shame is not a motivator at the individual or the societal level,” says Eric Helms, PhD, a sports physiology and nutrition research fellow at Auckland University of Technology and the co-founder of MASS Research Review.
Rather than help with fat loss, anti-fat stigma is associated with disordered eating, emotional eating, increased calorie intake, and weight cycling. 1, 2, 3
▶ Everyone is worthy of respect.
You’re allowed to love yourself—no matter your body size. You can also pursue health-related activities (such as improved nutrition or increased exercise) without wanting to change your body.
We can and should talk about body fat, just as we can and should talk about cholesterol, blood pressure, and other health topics. Knowing the truth about body fat gives you the wisdom you need to make important health decisions.
(If you’re curious to estimate your body fat percentage, our FREE body fat calculator can help.)
Regardless of your feelings about body fat, we encourage you to check out this infographic with an open mind.
(Alternatively, download it to print out or save to your device.)
So, is body fat good or bad? Neither—and that’s the point.
Body fat isn’t the enemy. It’s essential. Without it you couldn’t store energy, regulate temperature, absorb certain vitamins, cushion your bones and organs, or produce key hormones. A body with too little fat is in just as much trouble as a body carrying excess.
So the useful question was never “is fat good or bad?” It’s three better questions:
- How much do you have?
- Where is it stored?
- What are your actual health markers doing?
Those tell you far more than a number on a scale ever could.
The different kinds of body fat
Not all body fat behaves the same way. Broadly, there are a few types worth understanding. The table below outlines the major players.
|
Type of fat |
Where it is |
What it does |
|
Essential fat |
Brain, nerves, bone marrow, organs |
Required for life. Roughly 3% of body mass in men, 12% in women (higher because of reproductive function). Going below this range is dangerous. |
|
Subcutaneous fat |
Just under the skin |
The fat you can pinch. The large majority of body fat. Relatively metabolically benign and serves as energy storage and insulation. |
|
Visceral fat |
Deep in the abdomen, around organs |
The metabolically risky kind. Active tissue that releases inflammatory signals. This is the fat most linked to metabolic disease. |
|
Brown fat |
Small deposits, neck/upper back |
Burns energy to produce heat rather than storing it. Generally considered beneficial. |
This is why two people at the same weight can have very different health profiles. The amount of fat matters less than the type and location.
Why “where” matters more than “how much”
Subcutaneous fat—the kind on your hips, thighs, and the back of your arms—is largely harmless from a disease standpoint.
Visceral fat, packed around the liver, pancreas, and intestines, is the one that drives risk. It behaves almost like an organ, secreting inflammatory compounds and free fatty acids that interfere with how your body handles insulin and blood lipids.
That’s why waist circumference and waist-to-height ratio often predict metabolic risk better than weight or even BMI. Someone can be in the “overweight” BMI category with low visceral fat and excellent health markers, just as someone else can be in the “normal” category while carrying risky visceral fat.
Health exists across a range of body sizes
As body fat rises, average risk of metabolic disease rises too—that’s real and well-documented at the population level.
But “average” and “individual” are different things.
At the individual level:
- You can be in a larger body and have excellent blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, and fitness. Researchers sometimes call this “metabolically healthy obesity.”
- You can be in a smaller body and have poor metabolic markers.
- You can improve nearly every health marker—blood pressure, blood sugar, fitness, mood, energy—through nutrition, movement, and sleep, often before (or without) any change in body weight.
In other words: Health behaviors improve health. Whether they change the scale is a separate, far less predictable outcome—and a far less important one than much of the fitness industry implies.
How body fat is measured (and why every method has limits)
No measurement is perfect. Each tells you something, and each can mislead if you treat it as the whole story.
|
Method |
What it tells you |
The catch |
|
BMI |
Weight relative to height |
Cannot distinguish fat from muscle, or visceral from subcutaneous. A muscular athlete and a sedentary person can have the same high BMI score. Useful for populations, crude for individuals. |
|
Waist circumference |
A proxy for visceral fat |
Simple and surprisingly predictive of metabolic risk. Pair it with height (waist-to-height ratio) for more data. |
|
Body fat % |
Proportion of body that is fat |
Accuracy depends heavily on the method. Calipers, smart scales, and measuring tapes all carry error; DEXA is most accurate but costs more. |
|
DEXA scan |
Fat, muscle, and bone, by region |
The gold standard for body composition, including visceral fat. Requires a clinic visit. |
If you’re curious where you stand, a body fat estimate is a reasonable starting point — just hold it loosely. (PN’s free body fat calculator can give you a ballpark figure.)
