BMI

boggsmeister

I feel like I have a larger than average frame. When I weighed 240 pounds ( a while back) I had to wear athletic cut dress shirts so I wouldn't blouse to much at the waist, and I definitely was packing a little gut. That's just to illustrate where I stand as far as over all size.

The charts say that I should be at 195 at the top end and 165 at the bottom. I can't even imagine 165, and have a hard time seeing myself at 190 unless I was gunning for some athletic competition.

So, there are more than a few tall guys on this thread. Where was your healthy weight, when you were at one?

downsizinghoss

I am not even that tall, but I will NEVER fit in the BMI scale. I went and had a body compostion test done in a BodPod.
My lean body mass is at 205. BMI says that anything over like 175 is obese for my height.

So I will have to have ZERO fat and still lose 30 pounds of muscle/organ/bone etc. to not be considered obese on that scale.

I played ball in college at 310. Based on the bodpod my dream weight would be around 225 and I am aiming for 250.


ps. if you can, have a bodpod test done. It is so more accurate and they can give you a much better calculation for your BMR and TDEE

redlion45

I am the same height as you. Even when I was at my lightest weight -- at 15 and I was playing competative soccer every day, and was ridiculously lean, I was above 200 lbs. Needless to say, I haven't been in that neighborhood for some years, but the point is that BMI is a pointless benchmark.

To answer your question, a healthy, athletic and muscular weight for me was (and hopefully will be again) at 225-230 lbs. That was my college weight when I was playing baseball and soccer and lifting weights regularly.

The history of BMI is kind of interesting if you have time to kill and want to be semi-bored for a 1/2 hour. It begs the question why anybody cares about BMI.

The predessor formula for BMI dates to the 19th century. It was supposed to be used as the best proxy for estimating body fat percentage among ratios of weight and height in a given population. While perhaps appropriate for population studies, it was, as is, inappropriate for an individual diagnosis (and any doctor worthy of the name knows this). Nevertheless, due to its ease of application and simplicity, it came to be used for purposes of an individual obesity diagnosis, despite its many failings, by governments, insurance companies, and others with a need to use an easily applied formula for weight and body size.

Now that everyone is bored to tears, my work here is done. :ohwell:

Short version, when Gov. Arnold won the Mr. Olympia title all those years, his BMI said he was "Obese." Nuff said. :grumble:

boggsmeister

I am going to get a Bodpod when I hit around 300 pounds. Kind of forgot that I can easily calculate my final goal based on what it says my lean body mass is. I do plan on getting a Bodpod done at every 25 pounds or so, just to make sure I'm not dropping a lot of muscle along with my fat.

mistermog

How did you go about getting the bodpod done? Did you need a dr. referral and did insurance cover it? What kind of cost, etc?

downsizinghoss

How did you go about getting the bodpod done? Did you need a dr. referral and did insurance cover it? What kind of cost, etc?

No, I just found one through a friend here in Atlanta. He charges $49 for one visit, or you can prepay for 2-3, quarterly, or even unlimited use. A lot of hardcore (aka already fit) guys use it instead of a scale.

downsizinghoss

Here you go, UMKC has it for $35

http://www.umkc.edu/src/personal-fitness.asp

cryptique

I'm 6' 1" and I think I'd be very happy and healthy around 205 lbs., maybe even a bit higher. I'm very broad-shouldered and I truly am "big boned" (unlike Cartman). Even during the five minutes that I was thin (circa 1982) I needed to buy extra-long watchbands and had a huge neck and wide feet.

I haven't seen the underside of 200 since halfway through high school (approximately 28 years ago) and I grew about an inch after that. It's theoretically possible that I could get under 200 again, but I'm not even particularly interested in doing so.

mistermog

Thanks Hos! That great!

leodru

I'm 5'6" and my ideal weight caps out at 118-155!!!!!!!! lol. I've been really active in the past and my weight has never been that bad (now 183). If I get to 170 it would be fantastic but not likely. I remember back in high school when i looked like a starved dog i was 150. Even now with impedance testign it tells me my body fat is around 22% - if I hit 170 it would be great.