Weighing more than you look

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pennaal
pennaal Posts: 18
in Introduce Yourself
SInce the age of 15, I have been about 10 pounds overweight (until I started really getting in shape 2 months ago), however, everytime I tell people I'm watching my weight and excercising more, they look at me in awe and tell me I don't need to lose anything. I get where they are coming from because I do look a little smaller than I weigh...but according to my BMI I am technically overweight. Does anyone else have this problem? It's not necessarily a bad thing...it just sometimes gets frustrating when people tell you that you don't need to lose weight when you know that you do. Just a thought, feel free to share!
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  • ashleighjane94
    ashleighjane94 Posts: 3
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    Don't take notice of your BMI. It's not that accurate. It doesn't take things like muscle into account. Go by how you feel, not what numbers say you should feel! :)
  • sweetd_cali
    sweetd_cali Posts: 323 Member
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    People say that all the time. My friends can't believe it when I say how much I weigh. I guess looks are deceiving ;)
  • toffee322
    toffee322 Posts: 186 Member
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    same here. i look skinnier than i weigh because my upper body is pretty small. but i have fat in my belly and hip and thighs. just go with your own feeling, don't listen what others say
  • aasenseney
    aasenseney Posts: 1
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    I soooo get this!!! I am 5'5" and weigh 190 lbs. Everyone keeps telling me that I don't look that bad. I guess it's because they don't see me naked. I NEED to lose weight. It's also very discouraging because when I do lose, it's not that noticeble for a long time.
  • JodaNord
    JodaNord Posts: 496 Member
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    Its true, depending how much muscle mass you have, and fat, looks can be deceiving, as well as the way we dress to cover those areas we know aren't as good as they could be! The trick is to look great naked!
  • Tat2dDom624
    Tat2dDom624 Posts: 1,226 Member
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    I've been able to hold my weight well, even being at my heaviest. People think I'm 15-20 lbs lighter than i actually am.
  • brainfreeze72
    brainfreeze72 Posts: 180 Member
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    I get that all the time. I'm 5'8" and when I was 135# I felt like it was a little too skinny. I'm not a petite build, I'll never get into a size 6 jeans unless I'm anorexically skinny and I'm fine with that. I'm happiest at 150-ish but right now I'm over 180#. People say I don't LOOK like I weigh 180 but most of them understand that it is my personal battle to get back to the 150 I'm comfortable at. Being healthy with your diet and excercise is a good thing for your health, regardless of your weight.
  • peejay34mason
    peejay34mason Posts: 138 Member
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    Gonna have to agree with Ashleigh, go with how you feel. If you feel like you need to lose some inches or just tone up what you got to feel comfortable in your skin than go for it. I have never submitted to what others think or tell me that I "should" be. I just know that I am not where I want to be and am working to get back there. I am doing it for me and my family. I would like to live a long healthy life or at least long enough to be around to cause havok in my childrens lives when they become adults and have kids, as you know turnabout is fair play and all!!! Seriously, I am losing for the health benefits!
  • Brent_J
    Brent_J Posts: 54
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    BMI is a load of crap. Get your body fat % tested and then you can set reasonable goals for yourself.
  • Im_NotPerfect
    Im_NotPerfect Posts: 2,181 Member
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    Absolutely. At 5'9" with pretty dense muscles, I hold my weight really well. Most people do NOT believe me when I say I'm 200#. My ideal weight is 175 because I feel I look healthy and can maintain that. But honestly, I'm more about how I feel and my clothing size at this point. Numbers on a scale mean nothing to me.
  • morgan_mfit
    morgan_mfit Posts: 60 Member
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    Yep. I've asked people to guess my weight insuring them I won't flip out at their answer and they always guess 20 lbs lighter. Even my boyfriend couldn't believe it when I said I weighed 170 lbs. I know I have lots of muscle mass which makes me heavy (lots of fat too!)
  • marylynn85
    marylynn85 Posts: 496 Member
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    same here. i look skinnier than i weigh because my upper body is pretty small. but i have fat in my belly and hip and thighs. just go with your own feeling, don't listen what others say

