How to figure optimum weight
jswigart
Posts: 167 Member
I have recently lost 75 pounds by diet and cardio. I want to figure out my optimum weight. I have used many of the calculators that are available on the Internet but they all say that I am very over weight. I have a little bit of fat if I pinch my skin at the belly, but over all am not fat. My wife says I've gotten too skinny.
Could it be muscle mass? Im not extremely muscular but have pretty good muscle tone. I have been weight training for a few weeks.
I am 5'6" 172 pounds and medium frame.
How do I calculate effectively? Or are the calculators right and I'm still over weight?
Thanks. J
Could it be muscle mass? Im not extremely muscular but have pretty good muscle tone. I have been weight training for a few weeks.
I am 5'6" 172 pounds and medium frame.
How do I calculate effectively? Or are the calculators right and I'm still over weight?
Thanks. J
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Replies
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body fat % is a lot better for determining what you're looking for. different body types and muscle mass makes it hard to determine an "optimum weight". I like concentrating more on fitness goals and the mirror than what the scale says. find a way to measure body fat % online, get a measuring tape, and go by that.0
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Thanks for the advice. I need to get a mirror for the fitness room. J0
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5'7" male lift 3 times a week since last august currently 155 still losing. You are most likely not too skinny or muscly. You still probably have a fairly high body fat %. If you can pinch various places and still can get a 1/4 to 1/2 of thickness between fingers it's not ecess skin there is still fat there.
A lot of people that have been bigger for a while or are around bigger people just forget what normal looks like.
It's ultimately up to you where you stop but I doubt your looking down at a defined six pack like a muscled lean person.
I recomend taking a picture once a month and staying on the diet a few more months and you'll see the difference.0 -
Thanks0
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Every body is different, I have spent far to long trying to figure out my ideal weight. I'm 5'9" and about 170lbs give or take a lb or two. My wife also says that I am perfect and I shouldn't loose any more weight. I don't trust her opinion though, I tell her she is just remembering me as fat shawn and comparing me to that, I lost 110lbs last year. The only real way to know is to get a dxa scan and get your BF% checked, I might do that sometime...0
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I figure the BMI associated with lowest overall mortality (22.5-24.9) is a good place to start, and I'll see from there.0
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I agree that bf% and just liking what you see in the mirror are the better ways of determining where you want to be. My husband is 6'1' with not a large but a massive frame. The ideal weight charts say the upper weight limit for him is in the 190s but he looks ill under 220 lbs.0
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Unless you have a job doing heavy manual labor you probably don't have pretty good muscle tone after lifting for a few weeks after years of inactivity.
As others have said keep up the exercise. Look to get weight around the top level of normal bmi and reassess.
Congrats on progress so far.0 -
I agree that bf% and just liking what you see in the mirror are the better ways of determining where you want to be. My husband is 6'1' with not a large but a massive frame. The ideal weight charts say the upper weight limit for him is in the 190s but he looks ill under 220 lbs.
.... sure. I really don't like these "They look ill" "They are a skeleton!!" Are they really? Do they really look so thin they need to seek medical help while still technically overweight. (Granted 6'1" is taller but not that much, there is a different BMI calc that can be better for short/tall link at bottom) Generally I doubt it. What we are most likely seeing is the fact that most everyone around us is overweight +. We are not realizing what normal is. You are having trouble adjusting to your husbands new body.
Demonizing and telling normal people OMG I would/did look sick and disgusting at your weight is really rude to people. This kind of mentality keep people from pushing for real healthy weights.
Also frame side amounts to about nothing. You bones don't weigh that much. You might be a bit wider or have thicker wrists but it's almost negligible the difference it would make to end weight.
https://people.maths.ox.ac.uk/trefethen/bmi_calc.html0 -
I agree that bf% and just liking what you see in the mirror are the better ways of determining where you want to be. My husband is 6'1' with not a large but a massive frame. The ideal weight charts say the upper weight limit for him is in the 190s but he looks ill under 220 lbs.
.... sure. I really don't like these "They look ill" "They are a skeleton!!" Are they really? Do they really look so thin they need to seek medical help while still technically overweight. (Granted 6'1" is taller but not that much, there is a different BMI calc that can be better for short/tall link at bottom) Generally I doubt it. What we are most likely seeing is the fact that most everyone around us is overweight +. We are not realizing what normal is. You are having trouble adjusting to your husbands new body.
Demonizing and telling normal people OMG I would/did look sick and disgusting at your weight is really rude to people. This kind of mentality keep people from pushing for real healthy weights.
https://people.maths.ox.ac.uk/trefethen/bmi_calc.html
Uh, the "looking ill" is his and his doctor's assessment and frankly he does look underweight below 220. It's not his height, it's his frame that makes the difference. I have not and would not ever tell some one they look ill. You sure have read a lot into my post that isn't there. My husband doesn't have a new body. He's always teetered around 220-225 since we've been together starting in our teens. He's fit with a low body fat and I am clear as to what normal is. The whole point is that there are folks that fall outside the general bmi estimates for a variety of reasons.0 -
I agree that bf% and just liking what you see in the mirror are the better ways of determining where you want to be. My husband is 6'1' with not a large but a massive frame. The ideal weight charts say the upper weight limit for him is in the 190s but he looks ill under 220 lbs.
