BMI. Crazy?

:laugh: That is very funny!

I used to freak out as I am classed over weight by my BMI , and i went to my doctor, natropath, a nutritionist and a personal trainer and they all said the same thing

take it with a grain of salt, it doesn't take into account muscle mass, bone weight, and cultural factors. I swam for much of my childhood and teen years and as a result i have good muscle tone and that beefs up my KGS (yes there is fat there too I am not in denial)

if in doubt ask your doctor.

I agree...BMI is a load of rubbish really!! It's fine as a guideline but doesn't take into account bone density, muscle mass...anything to do with your body type really. I don't know how it can "categorise" people so much, medical professionals should be ashamed to use such a basic tool!!

Haha - the BMI is pointless for ANYBODY that exercises (and those are the only people actually interested in it!). I'm a bodybuilder with a 'morbidly obese' BMI yet I have less fat then the average male.

Composition is the important thing - I know plenty of people that weigh less then me but are all much fatter, it just reinforces the fact that judging health by weight is pointless. Its no different from judging the speed of a car by what the seats are made of!

BMI is appropriate for a majority of the population with "average build", it has always been considered as not appropriate for athletes, body builders etc, for whom other more specific tests measure key indicators of health (fat/muscle levels).

For the general public (which realistically are most of those on here) BMI can be a good indicator of appropriate weight. The BMI range is very broad.

I once thought BMI did not make sense, but having got to the to of my normal range BMI I realize (through skin fold tests etc) that I had weight still to lose. At nearly my mid point I am about there, and I am not a slender framed person.

Best though if you do not believe BMI is to get to the weight you think you should be and get your skin folds check, to show where you do stand in relation to body fat. Many people are surprised by how much fat they are carrying, and that they are not as lean as they think they are.

mmm. Well as I am neither a bodybuilder nor an athlete, but someone who just wants a shape that isnt circular, all I can conclude is that i must be very dense.

Lol, not at all. 85% of the British public are classed as 'de-conditioned individuals' - i.e. they aren't fit/healthy enough to jog at a moderate pace for just 20 minutes - the BMI is generally relevant to these people (generally being the key word - the average of 55.3 million is going to cover a very wide spread). If you do any form of exercise which results in you being 'conditioned' then the BMI is no longer an accurate measurement. Any form of regular exercise will alter the muscle:fat ratio of the body - meaning you are no longer 'average'. You don't need to be an athlete or a bodybuilder, any suitable, regular, structured exercise will place you in the 15% of the population that are conditioned.

At a tangent, an interesting fact is that out of the 15% of the UK population that do complete regular, structured exercise - only 4% are actually following sensible programs that are relevant for their body genetics!

Blimey. You sound a useful bloke to know. I exercise now 4-5 times a week, usually a 5k row, 5k on the static bike and about 50 pathetic sit ups. On the basis that that covers arms, legs, and the middle bit. Not very scientific I know. I also power walk and ride my horse occasionally. Does this qualify as being conditioned?? Theres no way at the moment I would jog for 20 mins, the right knee wont take it, hence the low impact stuff.

Without conducting actual testing I would be pretty confident that you are classed as conditioned. Exercise-wise I would highly recommend doing some resistance training, you'll lose body fat a lot quicker / reshape your physique a lot quicker that way. Muscle is metabolically active (burns calories at rest) so essentially the more you have, the more calories you burn without having to do much else (not to mention the numerous other benefits of increased muscle mass). For example, a commonly used figure is that 1lb of muscle will burn around 20 additional calories per day just by being there (not even being used). Add an extra 5lb of muscle to your frame (would take around 5-10 weeks training 3 times a week) and thats an extra 100 calories per day you're burning without having to exercise - or nearly 1lb of fat per month! Not to mention that 1 hour of lifting weights has been proven to keep your metabolism in a stimulated state for around 24 hours AFTER you finish compared to cardio which returns to normal within a few hours. By all means keep the cardio up, its very important, but add a whole body weight routine 3 times a week and watch your results increase dramatically! )

If you haven't done much with weights before then its best to keep to the basics. Try something simplified to start with like:

Leg Press - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
Leg Curl machine - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
Chest Press Machine - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
Lat Pull Down machine - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
Shoulder Press machine - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
Barbell Bicep Curls - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
Triceps Push Down (cable machine) - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
Crunches - 3 sets of 10-15 reps (add weight if you can do more)

Google the machine names for pictures as they might be called different things depending on manufacturer!

Points to consider:
- Stick to 2 sets initially, as you progress increase to 3
- Use a rep speed of 2 seconds up, 2 seconds down
- Have a rest of 30-60 seconds between sets (i.e. do 10 reps, rest for 30-60 secs, and then repeat)
- Use a weight that's heavy enough that when you get to 8 reps on your second set you have trouble doing it (but keep good technique)
- Each time you train either add 1 extra rep to each set until you reach 10 reps and then increase your weight by enough that you can only get 8 again (so start with 2 sets of 8, next session do 2 sets of 9, then 2 sets of 10, then increase the weight and go back to 8 again. This is called progressive loading and is required to develop musculature!)
- Make sure you have a day off in between training, and only train 3 times a week to start with (mon/wed/fri for example)
- On weight days Its better to warm up, do weights and then do cardio otherwise you'll tire yourself on the cardio and suffer on the weights
- Good form/technique is imperative! There are a LOT of guys at the gym that 'ego lift' - i.e. they use dangerous technique to lift weights that are far too heavy for them. Focus on squeezing the muscles on each rep rather then on the number on the weights.

Hopefully that should help get you started! There's masses of information on the internet that you can learn from, just remember the average person should never train weights more then 3 times a week (max 1 hour per session) - anything more then that is detrimental to muscle growth.

You may also want to push your protein uptake up a little bit to assist in recovery / growth. I aim for 1-1.5g per 1lb of body weight which is quite high, but 0.8g-1g per 1lb should be fine )

BMI was never intended to be an individual measure. It was designed as a macro tool, used to measure large communities for averages, not individuals, and as such, please don't use it as some kind of a tool to judge your health.

You can use it in a very very general sense, if you have no other measurements by which to go. About 150 lbs would be the low end of a healthy weight for a male who is 6'2", just as about 190 lbs would be about the high end. Please note, this is for normal, non-athletic builds. Since BMI doesn't take into account muscle mass, it's not intended for those who have an inordinately high amount of muscle mass. the more muscle mass you have, the higher you can push the upper limits.

i so enjoy the British sense of humor!