Dr. Oz made an interesting point

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soarinup
soarinup Posts: 20
in Fitness and Exercise
I saw him counseling someone on their measurements; waist, hips etc. He pointed out that your waist should be half your height, I never knew that! I am 5' 7.5", so by the way he calculated it, [dropping the half inch] my waist should be 33.5"
Have you heard of that?

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  • SpaceMarkus
    SpaceMarkus Posts: 651
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    Haven't heard of that before. That's pretty interesting!

    That means my waist should be 30". Almost there!
  • blowtotheskull
    blowtotheskull Posts: 28
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    Really?! I'm 5'10", which means that my waist should be 35". That's *way* too big. My waist is 30".
  • WolffEarl
    WolffEarl Posts: 379 Member
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    Never heard of that, but for my height (just a shade over 6') I should be at 36''. Getting closer, although some "waist" to go still:). Not sure if this is for men and women?
  • ItsTerriC
    ItsTerriC Posts: 436 Member
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    I've never heard that. I assume that is for health reasons. Otherwise, the "ideal" shape for women 36 - 24 - 36 would only apply to women 4' tall. I like it though, it means I'm only 2 inches away from where I need to be.
  • betzyrama
    betzyrama Posts: 26 Member
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    It's probably "at most" half your height. But it's certainly a good goal if you're above that! :)
  • lupecarz
    lupecarz Posts: 12 Member
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    Wow! That's enlighting!:yawn:
  • chizzledfrmstone
    chizzledfrmstone Posts: 58
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    6 feet * 12 = 72 inches
    72 / 2 = 36 Inches?

    I've never in my life had a 36 inch waist and never hope to. I'm around 31-32.
  • thirtyby40
    thirtyby40 Posts: 702 Member
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    It is not actually that he says it should be half your height, it is NO LARGER. There has always been a guideline that people with a waist over 36' for women (not sure for men) are at serious risk of heart attack, they have changed that to say anyone with a waist over half of their body height because dividing into categories of men and women is way too broad.
  • ShaeDetermined
    ShaeDetermined Posts: 1,525 Member
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    Cool fact, though it does sound more for men than women.

    At 5'3" I don't think 31.5 makes sense, I don't think it's healthy for me to be up there.
    Maybe for women "half your height and subtract 3 to 5"? :wink:
  • Oddyss3y
    Oddyss3y Posts: 4
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    Really?! I'm 5'10", which means that my waist should be 35". That's *way* too big. My waist is 30".
    6 feet * 12 = 72 inches
    72 / 2 = 36 Inches?

    I've never in my life had a 36 inch waist and never hope to. I'm around 31-32.

    I think that's for women only... I'm not sure what the calculations are for men.... remember, our bodies are different!

    Momto4wifeto1 made a good point, Dr Oz said NO LARGER than half your height... so smaller is better, so long as it's not too small... you can go too far the opposite way too, don't forget. There's a difference between "skinny" and "skin & bones"
  • BigBoneSista
    BigBoneSista Posts: 2,389 Member
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    Yeah I've heard that. If your waist is larger than half your height then it means you are more likely to have a substantial amount of stomach fat which can lead to a lot of other health issues. So the rule of thumb is it should be half or less.
  • BigBoneSista
    BigBoneSista Posts: 2,389 Member
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    Really?! I'm 5'10", which means that my waist should be 35". That's *way* too big. My waist is 30".
    6 feet * 12 = 72 inches
    72 / 2 = 36 Inches?

    I've never in my life had a 36 inch waist and never hope to. I'm around 31-32.

    I think that's for women only... I'm not sure what the calculations are for men.... remember, our bodies are different!

    Nope its for everyone. Its just used as a guide for health issues. Not vanity.
  • JennLifts
    JennLifts Posts: 1,913 Member
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    Really?! I'm 5'10", which means that my waist should be 35". That's *way* too big. My waist is 30".

    agree. That would make mine 32, and i'm 26. maybe thats a maximum circumference
  • dweaddy2
    dweaddy2 Posts: 10 Member
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    This website will caculate your WtH ratio, BMI, and "ideal" weight and waist measurement:

    http://home.fuse.net/clymer/bmi/

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