    Thats how I am. And I hate it when people tell me I dont need to lose weight. I know what I need.
  • Rogiefreida
    Rogiefreida Posts: 567 Member
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    I get this a lot. Even the PT who measured my body fat % thought I weighed less than I do, and told me I carry my weight well. (uh, thanks?) I was floored when she told me how high my BF% was, and she told me to hit the weights, and also told me to not worry so much about the number on the scale. So, that's what I'm trying to do, and for now I'm measuring inches and weighing once a week, but I'm putting my emphasis on the measurements waaay more than the # on the scale.
  • jlapey
    jlapey Posts: 1,850 Member
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    I knew a guy who was short and very muscular. According to his BMI he is "morbidly obese". Ridiculous when you consider there is hardly and ounce of fat on him. You know your body better than anyone else. Do what feels right to you. Just do it in a healthy way. If people think you look good, then great, but you need to FEEL good.
  • drea85an
    drea85an Posts: 130
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    Bmi is often inaccurate. My exboyfriend was a 6'2 190 lb runner and it told him he was overweight, or like 5 lbs from overweight. If you loom good, are healthy, and eat well...you are good. Bmi, or not.
  • konerusp
    konerusp Posts: 247 Member
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    I get that all the time.Even when I gain weight im still toned since i workout regularly.People go "you dont need to lose weight" on top while im struggling to lose my last 10-20 pounds i have lot of my friends come up to me and ask "how do you maintain so well?","whats your diet like?".I think within myself "I know what under the clothes" hehehe.Ive learned to ignore them-i know my goal is reasonable and healthy and that it will make me happy.
  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
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    I have a personal trainer and he was surprised at my weight and thought that I looked at least a stone lighter, as did the previous PT I had. So my BMI is higher than it should be, but my body fat percentage is in the healthy range. My PT says he's about 3 stone overweight according to BMI, and he's incredibly fit. I think BMI is a load of rubbish, you can't assume that everyone of the same height has the same bone structure, muscle weight etc. There should be a different chart for people who exercise and use weights.
  • brittanysu923
    brittanysu923 Posts: 1 Member
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    There are two ways to measure if your are overweight or underweight. One is your BMi which takes into account your height and weight, but there is another way that takes into your frame. It's called the hip to waist ratio. You measure your waist and your hips then divide your waist measurement by your hips and the ideal for women is .80
  • aspen_matthews
    aspen_matthews Posts: 94
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    Another factor is the fact that we are used to seeing bigger and bigger people as a daily normal (2/3 of Americans are technically obese, I say technically because it's based on BMI, which only tells part of the story), so people who are only a little bit "overweight" don't really look overweight anymore. People tell me I'm "skinny" when I'm a very healthy weight for my height, my BMI is 21.5.
  • devil_in_a_blue_dress
    devil_in_a_blue_dress Posts: 5,214 Member
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    SInce the age of 15, I have been about 10 pounds overweight (until I started really getting in shape 2 months ago), however, everytime I tell people I'm watching my weight and excercising more, they look at me in awe and tell me I don't need to lose anything. I get where they are coming from because I do look a little smaller than I weigh...but according to my BMI I am technically overweight. Does anyone else have this problem? It's not necessarily a bad thing...it just sometimes gets frustrating when people tell you that you don't need to lose weight when you know that you do. Just a thought, feel free to share!

    Just because you are over the highest number of your BMI doesn't mean you need to lose weight. Body composition matters -- your body fat % matters, your waist measurement matters. I am 10 pounds over too -- my body fat is 24-5%, I have a 28 inch waist and I wear an 8. If you want to lose those pounds -- great, your choice. But the BMI shouldn't be what is compelling you.

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