Best not to lose too much weight as we get older?

[Orangesandlemons77]

I thought this was interesting. I'm nearby 50 (F) and might try and stay around BMI 25-27 going into my fifties. I am not sure though! Going for an assessment at the gym which looks at amount of muscle and fat and gives a plan going forward (have lost 5 stone in a year on MJ and gone from BMI 40 to 27.
Possibly going to try and maintain on wegovy.
https://www.thetimes.com/article/a0abcb9a-b7f8-4966-9832-3918aa40b57a?shareToken=510a8429e0c30eebca0fb3b7da2d38d2
I also like this Smart BMI calculator which takes into account age as well
https://www.smartbmicalculator.com

I think it makes sense to stay away from the lower end of the BMI scale as you get older, I would not increase the normal BMI range with - the SBMI is not widely used, peer reviewed, and based on less global data than BMI. It was a private project and I find it strange it uses unprofessional terminally such as "slightly chubby".

From the Times article

"I would prefer to see an older person overweight than underweight"

This does not mean an overweight BMI is preferable to a normal BMI, it is just more preferrable than underweight.

"Losing too much weight from your sixties onwards can backfire when it comes to your health, while a few extra pounds — and we are talking a couple of pounds here, not stones — might be protective."

This is also important - being the top end of the normal BMI scale will give those extra couple of pounds rather than stones, in most people.

Of course then the inaccuracy of the BMI tool needs to be accounted for, it is not perfect, but it is quite a wide range and should be used in conjunction with waist/height ratio, and how we look/feel generally about our physique.

I am older, I have gone from a morbidly obese BMI to 26. I have loose skin, I hold up my size 14 clothes and they feel like they belong to someone else, I am not used to being this small relative to where I started, I am wary of the weight I have lost and wonder if I should give my body a pause for it and for me to get used to it - it might be a sensible idea. But realistically, BMI aside, I know I am not yet a "healthy" weight and I am very far from a weight where it would be considered too low to be a health risk for my age.

BMI is a bit of a blunt tool but at population level, the ts a good indicator. Some people just don’t think they can achieve a normal healthy weight so they tell themselves they’ll look ‘haggard’ if they reach said weight.

why would you aim to stay overweight? These drugs are expensive - don’t get off the train a stop too early! Just carry on and get to a normal weight.

its can also be a form of self sabotage, to tell yourself you can’t possibly be a normal weight.

I found it unhelpful to tell myself mentally that I was 'better' being a few pounds overweight post menopause because it was my way of giving myself permission to gain weight until I was nearly four stone overweight. I was quietly telling myself it was fine, I was better off than being underweight, until I realised that the weight was just going to keep going on.

So I lost the four stone and then a little bit more and I now have a BMI of 21, which I work hard to keep through exercising and watching my diet. But I have the kind of brain (well, I have ADHD) which takes 'a little bit of weight' to mean 'eat cake at least once a day', and perhaps it doesn't work this way for other people?

There is evidence that a bmi in the 25-27 range protects bones after the age of 70, but anything above 25 comes with escalating health impacts, the more over the more the impact. And these negative health impacts of being overweight are not mitigated by being overweight 50.