To be surprised I'm overweight?

[overweightcat]

I don't know why but it's really knocked me for six.
I went on the NHS BMI calculator and found out I'm classed as overweight.

I'm 26 and weigh 74kg at 169cm height. Looking at it writing it down I realise it's quite a big number (weight) and before even going on the calculator I knew I'm carrying some extra weight and wanted to loose some to feel a bit better about myself but didn't realise I'm overweight.

I don't hate my current body, my stomach isn't flat but not huge, I've got some stretch marks and a bit of looser skin from 2 pregnancies, my thighs and arms are a bit bigger but I didn't think it was excessive, I've got a good bum and ok boobs all things considered and I'm curvy(ish).
I'm also quite strong and I know some of it will be muscle but definitely not all I'm not silly enough to think that.

AIBU to be really surprised I'm classed as overweight?

For some reason it's really shocked me and I'm feeling very self conscious since finding out.

@awkwardbuttons I am quoting medical advice. Not my opinion.

The NHS site gives a very basic outline of what a healthy BMI is.

If you read beyond that you will find most medical specialists say that to be healthy everyone ought to be at the lower end of the normal weight spectrum not just below the top.

That's fab @ploughingthrough do you mind sharing how you did it? Any tips welcome.

@JinglingHellsBells

It's far more important to: eat well, sleep well, drink water and take exercise.

Anyone can crash diet to a BMI of 20. That doesn't make you healthy.

I'm saying OP should make small sustainable changes to achieve a healthy weight.

The NHS website does not say to keep aiming for a low weight. In fact a mid range of the healthy weights would be better.

Some of the comments on this thread are ridiculous and clearly indicative the problem in society with obesity. Size 14 is overweight.

Constance - I have a healthy BMI and I am a size 14 . My sister too. Do you have any particular expertise or training in this field?

I identify, i walk everywhere (no car). I walked 90k in January according to my google timeline. I don't eat til 11.am, I don't feel like I"m overeating. Maybe due to work my choice of snack is not always chopped up vegetables, but even when I'm making the 'wrong' choice, I tend not to finish it. And yet to my shock I realised I am ten stone almost. I'm five foot one. I just turned 50 though. I don't want to just think it's ''inevitable''. But maybe it is!!!

So in old money you are about my height- average height about 5 foot 5 and you weigh about 11 and a half stone.
Most people that height would think about 8 and a half to 10 and a half stone is about right as would the NHS and that the bottom end looks better so may be losing 3 stone (about 19 kg) over time or even half that would be a good idea particularly if you want to protect yourself against coronavirus' worst effects.

So perhaps try to get your waist size down to 31.5 inches (80 cm) for a start.

The NHS also suggest going by waist size

" Why is my waist size important?

Regardless of your height or body mass index (BMI), you should try to lose weight if your waist is:

94cm (37in) or more for men
80cm (31.5in) or more for women

You're at very high risk of some serious health conditions and should see a GP if your waist is:

102cm (40in) or more for men
88cm (34.5in) or more for women

This is because your risk of getting some health problems is affected by where you store your body fat, as well as by your weight.

Carrying too much fat around your middle (waist) can make it more likely for you to get conditions such as:

heart disease
type 2 diabetes
cancer
stroke"

PS and the reason I was weighing myself was so I could calculate my BMI. I was shocked that Boris was obese. I would have said overweight but not obese. So I got a shock to be officially overweight.

My GP said "People these days don't even know what a healthy weight looks like". I was happy that she was so honest. The BMI scale can seem a bit stringent, I agree, but I still believe in it. It can only be disregarded if you do serious bodybuilding.

A while back I watched a documentary about the early 60s called A Girl In London on the iplayer. It's really worth watching in itself, but if you look at all the people walking in the background in the streets, it's very noticeable how slim they all are. Not one even slightly fat person to be seen.

To be fair to JinglingHellsBells that means the NHS are recommending that you don't put any more weight on, not that you shouldn't lose any. Most people with a BMI close to 25 could stand to lose some. I say this as someone with a BMI of 24. I am definitely a bit podgier than I would like. I feel much better at around 21-22 BMI.

But that doesn't mean you're not at a healthy weight, which is what I said.

Below 20 is associated with some additional health issues. It is definitely bad advice to say just aim for the lowest part of the BMI spectrum because it can be a crude indicator. Lifestyle and diet are far more important. Weight loss should be sustainable and as part of a healthy balanced diet with exercise. Focusing just on the numbers is not helpful.

I’m 169cm and when I last weighed myself, at 9 months pregnant, I was 70kg and had a 9lb+ baby. My normal weight is 57kg and I’m not super skinny by any means. I don’t want to be unkind but I honestly don’t think you can be shocked on learning that 70kg at our height is overweight.

Honestly, even at my smallest (I looked anorexic), I had a BMI of 24. My current BMI is 27 and I'm so happy with my body. Don't let BMI worry you.

I had the same realisation as you when I was about your age. I'm the same height and was usually about 10 stone and not used to watching my weight. In my mid twenties it crept up to 11.5 stone and I was upset when I realised- no kids but I'd switched to an office job from a more active one.

