OBESE? Me?

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JTHRONES
JTHRONES Posts: 75
in Motivation and Support
Okay, I've been told that BMI doesn't calculate muscle but it still kinda hurts that when I type in my height and weight and get 'Obese'. I'll take overweight because I know that but OBESE? ME? Judging by my BMI, I shouldn't weight over 169 lbs, 11 lbs under my goal weight... WOW! I just can't wrap my mind around it! How do I get my body fat %?

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  • pinuplove
    pinuplove Posts: 12,874 Member
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    It hurts, true, but they are clinical terms. I started out obese, 10 pounds ago I finally graduated to merely overweight (woohoo :p) My goal weight is just 5 pounds less than the top of the normal BMI for my height. Don't let it worry you too much, just keep moving in the right direction and you'll get there :)
  • TheAncientMariner
    TheAncientMariner Posts: 444 Member
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    Look at me. I'm considered Obese according to my BMI. That should give you a good understanding of the type of faith you should place in that number.
  • elguapo911
    elguapo911 Posts: 33
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    That's science for you. You drink 2 beers a week and you are an alcoholic. You get mad and lose your cool and you have anger issues...
  • DeeJayTJ
    DeeJayTJ Posts: 355 Member
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    i let body fat % determine whats obese and not :D!
  • AKosky585
    AKosky585 Posts: 607 Member
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    I know what you mean...I am 5'4, 144 pounds... the high end of the healthy weight range for me. BMI is the higher end of healthy range... I am a size 8/10,...

    ... but by my body fat %, I am considered obese. (32%) Ever since finding this out, I have been depressed and having a lot of f*** it moments because although I want to lose, I always thought I was average and looked fine, but now I nit pick every little thing on my body because of that 'obese bf%' statistic.
  • JenniLisette
    JenniLisette Posts: 132
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    oh i know how you feel..i'm 160 (30 lbs from my so call perfect weight.) but i'm trying to get down to 145 so i'll still b overweight... we thinkin obese means people that are 300+ lbs..nope..not according to medical terms, anyone over 30+lbs is obese...yea so ima let my husband im sexy and not give a damn if the computer says im obese :flowerforyou:
  • Megdmcda
    Megdmcda Posts: 273 Member
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    my bmi tells me i'm obese too. u need to calculate ur body fat percentage. i am at 33% body fat which is just into healthy. go to this site it will tell u. healthyforms.com click on helpful tools and the body fat calculator. good luck.
  • Megdmcda
    Megdmcda Posts: 273 Member
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    and someone told me also that arnold swartzeneggar was considered obese going by his bmi too. and we all know that he is not. lol
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
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    How do I get my body fat %?

    If you belong to a gym, ask to see if they will measure your body fat % for you. Calipers are best but many use hand held machines these days. There are also some scales that measure body fat % - again not the best way to measure but as long as you're using the same technique every time, it's better than nothing. There are some formulas online where you can plug in your measurements but I'm not sure how accurate they are.
  • JTHRONES
    JTHRONES Posts: 75
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    How accurate are the handhelds? Does anyone know?
  • DeeJayTJ
    DeeJayTJ Posts: 355 Member
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    How accurate are the handhelds? Does anyone know?

    usually a few percent off, so i hear...

    BUT what you can do, even if its right or wrong... log that time you measure with it be sure its pretty consistent each time you try it (1,2 maybe 3% fluctuation could be expected)

    then few months later, check it again and hopefully it will be lower! even if its not as accurate as calipers you will know that ur body fat percentage has dropped so much percent!
  • megsmom2
    megsmom2 Posts: 2,362 Member
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    Its just a word, unless you're in a clinical situation...doesn't mean much in the real world. Use it as a motivator!
  • JTHRONES
    JTHRONES Posts: 75
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    I own one but I didn't want to use it if it was horribly inaccurate, didn't need any false hope/depression. Thanks everyone!
  • KikiD22
    KikiD22 Posts: 114 Member
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    my bmi tells me i'm obese too. u need to calculate ur body fat percentage. i am at 33% body fat which is just into healthy. go to this site it will tell u. healthyforms.com click on helpful tools and the body fat calculator. good luck.

    Just as BMI is not an accurate measure of body comp, neither are these online body fat calculators. Obviously, most people do not have access to the more advanced methods of measuring body fat percentages, but the handheld monitors are your next best option for use at home/gym. As others have stated, they are still potentially off by a few percent but are still more accurate than plugging measurements into an online calculator.

    Just as an example, I tried the one posted above. Based on that, it says that I'm 25% body fat. I'm also 4 weeks out from a bodybuilding competition and know that I'm actually closer to 17%.
  • alfiona22
    alfiona22 Posts: 7
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    I was OBESE too lol and I lost 3 lbs now i'm under
  • AZKristi
    AZKristi Posts: 1,801 Member
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    BMI is not necessarily a good metric for tracking individual health. For measuring the wellness of populations in general, it can be helpful because on average, it is pretty accurate. But, body builders and heavy athletes can be mislabeled as obsese, and new studies show that 30% of the people in the normal category would actually be classified as "overfat" if their body fat was measured.

    You can use the Body Adipocity Index to estimate percent body fat. It has not been verified in all ethnic groups, but it may give you an idea. When I had my BF measured with calipers, I came home and estimated it with BAI and the numbers were pretty close.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_adiposity_index
  • MsNewBooty83
    MsNewBooty83 Posts: 1,003 Member
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    How accurate are the handhelds? Does anyone know?
    depends on how many sites are tested. ive had a 3 site test and a 7 site. obviously the 7 site is way more acurrate. nothing like having someone pinch up ur fat in a giant pair of tweezers to get the self esteem flowin, but it gave me a better idea of where i needed to work. also shows me more specifically where i carry my weight (as if i didnt know, lol) in my belly BIG TIME....
    this is what my numbers looked like at the time, to give you a better idea of what you'll be gaining from this test.

    body weight-155lbs
    lean body mass-121.5lbs(78.4%)
    fat mass-33.5lbs(21.6%)
    BMR-1730

    BMR according to MFP-1464

    I'm now in thew optimal range, a little on the high side, but im getting there! lol. hope that helps a bit :) give you a clearer picture
  • ryleyroo
    ryleyroo Posts: 5
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    I'm 5'2", weigh 130 and they say I'm obese so I wouldn't worry about it........seems to me that the new indexes are a bit extreme. I know that I should only weigh about 110 but obese at 130?? That's a bit much.

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