Silly Question, But Need Input. The weight I feel 'ideal'/best at is not what BMI says is 'ideal'

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  • shabaity
    shabaity Posts: 792 Member
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    My doc says for me personally bmi is a joke but I'm very well endowed and broad shouldered enough to pull off the shoulder pad trend without shoulder pads. 130 is healthy on bmi but I look top heavy at 140 and kinda sick last time.
  • royston_ashby
    royston_ashby Posts: 71 Member
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    BMI isn't a direct indicator of how healthy or fit you are. I wouldn't worry about it. BMI is great in identifying how obese people are but when it comes down to people like yourself, I wouldn't be disheartened by that at all. the fact that it doesn't take muscle mass into consideration is key to anyone who involves themselves with resistance training and a fitness based lifestyle.
  • emma_vdv
    emma_vdv Posts: 34 Member
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    I never look at my BMI- because I'm very short it currently says I'm clinically obese at a BMI of 32 (I'm a UK size 12-14/US 8-10) so the doc says its nonsense; even at my skinniest (UK size 8 which i think is US 4) it showed me at overweight as i have broad hips, shoulders and a big chest at any weight.
    It's more important to feel healthy and make good choices- Body Mass Index measures exactly that; mass. It can't differentiate between fat, muscle or a really big hat so it's not worth spending too much time on. As you've said, you feel sexiest and best at a particular number; so long as it's a healthy number go with it!
  • yopeeps025
    yopeeps025 Posts: 8,680 Member
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    Well If I do my weight loss like I want to then I will be an overweight single digit body fat % percent.
    Like other had said do what makes you happy.
  • RaspberryTickleChicken
    RaspberryTickleChicken Posts: 629 Member
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    Not silly question at all.

    I think 'ideal' weight will be different for everyone. I recently came across this article which I found addresses your question far more eloquently than I can.

    Finding our happy weight I think may or may not be the same as what a stagnate one-dimensional scale dictates as an ideal for all. As others have mentioned, BMI is a great starting point for a goal - ie. my first goal was the weight smack in between the BMI range for my height. But it certainly shouldn't be gospel because it does not take in other variables which impacts what our personal healthy weight range should be.

    Best of luck to you!

    [url="Instead of 'ideal' weight, we should aim for 'happy' weight: https://www.yahoo.com/health/how-to-find-your-happy-weight-108652123452.html "]https://yahoo.com/health/how-to-find-your-happy-weight-108652123452.html [/url]
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
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    Need2Exerc1se wrote: »
    BMI is not an exact science, it's just a guideline. 25 is right on the edge of normal/overweight BMI. If you are healthy and fit and happy and your BMI is 25, there is no reason to lose more. Unless perhaps your insurance company requires it or something stupid like that. :\

    QFT
  • amandakev88
    amandakev88 Posts: 328 Member
    edited January 2015
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    ravenrainchild wrote: »
    This is not a silly question. You do what feels best for you. But you have to ask yourself "why" do you feel better at a certain weight? If the answer is truly because you think you look bomb in whatever you wear and you wake up feeling good, then you do you girl.
    shabaity wrote: »
    My doc says for me personally bmi is a joke but I'm very well endowed and broad shouldered enough to pull off the shoulder pad trend without shoulder pads. 130 is healthy on bmi but I look top heavy at 140 and kinda sick last time.

    these are both EXACTLY what im talking about. the answer truly is, because i look better in whatever i wear and i wake up feeling healthy at a weight that is still slightly over the 140 mark [which is 'healthy'. im top heavy and fairly muscular as well. i look sickly if i drop below 140. I feel like I *looked* best at about 160, whereas my fitness was best around 150 [strength and cardio-wise]. 160 is much smaller than my heaviest of 205.

    i appreciate the help, all.
  • amandakev88
    amandakev88 Posts: 328 Member
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    emma_vdv wrote: »
    Body Mass Index measures exactly that; mass. It can't differentiate between fat, muscle or a really big hat so it's not worth spending too much time on. As you've said, you feel sexiest and best at a particular number; so long as it's a healthy number go with it!

    a big hat. lol.. i love it!
  • SwitzEngine
    SwitzEngine Posts: 3,418 Member
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    Forget BMW. I have a BMI of 26 and Bf of 11%. This is not correct. You have to take multiple factors / measurements into account.
  • Dave2041
    Dave2041 Posts: 257 Member
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    BMI can be a red herring (i'm 6' 3" so it's not ideal for me) I find that body fat percentage is a much better measure. Once you know your body fat % you can work out your bodys weight at various %'s then shoot for the bf% you want.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
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    This is not silly at all. My goal weight falls at 26 BMI because I'm curvy, I like being curvy, and I love food. My mother looks stunning at that weight, and I take after her in shape. Achieving something close to the way she looks is my holy grail. She has been at this weight for as long as I can remember, looks amazing, and at almost 60 years old her blood panel is perfect.

    If being slightly overweight makes you happy and does not affect your health, you really shouldn't fixate on numbers.
  • Lebatsirk
    Lebatsirk Posts: 27 Member
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    I previously lost a lot of weight (5 stone) and got down to a BMI of 23 and was a small size 12 so I thought it must be just right cos that's what I was "told" I should be for my height. But when seeing pictures of myself at that size I looked gaunt, I wasn't eating well, I wasn't exercising, I didn't have a lot of energy, and I looked thin rather than attractive.

    So my goal weight this time (halfway there at the moment) is going to be on the very upper limit of BMI (24->25) because at that weight I'm a curvy/healthy/fit size 12/14 and feel good about myself. I want to lose weight, but I want to be fit and healthy rather than thin. I want to have the energy to enjoy active pursuits and look good in clothes rather than just knowing I can get into a smaller size.

    I say go for a weight that's healthy and sensible for you to maintain and where you like what you see and how you feel because you're more likely to be able to maintain that.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    Not a silly question actually. Remember, it's just a guideline.
  • ukaryote
    ukaryote Posts: 874 Member
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    TimothyFish wrote: »
    BMI was never intended to tell you what your ideal weight is. BMI is a screening tool that is intended to identify people who are at an increased risk of health problems.
    Oh. That makes sense. Thank you.
    Somewhere, I lost the URL, is a photo collection of athletes with very different body types. Their BMI values are all over the map. All of them are considered extremely healthy.

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