Do BMI's seem unrealistic to anyone else?

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  • ryry_
    ryry_ Posts: 4,966 Member
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    I would also add that people shouldn't be using the whole BMI can overestimate people with an athletic build as a reason to remain overweight (or more accurately Overfat). Everyone needs to reflect and ask if they are at a health bf %. Don't use it as an excuse to not lose the extra fat that may be causing you health problems. Not my place to judge that but something to think about.

    If you are not an athlete and have not been lifting for a signifcant amount of time to build muscle mass, chances are it's probably more accurate for you than others.
  • runningagainstmyself
    runningagainstmyself Posts: 616 Member
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    I would have to get down to 140 lbs to have a mid range BMI, that is just not realistic. I would be comfortable at 160-170 but that still puts me at overweight BMI. Are BMI a realistic measuring tool for most people?

    My highest 'healthy' BMI is at 179lb. At my leanest I've ever only been 172lb, and the 'mid-range' weight is about 165lb. I think for me to be that weight, I'd have to be suffering from some kind of eating disorder. Seriously.

    So yeah, BMI isn't the be-all, end-all. It doesn't account for everything. The trick is (and I learned this the hard way) not to use it as an excuse for failing to transition to a healthy lifestyle.
  • SarahBeth0625
    SarahBeth0625 Posts: 685 Member
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    I honestly think the military body fat calculator is a far better tool. :smile:
  • mrphil86
    mrphil86 Posts: 2,382 Member
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    BMI is an old system from the early 1900's and I have no idea why anybody still uses it.

    We have tools to figure out BF%'s
  • Topsking2010
    Topsking2010 Posts: 2,245 Member
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    My doctor swears by BMI and think I am overweight being 6 feet tall 191 pounds.

    I must agree I need to lose 10 pounds.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
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    When did I say I didn't think I was overweight?

    I am just making a point that for me, an overweight BMI (26) is a healthy weight.

    based on what, out of curiosity?
  • lindafjohnson
    lindafjohnson Posts: 30
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    i agree with the unrealistic.. i am now at 175 and still considered obese. At about 160 I am overweight. My goal is 150 so i guess i will still be overweight. When i went to the dr last wk and got my blood work done I received a paper in the mail with the results and it had my BMI at 34%. I have never seen it before
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
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    BMI is an old system from the early 1900's and I have no idea why anybody still uses it.

    We have tools to figure out BF%'s

    that are also wildly inaccurate.
  • dimsumkitty
    dimsumkitty Posts: 120 Member
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    I honestly think the military body fat calculator is a far better tool. :smile:

    What, the tool that underestimated mine by 5% and said my OH had a negative body fat percentage? :noway:
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
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    I would have to get down to 140 lbs to have a mid range BMI, that is just not realistic. I would be comfortable at 160-170 but that still puts me at overweight BMI. Are BMI a realistic measuring tool for most people?

    My highest 'healthy' BMI is at 179lb. At my leanest I've ever only been 172lb, and the 'mid-range' weight is about 165lb. I think for me to be that weight, I'd have to be suffering from some kind of eating disorder. Seriously.

    So yeah, BMI isn't the be-all, end-all. It doesn't account for everything. The trick is (and I learned this the hard way) not to use it as an excuse for failing to transition to a healthy lifestyle.

    how tall are you if you don't mind me asking?
  • jessilee119
    jessilee119 Posts: 444 Member
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    I agree that BMI has its limitations as pointed out by some of the other posters. Although I prefer to use body fat percentage as a means of tracking my progress, it is more difficult to accurately measure than BMI.

    Unless you are very short or extremely muscular, BMI is a good indicator for most adults which can easily be determined.

    Here is an excellent brief summary (from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute) on how to assess your weight and health risk using BMI:
    http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/lose_wt/risk.htm

    Vibrams!! Do you love yours? I love mine-especially for aerobics where other shoes try to come off my feet :happy:
  • Rhondacjohnson
    Rhondacjohnson Posts: 2
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    No way r they realistic. I looked up my child's just for curiosity and it considers her overweight, almost obese. She is perfectly healthy, she isn't overweight or under for that matter, and that's just not her mother talking, her doctor too. You have to look like death eating a cracker to fit into that thing.
  • mrphil86
    mrphil86 Posts: 2,382 Member
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    BMI is an old system from the early 1900's and I have no idea why anybody still uses it.

