Do tall people weigh more than they look?

[casablanca123]

I'm a 6'2 tall girl, weighing around 15 stone 4 and I won't say I'm overweight and certainly people don't think so as well. People often get very surprised at how much I weigh and sometimes say something like, "Really, you don't look like you weigh more than 12".

Do tall people carry weight really well?

Muscle tone as well. I have muscly limbs.

I'm 6ft and 15st. I'm. 3 St overweight. 11 to 11 and a half is my best weight and a size 14. I was once 10 and a half and a size 10 and did look very boney.

I think the roughly 3 stone range for a healthy weight takes into account muscle mass and frame size. BMI is a blunt tool but it is pretty accurate for most of the population. Outliers are people like world class athletes.

There must be a lot to be said for how you carry your weight. I’m 5’10 about 10 stone mainly a size 10. I have small boobs, flat stomach and bum, quite fine bones in term of slim ankles, wrists and you can see my collar bones and ribs. But I’m not skinny more slim.

I have a similar figure to Kate Middleton in the university years. Looking at her now she must be a size 6 and down at around 8.5/9 st for a similar height. She is incredibly lean in a way I am not.

I don’t think tall people necessarily weigh more than they look. 15 stone for 6 foot 2 sounds a lot. DH is that height and weighs 2 stone less. My dad was 6 foot 1 and when he was 15 stone he was overweight and looked it.

I don't really discuss my weight with anyone.
I was asked if I was heavy enough to donate blood once. The lower limit is 7'12". At 5'8" that would be very underweight.

Based on other comments (there's nothing of you, don't lose any weight, eat some pies) I think I look slimmer than I am. I exercise a lot so not much of me wobbles and I am very toned so that's probably why.

15 stone for 6 foot 2 sounds a lot. DH is that height and weighs 2 stone less.

Whereas my DH would look ill at 13 stone, I think a lot depends on body frame & muscles etc.

There must be a lot to be said for how you carry your weight

yes it depends on proportions & shape too.

its more a frame of reference.

I’m 5 10 and about 11 stone. If someone told me they were 8st and my height then I’d think they were a little underweight because I know what that would look like on me. Whereas, I’ve no idea what 8st looks like on a 5ft woman.

I don't think people are either world class althletes or fat blobs. I go to the gym three times a week and do weights and cardio, and do a yoga class. I'm not a dissimilar height, weight, and physique wise to footballer Lauren James. Sadly I don't think Chelsea and England will be knocking on my door any time soon. You can be muscly and fit from going to the gym, you don't have to be world class at any particular sport.

I'm a couple of inches shorter than you, and when I weighed around what you do people would sometimes be surprised that I expressed a need to lose weight (and I can't pretend much of it is muscle in my case). My proportions are those of a more average sized person, so once or twice someone looking at me was shocked when I said I was almost 6 foot. Those proportions hide more weight than long legged ones! But at the moment I'm decidedly overweight and there's no hiding it :(

I'm that tall, and wear a size 10 in most shops (although obviously different brands vary in sizing, so it can range from 8-12). I'm also in the middle of the 'healthy' range for BMI, not thin or underweight.

In answer to the OP, 15 stone is a lot even for someone who's 6'2", but you may well carry it well. Also, people are generally polite when someone mentions their weight. It's not a topic that most people will be honest about in front of you.

That's a normal shoe size for a tall woman though?

I'm putting this here. Tall people would naturally have higher BMI than short people even though they have same proportions.

https://www.businessinsider.com/mathemeticians-find-weve-been-calculating-body-mass-index-wrong-2013-1

"They argued it did not take into account a person’s weight tends to grow with their height, giving taller people more room to bulge."

“BMI divides the weight by too large a number for short people and too small a number for tall people.”

Nope, I dont need to be a world class athlete to be an outlier. I go to gym four times a week, I do weights and cardio, I'm faster than my smaller friends. I did sports during my school and college days and I'm very active even after leaving college.

According to BMI scale, you're quite close to being outlier just by being tall. And if you have a wider frame and lift weights, you're surely gonna be an outlier. I have friends around my height who weigh around 17 at my height(guys btw) and still they're not world class athletes.

Lauren James just tips into overweight according to BMI. She is a professional international footballer. These are the sort of people I'm talking about.

OP (who claims not to be overweight ) is quite a bit more than just overweight according to BMI and I don't think the fact that she goes to the gym and feels in shape means she should disregard what the numbers mean.

I'm putting this here. Tall people would naturally have higher BMI than short people even though they have same proportions

OK. All the best.

The difference isnt that big though, is it? According to that article, to correct for the inaccuracy, "Those of 180cm or above (six feet), lose a BMI point".

Adjusting it downwards by 1 point would still put your BMI above the threshold defined as 'healthy'. I have no doubt you're in good shape and exercise well etc., but BMI isn't as inaccurate as you are portraying it.

I'm tall and broad and BMI is a very useful tool for me. I think that, for many reasons, people aren't great at gauging what's a healthy weight, and BMI is great unless you're very much an outlier (pro athletic or similar.) Of course, some people prefer not to believe the numbers, which is fine but is also mostly denial imo.

Exactly, Lauren James will be training for several hours, multiple days a week. Her calorie needs will be huge, and her diet and other aspects of her regime will likely be informed by professional sports nutritionists etc.

You can't meaningfully compare someone like that to someone who goes to the gym 3 or 4 times a week, maybe for an hour or so each time. There is no way that the average gymgoer will have anywhere near the same level of muscle mass.

I agree that it's not a binary choice between professional athlete and fat blob, but most of the population is closer to the opposite end of the spectrum when compared to the professional, even if they do sports and go to the gym.

I think posture helps, I am tall 5.9 and always try to walk tall rather than slouch.
I am slim, people still comment on my weight even though mid 50s.
When l was younger l remember my Dad shaking his head, but in a fond way , as he sat and pierced extra holes in my sandal, belt and watch straps with a little tool he used.

Yes, exactly, as do I. The point of the thread is not to berate people for not realising they are overweight in BMI terms, but to show that people carry their weight differently.

And my point was that people can look pretty fit from just going to the gym regularly and still have a slightly high BMI - and have healthy waist to height ratio, good cholesterol, good blood sugar, iron etc - world class athlete is neither here nor there. It's not all or nothing.

My DH is 6’3 and 13 stone. He’d defo look overweight at 15 stone. I guess men and women store their fat differently so maybe men being overweight looks more obvious?

And indeed most world class althletes have to train to the extent that it actually harms their bodies as they get frequent illness and injury.

Certainly rugby players - loads of them die young, it's a massive strain on your heart being that tall and big.

The dedicated gym goer eating a healthy diet will probably live healthier and longer than a competitive athlete as what they are doing to their body is in harmony and balance, and they are not pushing it to extremes all the time.

I think it depends how you carry your weight. I'm 5ft 9 and vary between 11 and 11.5 stone and I'm generally a size 14 (always 14 in trousers). I think I look like I weigh more. I have big boobs (30g😭) small waist and big arse but skinny lower legs/ankles. I think I look quite 'fleshy' and people seem to assume I weigh more than I do!

Well, yeah. We really have the superpower to hide our weight gain.