BMI says not fat but I am....

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JeremiahStone
JeremiahStone Posts: 682 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok so I'm 18, 6.1ft, and as of now weigh around 165. According to my BMI I'm smack dab in the middle of "normal" but when I look at myself in the mirror I have a lot of excess fat around my abdomen and chest. What's weird though is my arms, legs, even my face don't have much fat at all. It all basically just collects around my torso.. Im really confused and frustrated right now on what I should focus on....

Replies

  • driventotheend
    driventotheend Posts: 20
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    That is not a high weight for your height as a male. I think you'd probably do best not to try to restrict your calories but focus on exercise, in particular a full-body, well-rounded strength training program. As you build muscle the small areas of fat on your body will probably melt away.
  • jesienia
    jesienia Posts: 294
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    That's not bad for your height. A friend of mine is around the same and he is no where near fat. I would focus on exercising and strength training instead of trying to lose weight.
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,554 Member
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    Yup, time to build muscle strength and tone, but not worry about losing weight.
  • kochany
    kochany Posts: 32
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    I would say hit the gym and pump some iron, and you should be fine,

    Figure out what you want with your body and do it.

    If you never weight lifted , you should start with machines first and than free weights
  • JeremiahStone
    JeremiahStone Posts: 682 Member
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    I would say hit the gym and pump some iron, and you should be fine,

    Figure out what you want with your body and do it.

    If you never weight lifted , you should start with machines first and than free weights
    I use free weights at least three times a week. Never reall got into using machines tho.
  • SeanC86
    SeanC86 Posts: 88
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    Are you using the BMI calculator on this site?
  • JeremiahStone
    JeremiahStone Posts: 682 Member
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    Are you using the BMI calculator on this site?
    Yes, it puts me up at 21.5, right in the middle of the "healthy" zone.
  • SeanC86
    SeanC86 Posts: 88
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    Okay. The one here is severely flawed. All it takes into account is your height/weight. There's a few more steps you can take to check it out and see where you're at. You'll need a tape measure to measure your stomach and neck. Try this site:

    http://550cord.com/products/info.asp?ProductID=7&product=Army-Fitness-Calculator

    On the right, there's a spot that says Body Fat. Input the measurements there and see what it comes up with. It should hopefully give you a little better idea of where you're at. It's not perfect, but that's what we use in the army.
  • i_love_vinegar
    i_love_vinegar Posts: 2,092 Member
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    Okay. The one here is severely flawed. All it takes into account is your height/weight. There's a few more steps you can take to check it out and see where you're at. You'll need a tape measure to measure your stomach and neck. Try this site:

    http://550cord.com/products/info.asp?ProductID=7&product=Army-Fitness-Calculator

    On the right, there's a spot that says Body Fat. Input the measurements there and see what it comes up with. It should hopefully give you a little better idea of where you're at. It's not perfect, but that's what we use in the army.

    Thank you so much!!! I have the same issue as the OP, but for my thighs and arms :D
    update: Doesn't state my bmi though ^.^
  • JeremiahStone
    JeremiahStone Posts: 682 Member
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    Okay. The one here is severely flawed. All it takes into account is your height/weight. There's a few more steps you can take to check it out and see where you're at. You'll need a tape measure to measure your stomach and neck. Try this site:

    http://550cord.com/products/info.asp?ProductID=7&product=Army-Fitness-Calculator

    On the right, there's a spot that says Body Fat. Input the measurements there and see what it comes up with. It should hopefully give you a little better idea of where you're at. It's not perfect, but that's what we use in the army.
    Awesome, thank you! I'll check it out.
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
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    I don't like BMI and personally don't believe it to be a good indicator of anything since bodybuilders come out as obese and skinny fat people come out as normal.

    I agree that you should find a decent way to measure body fat and go from there. If you want to lose body fat, I would still eat at a calorie deficit, just not a huge one (definitely not like 1 pound of weight per week). Weight training would probably be your best bet with some cardio since you don't need to lose "weight."
  • ChantalGG
    ChantalGG Posts: 2,404 Member
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    you are not fat you are out of shape, so shape up, eat better and exercise.
  • kochany
    kochany Posts: 32
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    I would say hit the gym and pump some iron, and you should be fine,

    Figure out what you want with your body and do it.

    If you never weight lifted , you should start with machines first and than free weights
    I use free weights at least three times a week. Never reall got into using machines tho.

    Machines are for starters if u never hit the gym.

    So you say you go to the gym but do you know what you are doing. I see it every day ppl come and do some type of work out but its just waste of time. They dont do it right way.

    Do you have a program you fallow or just do what comes to mind?
  • singfree
    singfree Posts: 1,591 Member
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    You are confusing BMI with body fat. One has nothing to do with the other. The BMI only considers height and weight. So, if you are a football player with 5% body fat, you would probably be in the obese range.
  • hedwardsb
    hedwardsb Posts: 201 Member
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    I just bookmarked the Army Fitness Calculator. Very handy. Thanks!

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