    We have tools to figure out BF%'s

    that are also wildly inaccurate.

    Uh... yeah... so is BMI. There is only one method to BMI vs BF%. So of course there are some really bad BF% calculators out there.

    Density is not a new concept and we have a pretty good idea how to measure it.
  • JazzyTimmy
    JazzyTimmy Posts: 8
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    She keeps telling me that it's not realistic for her to be my weight because she'd be just skin and bones. I ask if I looked like skin and bones, no, she thinks I look good. So why would she be skin and bones and I look fine? Because she's been 240 for so long her head can't get around that she could lose over 100 lbs and not be sickly.

    This. I need to remember it.
  • TheFitnessTutor
    TheFitnessTutor Posts: 356 Member
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    BMI is good for insurance companies charging you more. That's about it. I'm obese according to bmi.
  • mrphil86
    mrphil86 Posts: 2,382 Member
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    I honestly think the military body fat calculator is a far better tool. :smile:

    What, the tool that underestimated mine by 5% and said my OH had a negative body fat percentage? :noway:

    The only way that is possible is if your neck is bigger than your stomach... Yeah....
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    My daughter is a high-performance athlete (competitive swimmer) who has a body fat % far below what is recommended for her age however she eats more then I every could (she's only 15). She can swim fly for an hour without issue!!! She was playing on a friends Wii and it "measured" the BMI based on her height and weight and it said she was at the top end of healthy bordering on overweight!!!!! She laughed....so at 15 to know the tool is completely useless should tell everyone something.....putting in two or three numbers to define "health" cannot. It does not account for your activity level, body fat, body frame, etc.

    Measurements, determining your body fat percent and how you feel are the best indicators of "healthy weights"

    Good luck!!!

    Yep - same thing happened to my niece when she was in high school. She was annorexic and had a perfectly healthy BMI because of her muscle mass since she was an athlete. The poor thing had major health problems because of the damage from annorexia but if you looked only at her BMI she was perfect

    No. BMI does not measure anything other than how a person's weight fits into the national averages. So, looking only at BMI, her weight was perfect.

    Using a tool incorrectly does make the tool bad.
  • mnqi
    mnqi Posts: 36
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    To me BMI is a quide and maybe is unrealistic because it doesn't take into consideration muscle, sex, etc. However, for me, I am obese and to hear I have a BMI of 36% is daunting. So, for now, I look at trying to be "overweight". That is the goal for now. Taking it in small steps. According to the doctors I can weigh between 100-140lbs. I can't imagine that.....so my goal is get under 200lbs and my BMI will be 33%....small goals working toward fitness. Good luck
  • Bridget0927
    Bridget0927 Posts: 438 Member
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    She keeps telling me that it's not realistic for her to be my weight because she'd be just skin and bones. I ask if I looked like skin and bones, no, she thinks I look good. So why would she be skin and bones and I look fine? Because she's been 240 for so long her head can't get around that she could lose over 100 lbs and not be sickly.

    This. I need to remember it.

    YES!!!!!!!!! Its this, people get used to what they are and can't imagine something so drastically different. Also we have become so changed in our perception, just because most in america are overweight doesnt mean thats how we should be.
    Same goes the other way just because some models, or famous folk are underweight doesnt mean we should be that either.
    I think the BMI tool is excellent, and yes ppl have rightly pointed out that the extremes like athletes and other very muscular individuals can go outside the range that is the case with any chart, there are always outliers. I would wager at least 95% of the people on this are not in this category.
  • theblackspot
    theblackspot Posts: 22 Member
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    We all live in the rich part of the world Europe or the north Americas, where getting enough to eat is easy for most. Not becoming overweight is hard, we are encouraged to eat and snack and grow wider. Over time we all get used to seeing bigger people as normal. You compare yourself and decide your normal, regardless of the facts that we weigh more and have more calorie rich foods. So when people say, 'bmi has to be wrong, as it says I'm fat or obese, when there are clearly people fatter than me', it doesn't mean they aren't fat. It just means people are fatter than them. My bmi says I'm overweight. If I loose 14 lbs I won't be. But if I loose 56lbs I won't be underweight just skinny! If I then hit the gym hard, and put on over 56lbs of pure muscle, then my bmi will suggest I am over weight. If you are trying to lose weight, and are going to the gym and building muscles, good on you. But you are probably still carrying a lot of fat too. If you can see your six pack, and it says you are obese, then bmi is wrong, but if you can't...

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