BMI huh?

Valdus92

I am 44, 213 pds at 6'1. Now I know I am overweight but I heard that my ideal zone is 140-189 pds. I tried going lower than 189 pds and while I felt great I looked like the living dead.

Is that right <190?

lgl003

Well right now you BMI is about 28.1 and a normal BMI is between 18.4 and 24.9. At 189 pounds your BMI would have been 24.9, which is the higher end of normal. But, in my opinion, if you think you look better at a weight that is a little higher than normal then that's great. I mean, if you're gaining muscle you could have a high BMI while still being healthy. BMI is important, but being proud of your progress and the way you look is important too.

grimendale

The closer you get to goal weight, the less relevant BMI becomes. Body fat percentage is a much more relaiable indicator since it takes your lean body mass into account rather than giving you an arbitrary weight based on national averages. My BMI puts me at overweight, but my body fat puts me at fit since I have a higher than average amount of muscle mass. Track by body fat rather than BMI, and you'll be happier.

Valdus92

Thanks, but how do you track body fat, is there an easy way to do it, or do I have to liquify myself?

paulperryman

anything like me our weight should be around 170-177lbs. I am currently sitting at 196 and certainly dont look gaunt, maybe bulk up the weights and tone out more

as for BMI i am tending to ignore that and Body Fat readings cause haven't changed much since i was 200+ lbs. there was a massive drop in body fat according to biometric scales initially around 14% but since then i've lost weight and not much in the way of fat or body mass tho my bone density has dropped by a % or 2 and gone back up aswell.

Just go on looks and a tape measure not numbers that are generic and dont necessarily apply to you specifically.

They can't tell you exactly how much muscle/fat/water/bone combination you have it's just a general consensus of the people they tested to get those calculations.

as for fat measurements, a biometric scale will give you a general idea, but the best result would be a set of calipers or see your doctor and get them to do it, they can tell you exactly how much composition your body is and what your actual metabolic rate is during rest and exercise. you can only take a rough guess based on tools that may or may not be correctly configured

DragonSquatter

Thanks, but how do you track body fat, is there an easy way to do it, or do I have to liquify myself?

No liquification necessary. :laugh:

There are several ways to do it. The most accurate is to get a DEXA body scan done. If you google it and your city, you should be able to find out where to get that done.

If you're on a budget, then you can get a ball park estimate by using tailor's tape and measuring yourself. There's a calculator here that you can then input the tape measurements to get a guesstimate: http://www.linear-software.com/online.html