Does anyone else agree that the BMI scale is absolutely ridi

mrchantele123

I'm apparently obese.

jgoff3003

So am i, i was heaps depressed about and went to my doc and a nutritionist and they both said it is a pile of cow poo as it doesn't take into account muscle mass, ethnic background and other stuff,

supreme athletes and body builders also get classed as obese in Australia they prevent ppl from being in the army cause they are 'overweight' according to their bmi

I was 156lbs and it classed me on the end of overweight and it sucked but i am getting normal range and my doctor is now worried!

jo_marnes

This really comes down to what is classed as 'obese' and what YOU think 'obese' is. Often they are very different and working out your BMI can really be a wake up call for yourself and your health.

Yes, BMI is subject to argument and in some cases is not an accurate measure (i.e. for athletes). However, for most people it is accurate enough to judge your weight and determine whether you are healthy enough. All this talk of being 'big boned' etc is generally an excuse for people who do not want to admit they are classed as obese. If it was THAT inaccurate then it would not be a tool that was used by health professionals - and by the way, my dietician uses BMI.

Only you know the truth as to whether your body mass is fat or muscle, or if there is a different cause for your BMI to be high. If there is a genuine reason, then thats fine, don't use BMI. Otherwise it might be time to wise up and do something about it.

digit78

I avoid my BMI............ afraid to see where I sit on that scale! Ha

lilosmom2003

Im obese & apparently have been since the age of 15. LOL I just kinda avoid the BMI chart all together.

Mrs_Hewi

I am another who is obese according to my BMI. I found it (still find it a little) depressing. I cried for hours the first time i found this out!
I do agree that it can be a good wake up call for your health though.....

kimwig

This really comes down to what is classed as 'obese' and what YOU think 'obese' is. Often they are very different and working out your BMI can really be a wake up call for yourself and your health.

Yes, BMI is subject to argument and in some cases is not an accurate measure (i.e. for athletes). However, for most people it is accurate enough to judge your weight and determine whether you are healthy enough. All this talk of being 'big boned' etc is generally an excuse for people who do not want to admit they are classed as obese. If it was THAT inaccurate then it would not be a tool that was used by health professionals - and by the way, my dietician uses BMI.

Only you know the truth as to whether your body mass is fat or muscle, or if there is a different cause for your BMI to be high. If there is a genuine reason, then thats fine, don't use BMI. Otherwise it might be time to wise up and do something about it.

I agree with you.

I was BMI disbeliever, when I was overweight (177lb for 5 ft 4)I said "it's wrong, doesn't apply to us now", we are bigger people. However I decided to focus on getting to my mid point normal BMI as I know I am not an athlete or have the muscles of a body builder.

Now I am the mid point, I realize how correct it is. In fact I think I need to be a little trimmer to flatten my stomach. Getting to my mid point BMI took my body fat % to the correct level as well as other measures. I am at the weight I should be (well I have 2 lbs to go). My doctor is very happy that I have got into this range, as it is good.

I realize now, having been through the journey that we have become somewhat blind to excess weight, overweight became normal, and obese was just someone a little overweight.

I do not hear from people who are in the normal BMI that they do not believe it. Those overweight or above dismiss it as being wrong, but I think it is important to consider getting within their normal range, and check against other measures.

janburnewll

I really agree. My daughter is obese - she is really very overweight to the point where her health is badly affected. She needs to lose at least 5 stone. To hear someone classed in the same category who looks fit and health and well proportioned makes it hard for her to take her condition as seriously as she should. The word 'obese' has a dictionary meaning. To describe someone who is only a bit overweight as 'obese' is indeed ridiculous

AnnaleisJ

Well I think it shouldn't necessarily be the only tool you use to track your weight loss but I have certainly found it useful throughout the time I have been tracking my calorie intake. The BMI scale does have its flaws but it gives an indication as to where you are going and should only really be used as a guide and not taken as gospel.

spacedolphin

mrchantele: you're not obese. BMI doesn't take build and especially muscle mass into account. Here's an example: I'm a substitute teacher and was doing BMI with a P.E. class - the guy who was in the best shape had the highest BMI but a low body fat percentage, while the apparently skinny girls actually had higher body fat (and very little muscle.)

