?? Big bones and BMI ??

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  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
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    Ask your doctor! In the meantime, having a larger bone structure means that you have more lean body mass, and that your ideal weight will be higher than that of a person with lighter bones. You should take care of your bones anyway, but you're also at a lower risk for osteoporosis...take care of your bones anyway.

    P.S. You look very pretty.
  • Nikoruo
    Nikoruo Posts: 771 Member
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    For the wrist thing I would say it only works really when you don't really carry fat around them. However, i find that a lot of smaller bone structured people who weigh a lot do actually carry around quite a bit of it on their wrists which when this test is done, gives the falsity that they are big bone structure. Usually you can tell by looking at someone if they are on the higher or lower spectrum of the bone structure. Myself, on the other hand, have very skinny wrists and therefore I can properly assume that at 6.69291 inches around my wrist I am a large bone structure. I know my wrists are skinny because my bones practically show under the skin lol. though I always have assumed I was bigger in structure because i also never looked as heavy as i was due to my structure carrying me well. It's good to know because I wont be setting any unrealistic expectations now haha.
  • Loralrose
    Loralrose Posts: 203
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    There is such a thing as big-boned, but I think the wrist measurement method is baloney. I have small wrists, a huge ribcage, broad shoulders/pelvis, and a lot of muscle for a woman. In high school I was "overweight" according to BMI charts and could still see my abs and ribs. I think it's awesome -especially since I look a lot slimmer than someone my size with a smaller frame. Not to mention the health bonus of extra strength and bone density!

    I'd say focus on body fat percentage instead of weight. That way whatever your bone structure is you'll still have an achievable, healthy goal in mind.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
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    I agree the "wrist measurement" is not valid. "Big boned" is more of a euphemism for someone with a higher than average fat free mass (FFM). FFM includes everything that is not fat--bones, muscles, organs, etc.

    The range of FFM levels for females at any given height can range over 30-35 pounds, which means the range of what can be considered an "ideal" weight is even larger.

    The best way to determine an "ideal weight" is to assess body fat. From that number you can estimate FFM. With FFM, you determine your target BF% and add that to FFM and you have a decent target weight goal.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    The wrist thing is dumb as obviously your wrist will be fatter if you're overweight. There are better calculators out there that use your elbows too. But yes, there's definitely such a thing as large frames. Mine is medium/large, I think, however I personally find it worse for us to be overweight, as we look even bigger than we already are with extra pounds.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
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    I'm overweight -- technically still obese -- and my wrists aren't fat or fatter. I can barely pinch anything away from the bone. So, I don't know that this is "obvious" at all.
  • Madame_Goldbricker
    Madame_Goldbricker Posts: 1,625 Member
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    I've always had "skinny" wrists regardless. Now my ankles they're another story!

    Even when I've been on the thin end of the spectrum before I've always had a wide set ribcage. Maybe that's a better indication?
  • Iwishyouwell
    Iwishyouwell Posts: 1,888 Member
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    I'm overweight -- technically still obese -- and my wrists aren't fat or fatter. I can barely pinch anything away from the bone. So, I don't know that this is "obvious" at all.

    Yep, that's me too. The fingers-around-the-wrist test actually was very accurate for me, even at larger size. I grew up fat assuming that I was a larger framed man, because even while obese I carried my weight "well". When I lost a lot of weight and got down to the higher end of the large frame BMI I was shocked to see myself still fat. The wrist test told me that I was wrong, that I'm actually a medium framed guy. Other frame measurement tests have since backed that up.

    It's not a bad test for everyone.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,326 Member
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    the wrist thing doesnt really make sense because it doesnt take finger length in account.

    i think big bones is more determined by things like being broad shouldered, wide pelvis and wide ribcage.

    and i recently had someone tell me i was big boned and that i shouldnt lose as much weight as i thought. granted i have a fair amount of muscle from weight training over the past 20 years, but i also have a teeny ribcage and small pelvis, so i dont think there's anything particularly big abount my bones except the amount of fat on top of them
  • Iwishyouwell
    Iwishyouwell Posts: 1,888 Member
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    so i dont think there's anything particularly big abount my bones except the amount of fat on top of them

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  • shadowofender
    shadowofender Posts: 786 Member
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    -shrug- honestly I have no idea if there's truth or not. I'm a really big girl (at my heaviest well over 300lbs) and have always had tiny wrists and ankles. I can easily overlap fingers around my wrists. I know I have long fingers, though. BUt I also have always had wide shoulders, hips, etc. even when thin. Soooo I just ignore it. BMI is not so accurate, and I'd rather focus on factors like body fat percentage anyway.
  • freckledrats
    freckledrats Posts: 251 Member
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    When I was obese, I could not wrap my fingers around my wrist. I am overweight, and now I can wrap my fingers around with a tiny bit of overlap on my thumb and index, and barely touch on thumb and pinky.

