BMI Question

Hey Guys, I haven't posted in quite a while and see quite a few new faces here.  I am 16 months post-op and have lost 230 pounds and 20 inches off my waist.  I am below my doctor's goal and he has told me to start eating 5-6 times a day to stabilize the weight.  I have done this and have been stable within about 5 pounds for the last 8 weeks or so.  My question is this:  According to the BMI chart I am still a bit overweight.  It says I should weigh between 187-202 pounds.  My doctor says that the numbers on the chart are right on target for someone of average height but are skewed for taller people.  I am 6'3" and currently weigh 228 pounds.  I know that 202 or less would be too thin for me.  However, I found an ideal body weight calculator and it says I should weigh about 215 for my height and frame size.  Would this be going too far or should I just stay where I am and be happy with it?  Steve

IMHO: With that kind of success, you should be happy where YOU are happy.   For example, what if you started to hit the weights hard and added 15-20 lbs of muscle but lost 10 lbs of fat?  Your weight would go up 10 pounds, but your clothing size would go down considerably.  But according to the charts, you would be even further from "normal". Whatever makes you happy.  Keep an eye on all your blood stats and enjoy what you've accomplished. Good luck Guy

I don't really have an answer for you. But you're not alone in this concern. I'm 6'2" and IIRC the BMI charts don't count me as normal until I'm 194 or under. I weighed 208 when I graduated from HS and was pretty danged skinny then and I can't see myself getting under 200. Time will tell I guess. My goal is to comfortably wear a pair of 36 Wranglers and let the weight be whatever it is at that time. That's the size I wore when I graduated.

It is the same for me.  I weighed 202 when I was in the Army and was actually too thin but couldn't gain any weight.  I started on the day of surgery in a size 56 pants and am now wearing my Wranglers in a 36 quite comfortably.  I can even wear some 34s.  I said when I started that I just wanted to wear a 36 comfortably but now that I am there I seem to think I should go a bit farther.

Steve, Obviously go with your Doc’s recommendation and your intuition combined. Have you had a chance to check Bodyfat %? Do you have some excess skin that could be adding a few of those pounds? Even Bone density can figure into the “ideal Weight” equation. If you’re healthy and happy at that weight? Then stay there! If you’re Healthy and not sure if you’re happy, Figure out why, and fix that. Congratulations on your Loss! Best Wishes- Dx

 

Dx, I haven't had a chance to check the body fat percentage.  As far as the excess skin goes I have been very fortunate.  I have a little loose skin but not much.  In fact when I am standing I can take my shirt off and you can't notice anything (except for the 14 inch scar from my surgery).  I considered a tummy tuck and my insurance will pay for it but the doc said I really don't need it.  So I doubt I would get much loss from it.  As far as the bone density you have a point.  The ideal body weight calculator I found placed my ideal weight at 215 due to my large bone structure.

Sounds like a case of CONGRATULATIONS!! with no exceptions. You've done Great! Keep IT! Best Wishes- Dx

Dx hit that right on.   Bodyfat % is a much better indicator.  I posted the following for someone else a month or so ago... Hope it helps.

BMI is more os a loose guide rather than something to live by.   It doesn't take into account body fat percentage or muscle mass. 

If BMI was the absolute scale to measure obesity then professional bodybuilders, NFL linebackers & running backs and most other muscle bound types would be obese. Arnold Schwartzenegger in his prime would have been considered morbidly obese by BMI standards.  

A more accurate measurement would be to get a body fat percentage.   There are a few ways to do this.  

1) The easiest and least accurate is an electrical resistance test that some scales perform.   It sends and low electrical pulse from head to toe and calculates body fat based on the resistance of the fat to return an electrical signal or something.   Tanita is one of the companies that makes the scales.  Most weight loss surgeons have one of them.  

2) There's also the tape measure test that the military uses.   I was ALWAYS taped when I was in the Army even though I wasn't obese.  The formula they use for males is:

% body fat = 86.010 x log10(abdomen - neck) - 70.041 x log10(height) + 36.76

Abdomen - Measure abdominal circumference against the skin at the navel (belly button), level and parallel to the floor. Arms are at the sides. Record the measurement at the end of member's normal, relaxed exhalation. Round abdominal measurement down to the nearest ½ inch.

Neck - Measure the neck circumference at a point just below the larynx (Adam's Apple) and perpendicular to the long axis of the neck. Do not place the tape measure over the Adam's Apple. Service member should look straight ahead during measurement, with shoulders down (not hunched). The tape will be as close to horizontal as anatomically feasible (the tape line in the front of the neck should be at the same height as the tape line in the back of the neck). Care should be taken so as not to involve the shoulder/neck muscles (trapezius) in the measurement. Round neck measurement up to the nearest ½ inch.

There's plenty of freeware calculators online as well as some webpages that calculate the formulas.

3) The most accurate body fat percentage test is a hydrostatic water test where you are dunked in a vat or water and weighed.  I don't know much about this one but it's supposed to be the most accurate of all the tests available. 

Hope that helps.

Chad.

I often get this feeling about the magic numbers when I go to the doctor. I have a great lady doc but I swear she seems to have this fixed notion that all people should fall within this magical numerology type context for the ultimate person. Frankly if I get to do the surgery and get down to maybe 190 which for me is just about right I am not gonna want for anything. Right now thats a hundred pounds away and maybe a while till I get to the operating table. I would like a bmi of about 21 to 25 even if it means Im just a tad chubby somewhere it sure beats being permanently pregnant with jumbo the elephant any day of the week. I think if your doctor says hey you seem to be right on target then dont sweat the magic numbers. My doctor says I should be 165lbs. at 5' 10". I have not seen that weight since ninth grade. I believe in being realistic and practical as possible when people consider the mammoth task of loosing huge amounts of weight and then getting into a healthy lifestyle post op just how good can it get.

I struggle with this as well. I'm about 10 pounds away from being under 30 on the BMI chart. That'll still leave me "overweight", just no longer "obese". There's a big part of me that no longer wants to be included in the fat category whenever I hear/read/see a story on how fat we are as a nation. I want to be able to honestly state that isn't me anymore. But I can't unless I get my weight down to 194 as I'm presuming they're using the BMI index to calculate how fat we are as a nation. It's always going to be there. I guess I'll just have to remember that BMI isn't the best tool for measuring me anymore.