Of course obese DOES exist - I'll admit I'm obese - but when I was younger and healthy I was still in the 'overweight' category. My mother and sisters, who run half marathons and are clearly healthy, are also technically overweight. BMI is a tool that uses generalizations, and generalizations don't apply to everyone. But it's simple, so a lot of people use it.

fuzzymel

I think that the BMI scale is a useful tool but not the only tool that should be used.

If you have a lot of muscle then it is not going to be the right measure for you. Have you thought of getting your body fat measured? I had mine done in September and had a body fat of 21% (which is good for a female) however my BMI was 24.

kimwig

I think that the BMI scale is a useful tool but not the only tool that should be used.

If you have a lot of muscle then it is not going to be the right measure for you. Have you thought of getting your body fat measured? I had mine done in September and had a body fat of 21% (which is good for a female) however my BMI was 24.

Your measurements do correlate though as your BMI is is the normal range as is your fat %. So that all seems to match

sarahdg

I totally agree - I am very tall with a big bone structure, however if I was the BMI they suggested, I would be SKIN AND BONE! I would look totally anorexic.
The same goes for the scales that recommend how much you should weigh. A complete joke.

kimwig

I'm apparently obese.

Obese is a definition from BMI though. This is a good link for info BMI which explains a lot and helps answer some questions you could have.
http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/adult_bmi/index.html

Delicate

I am a bit lost with BMI i have myself wanting to get midpoint but finding it hard (gah), however i do weights so am possibly thinking i shouldnt be aiming midpoint, between mid to higher.

Love weights too much to be put off by bmi though!

my tummy is almost flat, i cant be bad !

fuzzymel

I think that the BMI scale is a useful tool but not the only tool that should be used.

If you have a lot of muscle then it is not going to be the right measure for you. Have you thought of getting your body fat measured? I had mine done in September and had a body fat of 21% (which is good for a female) however my BMI was 24.

Your measurements do correlate though as your BMI is is the normal range as is your fat %. So that all seems to match

Sorry I should have explained further. Other people who had a lower BMI than me had a higher fat percentage. I had a fairly high muscle percentage which was probably keeping my BMI higher.

sparklesammy

well people keep saying that there is no way i am still overweight but according to the bmi scale i am.

To be honest i probably weigh more than it looks like i weigh, but the bmi scale doesn't take body frame into consideration...I really am big boned!

But my target weight is right at the top on the normal range. and i think i will look good at that wieght : )

mtwd65

According to the BMI I was spot on before I started losing weight. I'm at the opposite end of the scale, until I was 27 I was underweight. According to some people I was unhealthy and my body wasn't functioning properly. They obviously had never met me.

You could tell by looking at me last year that I had a couple of kg to lose with a BMI of 23. As soon as I stopped eating a lot of high fat high sugar food and replaced with good food I lost 1kg in a month. Everyone says I look better now that I'm at the low end of 'normal'.

According to the doctor who initially took the BMI as the measure I should put the weight back on however the recent blood tests show that I much healthier at the lower weight.

There are people who are obese according to BMI with an acceptable body fat % and there are people with a 'normal' BMI with a high body fat % with all the associated problems. It is only one measure and not designed to look at individuals it is a population measure that shows that 90% of people will be within this range if they are not over or under weight.

arewethereyet

that was the catalyst for my new lifestyle......didn't like being called obese!!

I was looking at pictures of family and neighbors from 40 yrs ago or so and there was one girl who was 200 lbs. Everyone else was a healthy weight...........

Now all the kids are running around outside playing tag, at the beach, running down the street screeming ROVER ROVER or MOTHER MAY I and skipping rope

The parents? Holding Lucky Strikes and Highballs...........

