Bmi!

[Kca29]

Not really an aibu so apologies. I'm a 5 foot 7 female who needs to lose some weight. I've put my weight and height into nhs bmi and I'm obese, I can try work on that.

But aibu to be really surprised at my 'ideal weight'.

My ideal according to nhs would be between 8 Stone 6 (I mean wtaf) and 11 Stone 5.

I'm never gonna be bloody 8 stone, likely not 11 Stone either. Dp is 11.5 Stone, 30 inch waist and small S clothes, he's very slim and not much taller than me. I'm never gonna weigh the same as him 😅

I was between 11.5-12 stone at age 19 pre kids and I was pretty slim, size 10. I never used to eat much to maintain that weight, used to obsess over calories and was obsessed with exercise. I don't want to be back to that obsessive stage again.

As mentioned above my dp fluctuates between 11.5-12 stone which is in the upper healthy range for a man of 5 foot 9/10. If he was a few pounds heavier he would be deemed overweight. Despite being in a men's size small, 30 inch waist and literally nothing on him 😅

So aibu to think sometimes ideal weight is a load of tosh and we all when different shapes and sizes.

I'm quite broad as well. Quite a 'solid' build rather than excess fat.

It's just disheartening that my ideal weight is probably never gonna be achievable!!

No I'm 5ft2 but have done a competitive athletic sport since I was age 6 plus I also do Olympic weightlifting now. So I weigh a lot, I have a lot of muscle.

Plus today's size 0 is more yesterday's size 8 due to vanity sizing.

You’re saying you were 5ft2, 10stone and a size zero?

I forgot mumsnetters are always so teeny tiny.

@WrigglyDonCat "I think a big problem is that over the last 50-100 years is that we have all gradually become accustomed to people being larger because of the greater availability of food, and especially the unhealthier things. As a result we have lost our sense of what looks normal, so very often people see very healthy weight individuals as gaunt when in practice they aren't

We also transfer this problem to how we view our pets. I've been heavily involved in cat welfare for the better part of 20 years, and have lost track of how many 'starving strays' I've been out to see who are just perfectly normal weight cats with a home just down the road."

Gosh totally agree with you there for both humans and pets. It actually really pisses me off that people can obsess over staying fitties themselves yet their pets are morbidly obese and they literally can't see it! Sorry OT, but as a dog groomer it's bloody hard work lifting up massively obese dogs that can't heal me out because they're so damn fat!

@PurpleDaisies

I forgot mumsnetters are always so teeny tiny.

It’s all those massive salads keeping them going

help not heal 🙄

@PurpleDaisies

You’re saying you were 5ft2, 10stone and a size zero?

Yes I was 62kg so that's about 10stone isn't it.

On MNs there is no middle ground, it's slim or morbidly obese

..Is it really worth carrying around, literally, all the health impacts of a morbidly obese BMI so that you can look 75 and not 80? Assuming that the weight difference between those two women is genuinely the source of any difference in how old they "look" and not genes/sun exposure/other

No. I never said it was. I did say that people don't tend to fluctuate between such different weights anyway. They were just 2 examples I could think of illustrating the wrinkle/fat thing

I have stupidly tiny wrists (when I wrap my finger and thumb round them they overlap down to the first knuckle of my finger),

If I put my finger & thumb in the above position the gap is about the size of my eye

Surely BMI is just a guide really.

If you are eating healthy, taking regular excersice and moving daily. You'll land somewhere in the range.

The only people that really skew BMI are.professional athletes. As their muscle mass to body fat percentage is not typical.

@BlwyddynNewydd2022

No I'm 5ft2 but have done a competitive athletic sport since I was age 6 plus I also do Olympic weightlifting now. So I weigh a lot, I have a lot of muscle.

Plus today's size 0 is more yesterday's size 8 due to vanity sizing.

It’s well recognised that bmi isn’t accurate for Olympic weightlifters. Most of us aren’t.

