BMI

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africanmasq
africanmasq Posts: 53
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
Ok, I hope this is the right place to ask. When I'm at a weight I feel good with, which is 130 lbs (10 pounds lighter than I am right now) I am underweight according to my BMI. At the moment at 140, I am scraping the bottom of the healthy BMI range. So I guess my question is, is my problem that I need less fat and more muscle mass at this weight, or is it fine to be a little bit under according to the official BMI ranges? I mean, I don't feel overweight exactly, but I feel flabby and squishy. So...yes. I hope that makes sense. Thanks guys!

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  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    how tall are you?

    BMI is a rough guide... if you are healthy at 130 then thers no problem with it, but you say you are squishy and flabby now, losing 10 more pounds wont help that much... you will still be squishy and flabby, just a bit smaller.
  • africanmasq
    africanmasq Posts: 53
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    I'm 5'11". The thing is, 140 is the weight I can stay at easily, while 130 takes work, so I don't know if that's an indication that 140 is actually a good weight for me...I do need to exercise a lot more, but I have to start slow due to injuries.

    Edit: Ok, I think for now I'll try for 135 and see how it goes with exercising more, etc. Maybe my issue is just that I'm not toned and have a bit of extra fat. I'll see how it goes.
  • myfitnesspale3
    myfitnesspale3 Posts: 276 Member
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    BMI is a guideline for groups of people and doesn't apply precisely well to athletes or individuals, but I felt it was useful to me.

    You have to pick some kind of goal but I think the weight number is just a milestone at which to re-evaluate your sense of well-being.

    I also feel flabby and squishy but that is a lack of muscle tone. Exercise and muscle-building will require more calories above sedentary maintenance, and probably weight gain above my original target. Squishy is good in some places anyway.

    Some body fat is essential to protect internal organs and buffer some energy reserve so I suggest don't fixate on the number.
  • ES110791
    ES110791 Posts: 43 Member
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    BMI is only a general guide but if you need to restrict your calories to maintain your weight, it is not a good weight for you. Your body should sit easily at your natural weight. Only a small percentage of people can easily maintain a BMI below 20, let alone 18.5.

    Doing strength training and getting some muscle definition will help with the way you actually look. That'll help you feel less flabby. I hated my body at BMI 18 and now at BMI 20.1 i'm starting to like myself, because i've actually bothered to do strength training and that's helped me lose 'flab'.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
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    I easily sit at 18.5 and at times below (or at 18). Every doctor I have ever had said that alone does not make me underweight and that I'm not underweight. I'm just genetically a small person. Bmi is based on averages.

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