To think the NHS BMI is a load of s#!t

[babyarz]

I gave birth to my beautiful DS 4 months ago.

Although I am losing weight as ebf I thought it would be good - after Christmas - to cut down on the chocolates and eat healthier.

I am fitting into all my size 10 clothes pre pregnancy and thought I'd weigh myself today to see what I am. Once I did this I looked my bmi score at it states I'm overweight!!

I'm totally ready for being told I'm BU but at 5"3, 10st 5 and size 10 I honestly didn't think I'd be classified as overweight!

What's your thoughts?

When I was your weight (I’m the same height) I was in size 10/12 tops depending on the shop and size 12/14 jeans/trousers. Depends on your body shape.

I’m 5ft 2 and 9st 2 and come out as a healthy weight on both the NHS calculator and the other one linked to upthread. I’m large framed and hourglass shaped, have long legs relative to my body and I would not look good at 7st3lb which is the minimum healthy weight for my height. Other women might, depending on their frame size, body shape etc.

If you are EBF weigh yourself post feed as your boobs tend to add a lot I found. Although, please don't bother with a strict diet - you need extra calories for feeding - just eat healthily and get out and about if you are worried...guessing at size 10, you're not though.

Congratulations on your baby

Softday
The RANGE of healthy BMI is 18.5 to 25

for my frame the healthy BMI for me is around 21
my BMI is currently just under 23 = 30% body fat
that is too high FOR MY BODY
so I need to be at the lower end of the range

BMI under 25 does not magically make people healthy
for many petite women, BMI of 25 could be dangerously overweight

A "healthy" weight is where your bodyfat is in the recommended range for your sex (and age)
Obviously at that weight you could still be suffering from cancer, CVD etc

BMI range is quite wide, to take into account narrow / wide skeletons, different muscle mass etc.

Studies show that BMI is a rough indication of bodyfat,
that works reasonably well for most people, but not for the very tall / short, or for males with heavy muscle from intensive sport:

I might add that many people who have a lot of muscle also have excess fat too.

so along with BMI, check if your waist / height is < 0.5, ideally below 0.45
(waist at narrowest point , about 2" above the navel, if you are a woman)

@Hannnnnnnxo the point I am making is notas the BMI claimsthat everyone should look the same at the same weight, but that I personally look deathly ill at the bottom end of the healthy weight range. I have already pointed out that I am heavier than I look repeatedly on this thread, which is again, precisely the point...the BMI is a population measure, not an individual one.

I am sure that you (and many women) look fabulous at the lower end of your healthy range--my mother certainly does, for example. I am not like that.

Ta1kinPeace speaks sense. My BMi is 24.5 but that still isn't healthy for me because my waist is still too big, therefore I still consider myself overweight and in a higher risk category.

Greenbedsocks, I agree that some people are naturally heavy. I'm one of them. I'm not in denial about my weight but I realise that I will not be healthy at a low weight. I'm 5'5. My lowest weight ever as an adult, after a prolonged period of extreme stress and illness was 7st 8. My bones were visible and people assumed I had an eating disorder. I looked and felt awful, my GP advised me to put at least a stone on. I know that proves I can lose weight but can and should aren't always the same. Using "normal" diet, exercise etc I can't usually get much below 11st. That's still a bit overweight but other than that I passed my over 40 health check with flying colours. Until I had my 3 year old I could run 7k and I want to get back to that. Yes, it's not a marathon but it's not sat on my arse on the sofa either. I try to take care of myself but I'm not going to waste my life on a starvation diet or spending excessive hours exercising. Last year was a crap year and I let myself go. This year I'm aiming to get my act together and reduce from 12st 5 to 11st.

"although it is rather unfortunate to describe it as weight in the "healthy range" given that it has bugger all to do with being healthy."

Eh? There are health problems linked to being overweight and being underweight so it would seem to me that, all other things being equal, not being in the underweight or overweight range means you're in the healthy range.

"ot being able to use your weight to help identify your diet and exercise related problems would be more accurate for the malnourished, osteoporotic person with low muscle tone and a high percentage of visceral fat! grin"

Basically those people's problem is not their weight, but something else. Just like someone with an ear infection might be in the healthy weight range.
I don't really get your point.
Yes, you can have a different health problem even if you're of a healthy weight, but how does that invalidate BMI?

Thread starts with:
"BMI doesn't like me as fat as I am!"
Thread now arrived at saying
"BMI allows some people to be too thin!"
So Back where I started:

If you're happy in your own skin & size, then what do you care about a statistic?

As I am at the upper end of the healthy weight, I always maintain that bust size should be taken into consideration. Someone my height, with a B bust, and the same weight, is going to have excess fat elsewhere on their body. All my fat is in my HH boobs - That's my excuse anyway, and I am sticking to it

My bmi is 27...I have B cup.

Generally when I lose weight it goes off arse, waist and ribs, stays on my thighs and boobs- hence 28kk pre pregnancy. Hopefully I will manage to lose something off my boobs because I am now more like a 32L so when I go back to 28 I am way off the scale...

Well according to nhs OP only needs to lose 4 lbs to have a bmi of 25 and be healthy weight. This could simply be a good breastfeed and a poo. So I would say that the OP need not do anything at all and will naturally lose 4lbs over the next few months anyway!!

Well according to nhs OP only needs to lose 4 lbs to have a bmi of 25 and be healthy weight.
NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO
BMI of 25 does NOT magically mean that one is a Healthy Weight

BMI needs to be checked with Body fat percentage
and Waist to height ratio

Only when ALL THREE are in the healthy band can one relax

and for me that is BMI of 22

I’m 5ft3 at my heaviest was 10s 8 and a size 12-14.
I do think that you’re overweight but not massively so

I'm 5'2" and currently 74 kg (27th Dec) meaning I am JUST under obese!

This is what it looks like on me:

Not too grim I hear you say BUT I'm not meant to have skin wings or those back hamsters you see in that photo.
I am feeling the 4 kg particularly when I am running and that I do feel more tired - certainly going from a BMI from 27 to 29 mean I can feel it. We have lost sight of what overweight looks like but also have stopped listening to our bodies - there is a reason that BMI > 30 is dangerous whether you are fat or a ripped mass monster since there is simply too much body to care for. So BMI isn't such a pile of poo, particuarly if you track your waist too.

How do you check your body fat percentage?

I'm an 'obese' size 12/14. I'm shorter than you. I haven't weighed myself since giving birth. I know I'm not slim but i think of obese as size 18+ really

Im confused. I’m a size 10 (occasionally 8) and I weigh two stone less than you.

I use the skin fold test but a quick one is the waist < 0.5 your height since that scales reasonably well with sex and age. (I am still within that).
I use the skin fold test - comes out at around 28% for me right now which is a bit high TBH.

Around a year ago, I got down to a BMI of 19, but felt dizzy after workouts, weak and found it difficult to lift heavy weights and just didn't feel strong, didn't have any energy. So I stopped watching the scales, ate more, re-introduced some carbs and now feel much better. My workouts are easier, I've progressed in my lifts and my running times have increased, at a BMI of 22.5. This is quite close I think to the higher end.
BMI is a useful tool, but not an accurate measure of body composition and probably next to useless if you're into fitness