.... sure. I really don't like these "They look ill" "They are a skeleton!!" Are they really? Do they really look so thin they need to seek medical help while still technically overweight. (Granted 6'1" is taller but not that much, there is a different BMI calc that can be better for short/tall link at bottom) Generally I doubt it. What we are most likely seeing is the fact that most everyone around us is overweight +. We are not realizing what normal is. You are having trouble adjusting to your husbands new body.
Demonizing and telling normal people OMG I would/did look sick and disgusting at your weight is really rude to people. This kind of mentality keep people from pushing for real healthy weights.
Yeah this really bugs me too. It's a whole other kind of body dysmorphia.0 -
I don't really go by the scale so much as my BF% and my composition when I look in the mirror. About as low as I can really go is 175 Lbs or so and that puts me at very lean (10ish%) and 1 Lb over the high end of a healthy BMI for me...so I don't really put a whole lot of stock into some arbitrary number on the scale.0
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I agree that bf% and just liking what you see in the mirror are the better ways of determining where you want to be. My husband is 6'1' with not a large but a massive frame. The ideal weight charts say the upper weight limit for him is in the 190s but he looks ill under 220 lbs.
.... sure. I really don't like these "They look ill" "They are a skeleton!!" Are they really? Do they really look so thin they need to seek medical help while still technically overweight. (Granted 6'1" is taller but not that much, there is a different BMI calc that can be better for short/tall link at bottom) Generally I doubt it. What we are most likely seeing is the fact that most everyone around us is overweight +. We are not realizing what normal is. You are having trouble adjusting to your husbands new body.
Demonizing and telling normal people OMG I would/did look sick and disgusting at your weight is really rude to people. This kind of mentality keep people from pushing for real healthy weights.
https://people.maths.ox.ac.uk/trefethen/bmi_calc.html
Uh, the "looking ill" is his and his doctor's assessment and frankly he does look underweight below 220. It's not his height, it's his frame that makes the difference. I have not and would not ever tell some one they look ill. You sure have read a lot into my post that isn't there. My husband doesn't have a new body. He's always teetered around 220-225 since we've been together starting in our teens. He's fit with a low body fat and I am clear as to what normal is. The whole point is that there are folks that fall outside the general bmi estimates for a variety of reasons.
While I agree with the poster above that it is a type of body dysmorphia as most folks losing are told they're getting too skinny even with 50 lbs to go, that doesn't change the fact that some folks do become legitimately underweight for their height/frame.0 -
I agree that bf% and just liking what you see in the mirror are the better ways of determining where you want to be. My husband is 6'1' with not a large but a massive frame. The ideal weight charts say the upper weight limit for him is in the 190s but he looks ill under 220 lbs.
.... sure. I really don't like these "They look ill" "They are a skeleton!!" Are they really? Do they really look so thin they need to seek medical help while still technically overweight. (Granted 6'1" is taller but not that much, there is a different BMI calc that can be better for short/tall link at bottom) Generally I doubt it. What we are most likely seeing is the fact that most everyone around us is overweight +. We are not realizing what normal is. You are having trouble adjusting to your husbands new body.
Demonizing and telling normal people OMG I would/did look sick and disgusting at your weight is really rude to people. This kind of mentality keep people from pushing for real healthy weights.
https://people.maths.ox.ac.uk/trefethen/bmi_calc.html
Uh, the "looking ill" is his and his doctor's assessment and frankly he does look underweight below 220. It's not his height, it's his frame that makes the difference. I have not and would not ever tell some one they look ill. You sure have read a lot into my post that isn't there. My husband doesn't have a new body. He's always teetered around 220-225 since we've been together starting in our teens. He's fit with a low body fat and I am clear as to what normal is. The whole point is that there are folks that fall outside the general bmi estimates for a variety of reasons.
Ok. But 220 to 225 is borderline obese. You can see why It's hard to believe a slightly wider or thicker skeleton would make him look sick. You say he is low body fat so he must look hulkish with all the muscle.0 -
Not hulk but he does have a lot of muscle and what his doctor and physical therapist called the biggest rib cage they've seen. So it's easy for it to show through even at a high weight.
Sorry to jack the thread OP. You'll know you're there when you see it.0 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »I don't really go by the scale so much as my BF% and my composition when I look in the mirror. About as low as I can really go is 175 Lbs or so and that puts me at very lean (10ish%) and 1 Lb over the high end of a healthy BMI for me...so I don't really put a whole lot of stock into some arbitrary number on the scale.
You are likely one of those few people who have a much higher then average LBM. The vast majority of the people don't have the dedication to get that way. Or I guess what I am saying is that for the vast majority of people I don't think the scale is an arbitrary number.0 -
This is why at some point, once you reach normal BMI range that BF% becomes a more useful measure. I'll bet under 220 with a much higher BF% and he likely wouldn't appear sickly.0
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Healthy BMI for me, other option is waist circumference is at least half your height..
