BMI Bull

It's about time we got rid of the BMI as a measurement of healthy weight.  According to the BMI charts, Arnold Schwarznegger, not just now but in his Mr. Universe prime, is obese. This is because the BMI only takes height and weight into consideration and does not distinguish for muscle mass or even gender!  Considering BMI alone when trying to determine if you are a healthy weight is about as useful as judging your figure against those of the airbrushed celebrities on the cover of Shape magazine. In my practice health history consultations for my studies at IIN, I am also running across a lot of women that are either completely confused about what the ideal weight for their height is or they have a skeleton fetish. So, let's take a minute to go over what an ideal weight is because it seems most of us have no clue thanks to the barrage of senseless and conflicting messages we get from the media!
This method for calculating a healthy weight range is from Lynn Goldstein, MS, RD, CDN and one of IIN's graduates and lecturers: For a woman, start with 100 lbs and add 5 lbs for every inch over 5 ft.  This number + or - 10% is an ideal weight range. So, for a woman who is 5 ft 6 in, a healthy weight would be 130 +/- 10% which is anything from 117 to 143. Goldstein also explained that because a lot of people exercise and lift weights, you are more likely to see healthy, fit people on the upper end (I would certainly fall into this category) or slightly over this range than you are at the lower end or under. Of course, someone may be 5-10 lbs above the top # and still look and be healthy. This is a guide, not an exact science. A woman on the low-end would be what I call "actress-thin" or someone with very small bones. For a man, start with 106 and add 6 lbs for every inch over 5 ft. This # +/- 10% is the healthy range.  So a man who is 5'10 might weigh anything between 150 and 182 and be healthy.  Again, a really muscular man may be above the upper numbers and still look great. This guide, along with a calculation of body fat percentage (check your local gyms for accurate testing procedures) is the best way to determine if you are healthy.  It should be as easy as look in the mirror but I'm afraid it no longer is when we receive so many competing messages.