BMI worry

lemony

Member
Hi everyone,
I've been calorie counting for a while but i don't own scales, so i can only weigh myself every month or more. I have been losing the weight safely and slowly. A few months ago when i weighed myself at 9.6 stone i thought a good goal for me would be 9.2 stone. well today i weighed and i am 9.2, but i feel like i want to lose more weight - i feel like i'm still a few months off. My problem is that if i lose a few more lbs, my BMI will be pretty much at underweight.

This is upsetting for me because I do not want to be stick thin. I am still a size 12 and my bmi is about 20.7. I'd just like reassurance that BMI isn't the ultimate factor in weight loss, because at a size 12 i can't see how i am almost underweight.

Any advice would be wonderful because i'm quite upset about it all right now.
Thanks
 
I think BMI is intended as a general guide, in both directions. Afterall we are all different. As you say at a size 12 you can't be classed as unhealthy and too skinny, so I wouldn't worry too much if I was you. Get to a weight you are comfortable with and that is healthy for you. As long as you don't look underweight, and say if you got to a healthy size 10 I can't see the problem with it.

My hubby is on the other end of the scale, his bmi is just in the overweight range, but he doesn't have a lot of fat on him, he's healthy, fit and works very hard, so carries quite a bit of muscle. if he lost weight and got into the normal range he would just look too thin. So I really do believe BMI is a guide, not gospel!
 
My opinion.

The BMI thing isn't the ultimate guide, especially if you are a body builder, or do a lot of sport that had gradually built up muscle. Which is why there's such a big range for it.

Those of a smaller build will probably need to be on the lower end of 'healthy', and those of a bigger build would be better off at the higher end.

I'm also led to believe that the very low BMI but still healthy range is more for people not to panic if they are naturally that slim, rather than a guide for people to aim for by dieting.

I know from personal experience that I am not the best judge when it comes to deciding what my perfect weight should be. I will see fat anywhere. I think many dieters are like this.

I have needed people who I can really trust to say "lose a bit more" and "that's about right now".

After all, people say that they want to look slim for themselves, but actually, most people want others to see them looking slim ;) I very much doubt that they would be concerned with the odd pound or two extra if they lived alone on a desert island.

So no point in worrying about that odd 1/2" of flesh if nobody else can see it :D
 
Thanks for both of your replies. I just never thought my BMI would be so low! I probably sound like someone with absolutely no muscle, but i do walk about 6 miles 3 times a week (on top of general 20 minute here-and-there walking) and also go horse-riding, but it is worrying because i now feel that my body is full of fat, rather than fat and muscle. Also i'm beginning to wonder if the scales were faulty - they're electric and they're not mine, and i'm not sure when the batteries were last changed, which i'm sure can change the result a fair amount.

Thanks for your support, i suppose the numbers don't matter so long as we're healthily happy with our weight, right?
 
hmm, i wouldn't diet, just up your exercise, tone up what you have and you'll find everything gets pulled in. try riding more or an hour of schooling rather than hacking ;)
 
Hi lemony - same dilemma for me. And I don't own scales, either. And I love all things lemony. You're talking my language! I think Stirky nailed it, really. It's all about how comfortable you feel. Don't let an arbitrary figure dictate what you feel is best for you. I got to where I thought I needed to be, but I could still clutch handfuls of blubber on my hips and I had the good old muffin top going on over my jeans, so I knew I needed another couple of months. Like you, I've no intention of being stick thin, but it just seems that certain body types aren't best suited to categorisation by BMI.

I think a size 10 is perfectly healthy and I wouldn't be concerned about aiming for it, but the most important thing is how you feel, physically and mentally. If you're happier at 114lbs, then that's the main thing.

Hope you make your goal soon! :)
 
personally i dont care about bmi at all. my bmi says im overweight, but when people see me they are suprised when i start talking about me being overweight.

but i used to have a flat stomach, with pretty much visible pacs as well. but now i can feel flab around parts of ma body which i need to loose lol.

but yeah bmi is not the best guide. a fit body is a flat stomach with a low body fat percentage (the body needs some fat for essential processes i think).

if you want to understand the drawbacks of bmi, you can investigate this example. someone in my height can be 14 stone with alot of fat and they would be classed as overweight with bmi. but another person my height can be 14 stone, who is a body builder, and has loads of muscle mass and very little fat - bmi will say this person is overweight, is he really overweight? or does he have loads of lean muscle mass (muscle weighs more than fat also).

so my advise to you is check your body out. if theres a collection of fat, then id say you need to work out. looking at the figures youve given, i doubt that very much lol.
 
Bear in mind that you're 5'6" too! Size 12 sounds perfect to me! Size 10 sounds a bit too skinny.
 
Thanks everyone, i thought i'd be shot down with this thread. Patchninja, i am aiming for a size 10, i am at my ideal weight everywhere except my stomach - i am an apple shape, and this is the only thing stopping my size 10 goal! A couple more inches, that's all. I am pretty sure those scales were faulty anyway, but as some of you mention, weight isn't everything.
 
Try not to get too hung up on clothes sizes as well, I've got a VERY slim friend who is about your height and probably weighs a bit less, there's not a pick of fat on her and she practically disappears when she turns sideways, but because of her body frame (broad shoulders) she wears a size 12, same as overweight me...who still needed a size 10 or 12 at 8 stone with a 23 in waist, to accomodate my boobs and bum!
 
BMI really confuses me..... I'm a size 16 but apparently im morbidly obese and my boyfriend is 6'2" and quite slim and he is obese.... BMI doesnt take muscle mass into account and to be honest I wouldn't even take BMI into account when talking about weight loss.... go by how you look/feel, if you wanna lose more weight in order to feel better then go ahead, just dont go overboard haha!
 
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