IdleJack

I've never followed the BMI scale; whenever I've trained I've always used body fat percentage to gauge my level of success.

To be honest I personally believe that when you reach a certain weight it's best to start using body fat percentage, tape measurements and whether or not you can get back into those jeans you've been holding onto!

Sparksfly

This really comes down to what is classed as 'obese' and what YOU think 'obese' is. Often they are very different and working out your BMI can really be a wake up call for yourself and your health.

Yes, BMI is subject to argument and in some cases is not an accurate measure (i.e. for athletes). However, for most people it is accurate enough to judge your weight and determine whether you are healthy enough. All this talk of being 'big boned' etc is generally an excuse for people who do not want to admit they are classed as obese. If it was THAT inaccurate then it would not be a tool that was used by health professionals - and by the way, my dietician uses BMI.

Only you know the truth as to whether your body mass is fat or muscle, or if there is a different cause for your BMI to be high. If there is a genuine reason, then thats fine, don't use BMI. Otherwise it might be time to wise up and do something about it.

I was always overweight according to my BMI, from high school through college. Most of the time only slightly...with a BMI of 25-26. Ever since losing 30+ lbs I now agree fully with the BMI scale. My weight is now in the NORMAL range with 19%-20% body fat, and I still think I have a few pounds to lose and tone up.

Before I started MFP, I really thought the BMI scale was a load of crap. Now I just think people in our society are so used to seeing overweight and obese people, that their perception of normalcy is different than what it was 20 years ago. It's not completely our fault though, clothing sizing and portion sizing keeps increasing and our society has gone right along with those increases.

I have accepted that getting into a size 6 jeans is not the same goal as it was 15-20 years ago. I am going for a solid size 2 (which is probably what a 6 was 20 years ago anyway).

Really people need to take a real hard look at themselves and be honest- obese= obese, overweight=overweight, and normal range= A LARGE RANGE -not one size fits all.Unless you are a bodybuilder or super athlete the BMI holds true for our species.

I always thought being overweight was ok, but its really hard on your body in the long run.

coachdoubled

Honestly, the BMI was a crutch for me for a long time, I have been obese since elementary school, which came in handy as a football lineman but after competitive sports ended in college I have continued to put on weight. As a 6 ft tall male the high end of the BMI scale is 180, which looking at that I said there is no way that is going to happen so why bother (not to mention all of the other confusing, conflicting information about eating, diets and everything else. Thankfully, I found MFP and I have lost 54 pounds in the last 4 months.

Now, the small town that I live is having a get healthy 90 day event (great idea btw) and I had a body composition test through it. Long story short, it works out that my lean body mass is 205 lbs (CW is 318). So, to hit the high end of my normal BMI I would not only have to be 0% body fat (and dead), but I would also have to lose 25 pounds of lean mass. I know that many people are not realistic about their own weight and BMI, but the BMI can be seriously flawed. To me, the best answer is to not rely on any one measurement (of course bureaucracies always will) to judge your healthy but do your own research and use a variety of methods.

I know from personal experience that people who aren't truly prepared to become healthy will find every excuse or crutch (just read the message boards). It really is a lot more simple than we make it. Move more, eat less, make better food choices. Unfortunately for our instant gratification society, quick fixes generally do not work and more often than not make the situation worse. I do think that for many people being overweight is similar to alcoholism, it is impossible to recover until the person is totally honestly with themselves, truly wants to change, and is prepared to make the necessary changes. To me the BMI was just another convenient excuse why I should even bother to try.

chuckanderson

I would say: first consult this chart:

http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/StrengthStandards.htm

If you don't fall into the upper range of intermediate/advanced- you don't have enough muscle to ignore the BMI system.

Edit: and just my personal opinion now that I look at it..... you probably better be advanced. I'm somewhere in the lower ranges of advanced and I still take BMI into account a little (with only maybe a 1.5% difference).