The trend over time matters more than any single reading, and your health markers matter more than either.
What actually moves the needle on metabolic health
Here’s the encouraging part. The behaviors that reduce risky visceral fat and improve metabolic health are the same ones that improve health generally—and they work whether or not your weight changes.
- Eat mostly minimally-processed food. Diet quality independently predicts metabolic health. (See Minimally-processed foods vs. highly-processed foods: What you should know)
- Build and keep muscle. Muscle improves insulin sensitivity and protects function and metabolic health as you age. Strength training matters more than many people think! (See Fat loss and muscle gain: What does realistic progress look like?)
- Move regularly. Both cardio and strength work reduce visceral fat, even without weight loss.
- Prioritize sleep. Poor sleep worsens appetite regulation and insulin sensitivity. (See Transform your sleep: The scientific way to energize your body, sharpen your mind, and stop hitting snooze)
- Manage stress. Chronic stress is linked to visceral fat accumulation.
Notice none of these require weight loss. They’re things you do, not numbers you chase, so they’re largely under your control.
A note on weight, stigma, and your relationship with food
As the opening of this article says, weight stigma is real. The shame it creates is associated with disordered eating, weight cycling, and worse health, not better.
You’re allowed to pursue health without trying to change your body, and you’re worthy of respect at any size.
If thinking about body fat, weight, or food makes you feel excessively anxious, obsessive, or distressed— or if you find yourself restricting, bingeing, or “punishing” yourself with exercise—consider talking to a doctor or a qualified professional. Disordered eating is common, it affect every body size, and it’s treatable. Caring about your health and struggling with food can coexist, and getting support for the second doesn’t mean giving up on the first.
Frequently asked questions
Is some body fat actually necessary?
Yes—essential fat is required for life. It supports your brain, nerves, hormones, and organs. Dropping below the essential range (roughly 3 percent in men and 12 percent in women) is genuinely dangerous. Body fat is normal and necessary, not a flaw to eliminate.
What’s the difference between subcutaneous and visceral fat?
Subcutaneous fat sits just under the skin—the fat you can pinch—and is relatively benign. Visceral fat is stored deep in the abdomen around your organs and is the metabolically active, higher-risk type. Where fat is stored matters more for health than the total amount.
Can I be healthy and still have a higher body fat percentage?
Yes. Health markers like blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, and fitness can be excellent across a range of body sizes, and you can improve all of them through behavior—often without changing your weight. Average population risk rises with body fat, but you’re an individual, not an average.
Is BMI a good measure of health?
It’s useful for studying populations but not nuanced enough for individuals. BMI can’t tell muscle from fat or visceral from subcutaneous, so it misclassifies plenty of people. Waist-to-height ratio and actual health markers give a more accurate picture.
If I want to reduce visceral fat, what works best?
The same fundamentals that support overall health: A mostly minimally-processed diet, regular movement (both strength and cardio), good sleep, and stress management. Visceral fat tends to respond to these even when total weight barely moves.
The bottom line
Body fat isn’t good or bad—it’s essential, and the meaningful questions are how much, where, and what your other health markers are doing.
You can be healthy across a range of sizes, you can improve your health without chasing a number, and the behaviors that help (quality food, movement, muscle, sleep, less stress) are worth doing for their own sake.
Hold single measurements loosely, treat yourself with respect, and focus on what you do rather than what you weigh. That’s the whole picture.
References
Click here to view the information sources referenced in this article.
If you’re a coach, or you want to be…
You can help people build sustainable nutrition and lifestyle habits that will significantly improve their physical and mental health—while you make a great living doing what you love. We'll show you how.
If you’d like to learn more, consider the PN Level 1 Nutrition Coaching Certification. (You can enroll now at a big discount.)
Share