Looking at images of female weightlifters of your weight and height, I can’t see how they’d possibly be a size zero. They’ve got amazing figures but there’s muscle bulk everywhere.

@BlwyddynNewydd2022

No I'm 5ft2 but have done a competitive athletic sport since I was age 6 plus I also do Olympic weightlifting now. So I weigh a lot, I have a lot of muscle.

Plus today's size 0 is more yesterday's size 8 due to vanity sizing.

Well, this is interesting (and congrats on being in the Olympic team!), but you must know you are an outlier and that BMI is NOT a useful tool for you.

Most people are not olympic weightlifters.

@jeepersdeepers

I have stupidly tiny wrists (when I wrap my finger and thumb round them they overlap down to the first knuckle of my finger),

If I put my finger & thumb in the above position the gap is about the size of my eye

Mine don't even meet. I'm some kind of throwback to where I should be lugging rocks around or something The doctor weighed me three times and I was "yeah I really am that fat, sorry" and he was well, no you just look a lot lighter

...and now I'm trying to find who you are!
Can we assume you are not in the GB team?

@TheOrigRights

...and now I'm trying to find who you are! Can we assume you are not in the GB team?

It's just a name - doesn't mean you're on the team!

@PassingByAndThoughtIdDropIn

I don't think that poster was suggesting that it's worth being morbidly obese to look younger, just thinking of some prominent people who illustrate the effect.

But some women presumably would choose a BMI of 28 and an unlined face over a BMI of 21, looking great in jeans but with wrinkles - at those points it probably is purely a question of aesthetic choice because there's very little evidence that a BMI in the 25-30 range is harmful for a woman over 40. (I'm talking from a white perspective)

Which is fair enough as far as it goes, but it doesn't get any easier to lose the weight as you age, and even if a BMI of 28 is not immediately ratcheting up your mortality risk, it will start telling in other ways over time: joints, energy levels. I suspect vanity re wrinkles at this stage is slightly misguided. I'm not sure Berry and Margolies make a good pair for comparison regardless of their weights; Berry is very fair skinned and will be more affected by sun exposure, Margolies not so much.

Probably best just to pay for fat to be injected into your face, really

I'd ignore the numbers. You can tell if you're carrying too much fat!

@TheOrigRights

...and now I'm trying to find who you are! Can we assume you are not in the GB team?

Olympic weightlifting doesn’t mean you’re in the olympics, it’s a style of weightlifting that’s used in places like CrossFit.

@MaybeHeIsMyCat 😆

Olympic weightlifting doesn’t mean you’re in the olympics, it’s a style of weightlifting that’s used in places like CrossFit.

Oh!
Clearly I am not a weightlifter of any sort. Body pump is my limit.

And there was I, all impressed!

@TheOrigRights

Olympic weightlifting doesn’t mean you’re in the olympics, it’s a style of weightlifting that’s used in places like CrossFit.

Oh!
Clearly I am not a weightlifter of any sort. Body pump is my limit.

And there was I, all impressed!

Body pump is a brilliant introduction to weights but you should try the weights room in your gym, it’s addictive and much more enjoyable than pump

Finding I had a bmi of 27 at 45 was helpful as I was on a path to getting gradually fatter as I aged and did have knee pain.

All over it now bmi 22 intermittent fast now a way of life and cardio for an hour (500 calories) most days. Knee pain gone and I feel great tbh. No rolls of fat on me I’m no sylph am definitely not “tiny” but happy as appear quite slim but feel in a good place to face ageing. Weigh myself regularly and calorie count now to stay on top of it. Never did that before. It’s good being aware. I spent years eating what I wanted and stayed slim can’t do that post 40 well I can’t anyway!

Body pump is a brilliant introduction to weights but you should try the weights room in your gym, it’s addictive and much more enjoyable than pump

Nah....I run, swim, cycle and do body pump and body balance.
Running is my first love. Maybe when I have more time I will add some heavier weights.