I tried dieting first which didn't work so well for me. After that I started going to the gym and running, didn't think it was working but about 6 months later realised my clothes didn't fit and I'd dropped two dress sizes.

I'm mid thirties now and still so lots of running and cycling and bonus is that it turns out I love doing them. Keeps me to a size 10 and I can eat what I want otherwise.

Long story but, if you do something about it now, it's totally achievable to turn around. I know that horrible feeling when you first realise. Do give it time for changes you make to work though, you don't have much to lose so it might be slow, but slow means they'll likely become long lasting habits.

I was a similar weight (and height: 5ft 6) to you at 25, lost weight by calorie counting to get to 10st 6 and felt a lot better. However since then (early 30s) I've put on a massive amount of weight and in some ways it might be better to just stay as you are but eat as healthily as possible and not focus on dieting!

I'm 170cm tall, OP, and weight 69kgs, and trying to lose a few kgs, I already feel a bit unhealthy. If I put on another 5kgs I would definitely be overweight.

Why are you surprised? You must have seen the muffin top when wearing jeans, noticed how some of your clothes no longer fit?

Yabu to have been “knocked for six” that’s very much an over reaction.

Move more, eat less. Stop being so dramatic.

This study from 2009 found that the range of 22.5 to 25 was associated with lowest mortality

www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(09)60318-4/fulltext

This one found 20 to 25 to be the ideal range
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1414803/

So to say lower = better is just not right. Your healthiest weight can also vary with age.

@overweightcat another one here exactly the same height and weight as you (although Ive got 20 years on you ) and definitely feeling podgy and trying to lose some weight slowly and sensibly. My normal weight is roughly 10.4-10.7 and this is where I feel comfortable in most size 10-12 clothes, can sustain it without too much effort (ie normal eating and regular but not excessive exercise) and don't recoil in horror at myself in photos or if I catch sight of my reflection. In all honesty, I do look better a little lighter (around 9.7) and definitely feel most confident here BUT am too lazy/greedy to sustain it, like having at least some boobs and am not a massive fashionista or insta queen so really not fussed enough to warrant the effort

Definitely agree we are all too used to seeing bigger as normal and losing 2.5-3 stone whilst probably not what you had in mind (or even need to do to be healthy) won't make you skeletal just very slim.

Bmi should be a guide, not an absolute. My bmi says I am obese, yet to look at me you'd think overweight at best, and I'm quite fit. I'm a size 14.

If you aren't happy with how you look, then lose a bit of weight. If you thought you were fine before and it's the bmi number worrying you, ignore it. As long as you are reasonably healthy in what you eat and don't get out of breath easily, you're fine. I used to get out of breath easily, so I started doing fitness classes. I toned up a bit, barely lost any weight but I'm healthier and fitter. Would be nice if I could lose 3 stone but I think unless I starve myself it's not going to happen.

Me too, I am 172 and still weigh 71 kg (despite lent) - I am just about a healthy weight for my age and size, but:
I definitely weigh more than I ought to in order to maintain my longterm health and mobility (I am way older than OP) - and lying to myself because of the dress size I can get into or the weight of muscles that I (do not ) have will not change this.

JinglingHellsBells

Personally, I would be very concerned if I had experienced the shift in fat deposition you have. So many women are happy to allow this to happen when it's widely accepted it's very unhealthy to carry abdominal fat. This shift is not an inevitable consequence of ageing.

*Why are you surprised? You must have seen the muffin top when wearing jeans, noticed how some of your clothes no longer fit?

Yabu to have been “knocked for six” that’s very much an over reaction.

Move more, eat less. Stop being so dramatic.*

Absolutely no need for this level of online nastiness. Maybe just don't comment if you can't come up with something a bit more supportive. It is VERY easy for weight to creep on gradually without noticing, particularly if you're only a few kilos overweight like the op.

Op
I'm an inch taller and 3 pounds heavier than you and I know I'm definitely over weight..
My weight goes on my thighs and tummy and though so I immediately feel it in my jeans.

I could tell immediately from the figures but only because I am taller than you and my threshold is lower than your weight. For someone who doesn’t know the numbers it would be difficult to tell though. You’re quite tall and it isn’t as visible when you are tall. I doubt you’re visibly overweight.

I was similar now I’m 10.5 stone. I’m happy as I am, I’m only 1inch shorter than you too, id say if you aren’t happy just lose 0.5-1stone. But if your happy as you are - fine. I wouldn’t say you were overweight, BMI calculators are very harsh

Everyone carries weight differently so you may not look overweight!

I am the same height as you and around the same weight- I am a size 10 on top and 12 on bottom. I was in the middle of losing weight (lockdown has put an end to that currently, can't get to the gym which is my motivation) as I was feeling a little overweight, however most people would look at me and say I am slim.

You definitely don't need to lose 3 stone, I looked emaciated when I went down to 9st 10 and was unsustainable unless I carried on eating nothing. 8st 7 would not be healthy!