BMI worry

Is BMI an accurate way to tell if you are overweight or not? Do people worry about thier BMI? I have just used two different websites, one told me i had a BMI 25.5 and the other said 26.2, both sugesting that I am overweight. Should I be worried about this?

Reply 1

thatwhichiam

14

BMI is not the most accurate way to tell if you are overweight or not. It doesn't differentiate between fat and muscle - and muscle weighs more than fat. If you are more muscular/well built then you might actually be fine. But if you have a light frame then you would be overweight.

I believe a more accurate indication is percentage of body fat, but you can't see that on any website.

Reply 2

Cromulent

12

Bodybuilders often reach upwards of 28 BMI but you can tell there is absolutely no way they are overweight in the sense that they are fat. BMI is only really useful as a means of comparison between people who are of similar muscularity.

Reply 3

DressMeDeadly

2

I've looked up my own BMI before but didn't pay it too much attention. But i thought "overweight" was a BMI exceeding 29?

Reply 4

thatwhichiam

14

DressMeDeadly

I've looked up my own BMI before but didn't pay it too much attention. But i thought "overweight" was a BMI exceeding 29?

No, it's over 25, so I'm reckoning the OP isn't very overweight.

Reply 5

Adarah

16

I think the best way to tell if you are very worried might be by a visit to your GP. I'm no expert and I suppose most people here on this forum aren't. My guess is that the BMI doesn't give you a very good picture of what is going on, though it is a rough guide. Overweight people could be damaging their health in the long run. What you want to know is whether you are healthy or not, and some numbers can't really tell you that unless you end up right off the scale. This isn't the case though, but if you are worried and don't want to take any risks, you could ask your GP.
Don't just let him weigh you and take your height and look it up on his own little BMI chart (that's what the doctors do every time they're checking up on whether I'm still a healthy weight or not!).
Make a list of what you'd generally eat in a day or week (and be brutally honest) and how much exercise you do (again, be honest) and make a note of anything else in your lifestyle that might be relevant to your health (smoking, alcohol etc). Then ask the doctor what he predicts for your health if you contiune your lifestyle and stay that weight for decades. Would it be harmful, or can he give you the all-clear? Cause that's what's really important, your health, not some silly number on a chart.

Reply 6

DrNick2006

10

Anonymous

Is BMI an accurate way to tell if you are overweight or not? Do people worry about thier BMI? I have just used two different websites, one told me i had a BMI 25.5 and the other said 26.2, both sugesting that I am overweight. Should I be worried about this?

That's quite unusual... it's a set formula, so you shouldn't get two different answers! I'll stick it at the bottom of this post, but for the moment I'll make my second point...

I don't know if you're male or female, but it's not too important. The BMI measure is not always the best way of determining whether or not someone is overweight, especially for men, because it ignores muscle, or when people like me are far too tall for their weight... If you are worried then it may be an idea to see your GP, but you can make that decision for yourself, obviously.

And finally, that formula:

You take your height in metres and times it by itself. (Or square it, for those with at least KS2 maths :biggrin:

). Then, you take your weight in kilograms, and divide that by the height squared. So, if you're 1.5m tall, and 45kg heavy, this gives 45/1.5/1.5= 20. You can convert from imperial to metric using one of those formula sites, or by putting it in Google Search. But don't worry too much, it's a very arbitrary measure!

Reply 7

Yellowmarshmellow

It tells me my BMI is 25.2 and i worry that i'm obese because of this :s-smilie:

Reply 8

sauce

13

Yellowmarshmellow

It tells me my BMI is 25.2 and i worry that i'm obese because of this :s-smilie:

dont be silly!that's a normal BMI ;console;!
mine's like high 23/24 aparrently but my weight changes lots :sadnod:

gah need to stop comfort eating and lose more weight to get to the weight I am when I'm on a good day and stick to it!

Reply 9

Adarah

16

Lilian

dont be silly!that's a normal BMI ;console;!
mine's like high 23/24 aparrently but my weight changes lots :sadnod:

gah need to stop comfort eating and lose more weight to get to the weight I am when I'm on a good day and stick to it!

Ah, that's just a fully belly. Measure your BMI when you haven't just had dinner, maybe early in the morning and that's your proper BMI. Food in your stomach or bowls doesn't really count and neither does water retention from your cycle. If you can lose that weight again quite quickly, it can't really be stubborn fat - or if it is then i envy you for being able to shift any at all, as that can be hard!

Reply 10

that_time

Yellowmarshmellow

It tells me my BMI is 25.2 and i worry that i'm obese because of this :s-smilie:

up to 25 is considered in the 'healthy range'. So 25.2 is certainly not obese!

Reply 11

Yellowmarshmellow

Lilian

dont be silly!that's a normal BMI ;console;!
mine's like high 23/24 aparrently but my weight changes lots :sadnod:

gah need to stop comfort eating and lose more weight to get to the weight I am when I'm on a good day and stick to it!

hehe thanks :smile:

yeah i gotta stop comfort eating too, i would lose so much weight if i cut out all the crap i eat :p:

Reply 12

Yellowmarshmellow

that_time

up to 25 is considered in the 'healthy range'. So 25.2 is certainly not obese!

lol thanks.. it's considered overweight though, right? :rolleyes:

Reply 13

Chewwy

17

yes.

Reply 14

Font

my BMI is 17.9 :frown:

- anyone now how to put on weight? i'm 8 stone and am struggling with an underweight problem.

Reply 15

Adarah

16

that's not very underweight! though it depends on your build and all. again, if you are worried see your GP. you never know - he might be able to tell from your diet what you are lacking, if anything at all is wrong with you! that BMI might be alright, it all depends on your individually!
my personal suggestions would be to eat lots of nuts! that might help you to put on a bit of weight in a healthy way.

Reply 16

that_time

Yellowmarshmellow

lol thanks.. it's considered overweight though, right? :rolleyes:

But only very slightly! Once you take into account inaccuracies that other people have been talking about (e.g how it doesn't account for muscle, bone density etc) - you may not be overweight at all. Looking at your photo, you don't seem overweight!

Reply 17

Profesh

20

Mine is 19.11.

(Woo-hoo.)

Reply 18

Minardi

12

29.7. Better than I expected!!

Reply 19

Jonatan

13

Anonymous

Is BMI an accurate way to tell if you are overweight or not? Do people worry about thier BMI? I have just used two different websites, one told me i had a BMI 25.5 and the other said 26.2, both sugesting that I am overweight. Should I be worried about this?

BMI is a fairly rough estimate, and pretty much means you ought to be somewhere between 20 and 25. That is, 26 is just slightly above the IDEAL region. You're by no means obese, or even sufficiently overweight that there is any point to be too worried about it, just try to watch it a bit so you don't gain more weight. So, perhaps eat more veg, cut back a little on snacks and alcohol... Shouldn't be a need to go on diet unless you are gaining weight rapidly.

BMI worry

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