TALL GIRLS + BMI STRESS

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LL1894
LL1894 Posts: 21 Member
in Motivation and Support
First time posting on here, so it may have been posted a billion times before but I thought I'd throw it out there anyway. As a 6ft girl, BMI calculators are always telling me I'm overweight. Fellow tall girls, whats your height and weight? What should I be aiming for? These BMI calculators are annoying me so much!

Replies

  • sleevies311
    sleevies311 Posts: 7 Member
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    I know what you mean! I'm not as tall as you--I'm 5'9" and 160 pounds. I'm 19, and at my check-up last summer, I weighed about 168. One chart indicated that my weight was alright because of my height, but another indicated that it was too high. My doctor told me that I could lose about 20 pounds if I wanted to, which I definitely do. I want to get down to 130, which some people might think is too low, I know, but I would love to be one of those tall and thin girls. Anyway, at this point I don't even pay attention to BMI calculators because I don't know how accurate they are for tall women.
  • Prettymuscles
    Prettymuscles Posts: 2
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    hello tall gals! I just happened to stumble into here and thought I would reply. I am 5'10 and weight 148. I would only use BMI as a gauge because it doesn't account for all of you. What I mean by this is how much of you is muscle or fat. I am not sure if you workout at a gym or not, but I would go and get your bodyfat taken. Most gyms will do it for you for free even if you just want to go in for a "free trial". I was a trainer for 7 years so feel free to ask me any questions. :)
  • DixieDarlin1987
    DixieDarlin1987 Posts: 553 Member
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    Do not...I repeat...DO NOT worry about BMI charts. They are ridiculous! I am 6'4" and my height usually isn't even on the dang female chart! BMI charts are just waaaay too generic. They don't take your body composition into account. I am 6'4", 190 lbs, athletically built with just a little bit of fat to lose. Take a look at my pics in my profile. There are some side by sides of me right after having my first child and me ONLY 15 lbs lighter but there is an obvious size and body comp difference. I am back on here after having baby # 2 and trying to lose that last little bit. My ultimate goal weight is between 175-180 lbs. And my profile pic is only a couple of weeks old...190lbs...all the BMI charts (that actually have my height) say that I am obese....clearly I am curvy, but definitely not obese. Everyone is different, focus on your health not the BMI chart :flowerforyou:
  • TIDDYBEAR
    TIDDYBEAR Posts: 63 Member
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    I don't pay any attention to the BMI charts because they take NO account for your bone structure. Someone with a large
    frame will be slimmer with a higher weight than someone with a small frame. It doesn't look at that at all!
  • steffij100
    steffij100 Posts: 85 Member
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    Hi, I've just joined and seen your comment. Again, not as tall as you, but I am 5' 9" and 140lb. Like ssleevi311, I'd like to be 130lb (or 9st 4lb in my language! ;-) ) I'm not taking much notice of the BMI indicator, as, for a start, the chart seems to be unisex, which can't be right, can it? Also, it would assume that some seriously fit sportspeople are overweight, due to their muscle mass. I haven't an awful lot to lose, but my target weight would class me as 'underweight', which i disagree with. I don't want to be skinny- just lose a few pounds off the obvious areas and more importantly tone up. Have you always been the same weight? Have you put on weight over a period of time? Therefore, you may know at what weight you feel- healthily- good. All these indicators help to an extent, but we are all built differently and no-one knows your own body like you do. Hope that helps?
  • ShannonMpls
    ShannonMpls Posts: 1,936 Member
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    I care about BMI charts because others care about them. By that I mean life insurance companies, work biometric screenings to set health insurance premiums, and my doctor's office. It's nice to say they don't matter, and while it's true that they have shortcomings, they also have real-life consequences for many of us.

    I'm 5'11" and never thought I'd have a healthy BMI. I thought I'd be "too skinny" in the healthy range, that I'm too large-framed not to be overweight.

    Well, now my BMI *is* in the healthy range and guess what? I still have extra body fat ;)
  • ShannonMpls
    ShannonMpls Posts: 1,936 Member
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    ...190lbs...all the BMI charts (that actually have my height) say that I am obese....clearly I am curvy, but definitely not obese.

    No, the BMI charts do not say you're obese. If you're 6'4" and weigh 190 pounds, your BMI is 23, which is within the healthy range. At that height, overweight starts at 205 pounds. To be obese you'd need to weigh 247. (Normal weight = 18.5–24.9, Overweight = 25–29.9, Obesity = BMI of 30 or more).

    190 is obese only for someone 5'6.5" or shorter.
  • kristen6022
    kristen6022 Posts: 1,926 Member
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    When I started my journey in October, 2010 I weighed 190 at 5'11. Which is a 26.5 on the BMI scale. I really never considered myself "overweight", but my 14's were getting TIGHT and I was just unhappy with how I felt. So, I thought, I'll lose 12 pounds, get in to the "normal" range and stay at the top of normal at 178. Well, I got to 178 just by changing what I ate (quit soda, limited fried foods, ate more protein, less processed, swapped out snacks, etc). I just kept on keepin' on, and before I knew it I was 165. I knew at 165 I was perfectly normal, but I wasn't happy yet. I'm now 155-160, attempting to get off 5lbs I put on during the "lazy winter". My lowest was in August of 2012 (143). That wasn't maintainable for me and people were telling me I went to far. Instead of getting "overwhelmed" with numbers, how about you look at it this way? Review how you eat and how much you move and see what changes you can make. You'll more than likely see a huge difference in 5-6 months without really "trying" to lose the weight.

    Even though us tall ladies feel we can be heavier because we are tall, big boned, what-not, we can be just as healthy and feeling good at a lower BMI too...I'm proof. I'll never get up to 190 again. The 160-150 range is where I plan on staying forever now I know how to do it!

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