Here we are in the middle of an obesity epidemic. We hear about it on the news daily and even though here in Colorado we might still be considered the thinnest state, we are gaining weight right along with the rest of the nation.

So maybe we are getting fatter, but can you really tell if someone is fit and healthy just by looking at them? Sometimes yes, but in many cases the common judgment is that someone who looks overweight or fat can’t possibly be fit and anyone who is thin must be fit and healthy. However, many studies have found a much different story.

It is actually possible for those who are overweight or obese to be physically fit and in fact when this is the case their death rates are the same as lean people who are not physically fit. In addition, the risks associated with being overweight can be offset with regular exercise and healthy eating even without weight loss.

I remember hearing a lecture in graduate school from Dr. Steven Blair of the Cooper Institute, who struggles with weight himself and promotes the “Fat but Fit” philosophy. For much of his career he has studied and tracked thousands of patients over numerous years and the data backs up his personal mantra.

For example, a long-term study of 25,000 men tested at the Cooper Institute, found that no matter what a person’s body weight, physical fitness can protect against premature death. The risk of premature death for men who were obese but fit was only a third of that of unfit obese men.

Although, overweight and obesity are risk factors themselves for chronic disease, most of the lifestyle-related diseases are due to the clustering of risk factors referred to as the metabolic syndrome (MetS). MetS risk factors include insulin resistance, abdominal fat, elevated blood pressure, poor blood lipid profile, and elevated markers of inflammation.

It is well documented that weight loss through diet and exercise improves MetS risk factors. In addition it has been found that weight loss is not even necessary to experience the beneficial effects of exercise on chronic disease risk factors. So the next question to be answered is, what happens when the weight lost is regained? An all too common situation that happens more often than not, even the best of us.

A new study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology from The University of Missouri is the first to look at the effects of regular exercise in the presence of weight regain. This study was quite unique in the fact that after helping participants lose weight through exercise and dietary restrictions over a period of several months, these same participants underwent a programmed period of weight regain. How would you like to be in this study!?

The weight regain period consisted of increased caloric intake while participants were divided into two groups: no exercise or continued exercise training. So, for the first time researchers were able to examine if exercise can defend the health improvements that occurred with weight loss when weight is regained. Following weight regain the group that did not exercise showed deterioration in most of the metabolic markers measured. In contrast, the exercising group maintained almost all of their metabolic improvements. These results suggest that aerobic exercise can in fact counter the detrimental effects of weight gain on many markers of metabolic health and disease risk factors.

So take heart, you don’t have to look like a supermodel or the guy on the cover of Men’s Health to be fit and healthy. You just have to commit to regular exercise and even if you gain a few pounds around the holidays the exercise will continue to protect you against serious metabolic risk factors.