Rant about Body Mass Index

[emkana]

So what's the story with this BMI thing? I'm sure it used to say it's okay between 18 and 25. Now it seems to say everywhere that it should be between 20 and 24. And now it said in the Sunday Times at the weekend that women should aim for the lower end of that range. At this rate they might as well go back to saying you should weigh your height in cms minus 100 minus 15 % - that's what they used to say in Germany when I was younger. What's the point of the BMI if it's more and more narrowed down like that?
I just can't make up my mind what goal weight to aim for. I'm 5'11 and weigh about 13 stone 5 pounds now, after having lost 54 pounds with WW. If I go down to 12 stone I'll hopefully be a size 14, with a BMI of 24. Do you think that's acceptable, or should I go down even further? The Sunday Times thing has really made me doubt my initial target now

I personally believe STRONGLY that you should be a size you ar comfortable at .. if you like what you see in the mirror then you're fine and dandy

personally at 5' 11 a size 14 (or 12 at the least) sounds great

I'm 5'8 and don't want to go below a 12 .. I have curves .. I like having curves .. I wouldn't suit being skinny (although some people do) .. oh and DH likes curves too

I think BMI should be used as a guide only. I used to house share with a guy who was only aboout 5'5". He was a fitness instuctor and spent all day exercising as it was part of his job. Also his idea of a fun sunday was to get up at 6 am and go for a long bike ride through the forest! Basically he was very fit and didn't have a mm of fat on him. However he was very muscular and this meant that he was very heavy for his height and his gp told him that he was clinically obese when he weighed him in the surgery. Complete madness! Agree with Twiglett that a size 12 or 14 sounds great - I like having my curves too.

I seem to remember a Sunday Times article about BMI and how they have to be treated with caution - pointing out thetechnically brad Pitt was clinically obese!

my dh spoke to a doctor who told him that (at their peak) Cyril Smith and Frank Bruno had the same BMI - so his advice was 'look at the person, not the numbers' - I will always remember this and strongly agree with Twiglett!

emkana, personally because of your height anything smaller than a size 14 will look TOO skinny and be unsusstanable. Congrats on what you have lost so far!!

emkana - BMI is a guide only so I wouldn't get too hung about it. It has lots of disadvantages as it can't account for things like individual body composition (hence the Brad Pitt thing) but it is a useful tool to use as a guideline. I'm training to be a dietitian atm and we are taught that the 'ideal' range is 18.5 - 24.5 and that 25 and over is the start of overweight.

In terms of what to aim for I think you should choose a weight that you are comfortable with and feels realistic to maintain. Personally I think your target weight of 12 stone is great, especially given your height. And congratulations on the massive weight loss so far - that's fantastic