    So, yes, you can carry fat there. It's just a place on your body where there will be the LEAST fat, so it's easier to judge frame. That said, your skeleton is not very heavy no matter how extra dense it might be, so this isn't going to account for 30-50 extra pounds between one person and another of the same general size, sorry to disappoint.

    At most, it MAY skew BMI a tiny bit upward, but to a fairly small degree. Muscular composition is going to affect it more than bone density, and this will MAINLY apply to serious body builders.
  • PlumpKitten
    PlumpKitten Posts: 112 Member
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    BMI is a range - and a pretty big range.

    For a small woman like myself, the range is about 30 lbs. That more than accommodates different frames.
    When most people say, "Oh, I just have big bones. I have big wrists. I was always naturally buxom," etc - it's just a justification. Even a larger natural frame does not put you out of a 30-lb range if you are otherwise slim and healthy.

    For someone who is 6', the range of healthy BMIs is 45 lbs.

    BMI works for just about everyone, with some rare exceptions, like Olympic weight lifters!
  • shabaity
    shabaity Posts: 792 Member
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    BMI is a range - and a pretty big range.

    For a small woman like myself, the range is about 30 lbs. That more than accommodates different frames.
    When most people say, "Oh, I just have big bones. I have big wrists. I was always naturally buxom," etc - it's just a justification. Even a larger natural frame does not put you out of a 30-lb range if you are otherwise slim and healthy.

    For someone who is 6', the range of healthy BMIs is 45 lbs.

    BMI works for just about everyone, with some rare exceptions, like Olympic weight lifters!

    BMI does not work for everyone. My doctor flat out told me to ignore it and aim for about 140-150 as a good weight for me 130 as the very lowest, I'm 5'1. This is due to multiple factors including having an odd genetic quirk that makes it easy for me to gain muscle, as well as, being natural strong for a female and being an excellent candidate for a breast reduction surgery. And I may be the largest I've ever been currently but I've been 140 my cleavage didn't go anywhere.
  • ExRelaySprinter
    ExRelaySprinter Posts: 874 Member
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    BMI works for just about everyone, with some rare exceptions, like Olympic weight lifters!

    BMI works for "some", but doesn't work for most people.....especially if you are of a Muscular Frame or Big Boned.
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
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    BMI works for just about everyone, with some rare exceptions, like Olympic weight lifters!

    BMI works for "some", but doesn't work for most people.....especially if you are of a Muscular Frame or Big Boned.
    By definition, BMI is applicable to most people. It's based on norms and averages.
  • ExRelaySprinter
    ExRelaySprinter Posts: 874 Member
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    By definition, BMI is applicable to most people. It's based on norms and averages.
    [/quote]

    Well, my sister who is 5ft 5 and Big Boned is 170lbs (and looks great at this size). She has a BMI of 28 and would be classed as overweight .
    Her BMI at 25 (which is what they say she should be at..... (at least!) is 150 lbs,......but she would look practically skeletal at that weight!
    And i know many people like this.
    We are Black also, and i don't think BMI takes that into consideration....as we are known to weigh heavier than White and Asian people.
  • Advaya
    Advaya Posts: 226 Member
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    I have always been called big boned, my 7th grade science teacher used me as an example of someone who might need to worry less about osteoporosis! Uhh

    I can't even begin to wrap my fingers around my wrists, there is at least a half inch gap. i can pinch the fat and still see that my bones are large.

    But I don't know how accurate the wrist thing is in general, and I'm sure some people carry fat around their wrists.

    My goal weight is 140, its the highest end of normal BMI. I'll see what I think when I get there, but someone at my height 5'2 could be 115 and normal weight, so I know my goal is high. But I honestly can't imagine how I'd look at 115.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    the wrist thing doesnt really make sense because it doesnt take finger length in account.

    Heh, this is what I was thinking. I've always had pretty narrow wrists (I think, I've worn smaller sizes in watches and such) even when overweight, but the overlapping finger thing seems more related to the fact that I have long skinny fingers. I also have a difference (probably noticeable only to me, but still) between my left and right sides, which has to be related to muscle and my right arm being dominant and stronger.

    So while I think for other reasons that I am average to small framed, I don't think the wrist test works.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    BMI works for just about everyone, with some rare exceptions, like Olympic weight lifters!

    BMI works for "some", but doesn't work for most people.....especially if you are of a Muscular Frame or Big Boned.
    By definition, BMI is applicable to most people. It's based on norms and averages.

    Seems to work for women more than men, too, which would make sense given muscle development.

    That said, if one is concerned that it doesn't fit them, body fat is better measure for an individual.

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