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I would trust the BMI calculators online that say your're still overweight. When your wife says that you're not fat, that's a subjective statement. It's probably relative to where you were before, which is 75lbs heavier, so I can see why she thinks that. That's a great accomplishment of losing 75 lbs, but for you to get to a healthy BMI, you still need to lose some weight. Trust the online calculators. Good luck!0
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I just followed the BMI calculator until I was considered "healthy". That was at about 159 lbs, which was my goal weight when I first started at 230 lbs. I got to this point and realized that I still carried a pretty good amount of fat in my belly and chest area, so now I have been just focusing on body fat rather than a number. I am currently at 144 lbs and can definitely see the definition in my body and the fat slowly disappearing around the stubborn areas. If I had to guess, I would be pretty lean in about 15-20 more lbs or so (which is my goal), but who knows? The mirror is the only real indication, I suppose.0
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okay so here is the deal. I took all the advice I read here and decided to try the body fat % route.
I first tried calculating body fat with the measuring tape method and turned out to be 27%
Then I tried calculating body fat with calipers and the pinch method and it shows 18%
Just from what I've seen I believe the 18% is the most accurate, but why the discrepancy?
J0 -
Post a picture, with your height and weight you are probably closer to 27%. To be at 18%you would likely have needed to be lifting heavy for quite awhile . Calipers are really only accurate in the hands of an experienced person.okay so here is the deal. I took all the advice I read here and decided to try the body fat % route.
I first tried calculating body fat with the measuring tape method and turned out to be 27%
Then I tried calculating body fat with calipers and the pinch method and it shows 18%
Just from what I've seen I believe the 18% is the most accurate, but why the discrepancy?
J
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When I used the calipers, I measured liberally. Actual measurements gave me 13%. I measured again for more liberal and still by 18%.
When the poster above asked for a picture I assume he meant something with shorts and no shirt or maybe a tank top. Really can't tell anything from the above.
Given your BMI puts you in the middle of overweight, unless you have been at a very physically active job and/or been lifting much longer than the few weeks you mentioned in your first post, you probably don't have pretty good muscle tone. Not trying to be an a## or anything as you've done a great job with your weight loss, just trying to put things in a realistic perspective.
I would agree with @jeepinshawn, you're probably in the mid-20's
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Packerjohn wrote: »When I used the calipers, I measured liberally. Actual measurements gave me 13%. I measured again for more liberal and still by 18%.
When the poster above asked for a picture I assume he meant something with shorts and no shirt or maybe a tank top. Really can't tell anything from the above.
Given your BMI puts you in the middle of overweight, unless you have been at a very physically active job and/or been lifting much longer than the few weeks you mentioned in your first post, you probably don't have pretty good muscle tone. Not trying to be an a## or anything as you've done a great job with your weight loss, just trying to put things in a realistic perspective.
I would agree with @jeepinshawn, you're probably in the mid-20's
Yep got to get that shirt off and post a picture, I have been trying to figure out the same thing as the OP. There is a chart with people of various BF% posted and there pictures. Find that and it might give you some insight as to where you are at. @jswigart you have done a great job losing weight, so please don't take anything personal but you would have to have defined abs and muscle striations showing in other areas if you were truly in the 15% area.
I'm 5'9" and 170lbs, I have been working my butt off for months doing tabata and body weight exercises and I feel that I'm in the 18-20% BF range. The only for sure way to tell though is to go get a dxa scan or something done. Again, good job on the weight loss, having just lost 110lbs last year I know how hard you worked!0 -
@jswigart http://www.rapidweightlossresults.com/2014/03/20/what-should-my-body-fat-percentage-be/
also here is a similar thread I posted about myself asking or talking about the same thing as you : http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/comment/35378367#Comment_35378367 it was a good discussion, while I am not entirely convinced I should stop eating at a deficit I decided I'm going to go back to eating at maintenance until after my half marathon in the spring anyway.0 -
jeepinshawn wrote: »@jswigart http://www.rapidweightlossresults.com/2014/03/20/what-should-my-body-fat-percentage-be/
also here is a similar thread I posted about myself asking or talking about the same thing as you : http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/comment/35378367#Comment_35378367 it was a good discussion, while I am not entirely convinced I should stop eating at a deficit I decided I'm going to go back to eating at maintenance until after my half marathon in the spring anyway.
Wow, I'm wondering, did the loose skin tighten up? How long did it take. I have some loose skin but not that much.
J
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jeepinshawn wrote: »@jswigart http://www.rapidweightlossresults.com/2014/03/20/what-should-my-body-fat-percentage-be/
also here is a similar thread I posted about myself asking or talking about the same thing as you : http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/comment/35378367#Comment_35378367 it was a good discussion, while I am not entirely convinced I should stop eating at a deficit I decided I'm going to go back to eating at maintenance until after my half marathon in the spring anyway.
Wow, I'm wondering, did the loose skin tighten up? How long did it take. I have some loose skin but not that much.
J
The pictures are from the other day, the thread is recent, Idk what will happen with the loose skin. It is the result of being 110-120lbs over wight most of my life, so I doubt it will tighten up much.0
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