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Original poster

BMI. I don't get it.

53 replies

AudaCityLimits · 21/05/2020 14:20

OK so I've not been well since lockdown. Got an appt with the doctor today, several tests etc. She weighed me and I was 55kg. I'm 5"11. Which makes me underweight according to BMI- it works out 16.9.
I'm a size 12/14.
I am in shock. I have an ED but am well at the moment, eating meals and not obsessing about food. But I thought that I'd be clued up on weight/height/bmi because I have obsessed about it before. I don't have scales in my home because of the aforementioned ED, but afaik I have never been so light before. And yet, my clothes aren't hanging off me...
Size 14 and underweight? Anyone had this before?

OP posts:
BarbaraofSeville · 21/05/2020 14:32

Sorry that you're unwell, but it's very unlikely that you're a size 14, more like 6/8 I would have thought.

I'm a size 14 and I'm shorter than you and heavier by over 20 kilos, you must be very slim to be 55 kilos at 5'11".

borntohula · 21/05/2020 14:33

So, not even 9st at 5ft 11 and you're a size 12/14? I'm baffled too. Can only put it down to you being taller than average?

Fifthtimelucky · 21/05/2020 14:33

55kg is 8'9 stone so I'd definitely say that was underweight for someone of 5'11. My daughter is the same weight and is at the bottom end of the normal BMI range. But she is 5'7.

I assume your clothes need to be size 12/14 because of your height. A very slim 5'11 will be wider than an equally slim 5'7 and even wider than an equally slim 5'2.

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angelalaland · 21/05/2020 14:35

It’s just a ridiculous scale that shouldn’t be used to measure health. I’m a size 12, 5’4 and weigh 12.5 stone. I’m always being told I’m ‘obese - but don’t look it’ by drs!!

BarbaraofSeville · 21/05/2020 14:38

A very slim 5'11 will be wider than an equally slim 5'7 and even wider than an equally slim 5'2

That is true, but they will also be heavier. I know a lot of people think that slim women weigh 8 or 9 stone, but very tall slim women weigh quite a bit more than that, easily being 11/12 stone and still size 10/12.

The OP is saying that she is filling size 14 clothes, while still being very much lighter than would be expected.

GreyishDays · 21/05/2020 14:40

Were her scales right?!

Do you have non stretchy clothes? I’m wondering if your clothes would actually hang off you.
What did the dr say? Did they suggest it was of concern?
What did you think you weigh, roughly? I’m wondering if you’ve noticed any difference in your body to what you used to weigh.

fallfallfall · 21/05/2020 14:42

BMI is more accurate than clothes sizing. Please trust your doctor.

devildeepbluesea · 21/05/2020 14:43

I'm a 12/14, 5'3", weigh about 12st. I know I need to lose a couple of stone (in hand) but even at 10st I'd be finding size 10 clothes roomy.

Are you filling these clothes of yours? That sounds incredibly light for someone who's almost 6'

Original poster
AudaCityLimits · 21/05/2020 14:44

it's very unlikely that you're a size 14, more like 6/8 I would have thought
I would have thought so too but honestly- I'm in size 14 jeans today! Also tried on a few outfits the other day before a Zoom meeting because I'm pathetic and they were all 12/14.
Because of the ED, I find it very difficult to judge what is healthy for me weight and size wise, but this has really stumped me.

OP posts:
damnthatanxiety · 21/05/2020 14:44

OP you may be wearing size 14 but I bet you are not a size 14. At 55kg and 5'3 I am a size 8, slim with toned muscles and have some albeit small curves. At your height and the same weight, you will be a rake. Please don't deluded yourself.

wobblemob · 21/05/2020 14:47

Tbh I think if your not average height BMI can get a bit skewed.

I used to be a shit model (was short at 5ft 9), some of the taller girls did have size 12 hips due to their bone structure. However your very "light" for your height. When I had a low bmi, I was really skinny.

wobblemob · 21/05/2020 14:48

what size shoe are you?

Voxx · 21/05/2020 14:49

For the average person (I.e, not a bodybuilder) BMI is one of the most accurate ways we have to measure how much a person should weigh. You are underweight, have an eating disorder and need help.

You may be wearing a size 14 but I bet you’re not actually anywhere near that size. I have a pair of size 16 joggers in my wardrobe that I wore when I was pregnant. I still wear then occasionally because they’re comfy. Doesn’t mean I’m a size 16 though.

Original poster
AudaCityLimits · 21/05/2020 14:50

What did the dr say? Did they suggest it was of concern?
What did you think you weigh, roughly?
She was a locum and unaware, I think, of my ED. I mentioned that I thought I may have lost some weight, so she weighed me. She just went, ah yes you have lost weight. Nothing more.
I thought I weighed about ten and a half stone, maybe a bit more. I have used BMI before as a guide to knowing what I should weigh, and I seem to recall that ten and a half is quite sensible.

OP posts:
Trandafire · 21/05/2020 14:52

This week I worked out my BMI and it's in the obese category, which has given me the kick up the arse I need to do something about my weight. The first thing I thought was 'that can't be right, I'm still wearing a size 12, I can't be obese'. But I am. I weigh 78.9kg and measure 157cm. Size 12 trousers are snug but they do up and I can wear them out and about (so not just trying them on and saying they fit and taking them off again). Seems crazy that someone 20 kilos lighter than me wears the same size or bigger, even with the big difference in height Shock

Original poster
AudaCityLimits · 21/05/2020 14:53

I absolutely accept that my eating has been disordered and that I really have no clue of what is normal or not weight/size wise. In recent years, I've thrown out the scales and thought that as long as I don't go get too small or too big for my vast collection of jeans, I'm OK. Which is why this is doing my head in.

OP posts:
wobblemob · 21/05/2020 14:54

@AudaCityLimits what shoe size are you?

Original poster
AudaCityLimits · 21/05/2020 14:54

The the PP that asked, I wear a size 8 shoe and I am big-boned- wide hips, big hands etc.

OP posts:
Spam88 · 21/05/2020 14:55

That's lighter than I've ever been in my adult life and I'm 7 inches shorter than you. I would assume you're not actually filling size 14 clothes (or they're from H&M).

Waxonwaxoff0 · 21/05/2020 14:55

I weigh 11 stone 7, BMI 26.3 and I'm just under 5'5. I'm a size 12! I'm shocked that you're a size 12.

fluttershyby · 21/05/2020 14:56

Do you like your clothes fitting loose? I'm your height and 71kg and a size 14. A while ago I was very poorly (not ED) and went down to 52kg and I was able to pull down size 10 jeans without undoing them. I was just a stick with no curves.

wobblemob · 21/05/2020 14:56

Ok so you do have a larger frame, however you are still at pretty low weight

BarbaraofSeville · 21/05/2020 14:57

Have you managed to dig up a pair of the fabled pre-vanity sizing jeans that people always mention when anyone talks about womens clothes sizing and how a size 12 isn't overweight or whatever?

Sorry to be flippant, I understand how serious your illness is, but this is just very baffling.

RhymesWithOrange · 21/05/2020 14:57

Clothes sizes are literally just numbers plucked out of the air by shops and are meaningless when it comes to health.

Your BMI, diet and lifestyle are far more important indicators for your health than your dress size.

Original poster
AudaCityLimits · 21/05/2020 14:57

I've just ordered scales because I feel she must have made a mistake Confused

OP posts: