Ive been ill so have lost about a stone in weight so I thought Id check my BMI to see if I was still 'officially' overweight and I wasnt! Ive never been a stick or anything but as a general rule I eat sensibly and was exercising every day before I got ill.

This got me thinking - I had to be ill for 3 months and not eat anything like properly to get to my ' ideal' weight - is there anyone out there that is actually anywhere near the weight they should be? Ive always thought the whole BMI was a bit stupid but now Im sure it is!

you can check your BMI here http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk/magazine/interactive/bmi/index.aspx
if you want to that is!!!!

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I have to EDIT because I can't SPELL!!

the BMI is complete bollocks

it does not take into account muscle/fat which can have a huge effect on your ideal body weight

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"...risk something, take back whats yours, say something that you know they might attack you for..."

Quite. How about 18 stone rugby players...

Working physically - which means 4 hours of non stop walking and climbing staircases with carrying in total 30-40 kgs (or 4,3 - 6,3 stones) a day - actually turned half of me into pure muscles
Although it does have an impact on the weight, it's not that large. With or without muscles, when I'm in good condition, 48 - 50 kgs is my usual weight. When kind of feeling down, fall to 46 - 44 but when things are better, go back to my "norm" easily enough without focusing on it.
I think the body is a self-programming system and it kind of maintains itself in the condition which is best for it.

It' s probably not about muscles / fat but rather about high and low metabolism, genes, eating habits and the system self-programming.

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I have to EDIT because I can't SPELL!!

I like this part most of all:

Quote:

To improve your health further, stop smoking, cut down on salt and high-fat foods, and limit your alcohol intake.

Any visitor to this site is seen as a smoking drunkard by default

P.S. I also noticed about no difference in results for males and females. Wonder why they put that sex box at all.
Theoretically, as I imagine it, men are supposed to be heavier than women of the same height, so that distinction would make sense. Strange they didn't take it into account.

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I have to EDIT because I can't SPELL!!

They don't take muscle mass into account at all and as far as I know that's the main reason men tend to weigh more than woman, so naturally they wouldn't make adjustments accordingly...

There's just so many reasons BMI isn't reliable
I think it tells a person a lot more to look at themselves and see how much flab is on their body than to get on a scale or calculate their BMI

And about this tip:
"Also, eat smaller portions at mealtimes and avoid snacking between meals."

Um yeah I've always heard you SHOULD snack between meals because it keeps you from getting too hungry (and then overeating at meals) and keeps your metabolism going steadily

LOL, its not just me that thinks its rubbish then!

Ideal weight has to have much more to do with fat/muscle ratio -interesting that changing the gender didnt have any effect though Cant believe I didnt try that

I think, ideal weight is a subjective feeling and it only means you feel comfortable in your body.

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I have to EDIT because I can't SPELL!!

the sex box is there because men and women have different ideal BMIs, because they have different amounts of natural body fat (Same with body fat measurements. Men are supposed to have about 15%, women 22%)

Maybe but the gender selector does nothing on that page, neither altering the BMI calculation nor the 'ideal' range values.

BMI 23.5, which on the upper end of "healthy". Apparently I'm borderline obese.

WHR 0.78, which is on the lower end of "healthy". Apparently, I'm borderline malnourished.

("healthy" in terms of my alleged gender)

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The boobs are just a set of metaphors.

17.5... :\