What should be your Body Weight?

One of the most common questions received in our feedback emails is “how much should I weigh for my height?”

To determine your ideal body weight, several factors should be considered, including age, muscle-fat ratio, height, sex, and bone density. May be, calculating your Body Mass Index (BMI) is the best way to decide whether your body weight is ideal.

The levels of overweight and obesity in one country, such as the USA or UK, are much higher than in The Netherlands. So a Dutch person may aim for a lower ideal weight than an American if all he did was to compare himself to other people.

Is Body Mass Index (BMI) a good measure?  Your BMI is your weight in relation to your height.

BMI metric units: Your weight (kilograms) divided by the square of your height (meters)
e.g. Weight 80 kilograms. Height 1.8 meters.
1.82 meters = 3.24                  80 divided by 3.24 = BMI 24.69.

Health authorities worldwide mostly agree that:

People with a BMI of less than 18.5 are underweight – between 18.5 and 25 is ideal – between 25 and 30 is classed as overweight  and with a BMI over 30 is obese.  Experts say that BMI underestimates the amount of body fat in overweight/ obese people and overestimates it in lean or muscular people.

What is Waist-hip ratio (WHR)?

This is the ratio of the circumference of your waist to that of your hips. You measure the smallest circumference of your waist, usually just above your belly button, and divide that total by the circumference of your hip at its widest part.

The WHR of a person is a much better indicator of whether their body weight is ideal and what their risks of developing serious health conditions are, compared to BMI. Various studies have shown that people with apple-shaped bodies – who have larger WHRs – have higher health risks compared to people with pear-shaped bodies – who have lower WHRs. An apple-shaped person will have more fat accumulating on the waist, while a pear-shaped person has the fat accumulating on the hips.  A woman with a WHR of less than 0.8 is generally healthier and more fertile than females with higher WHRs.

What is Body Fat Percentage?

Your body fat percentage is the weight of your fat divided by your total weight. The result indicates your essential fat as well as storage fat.

Essential fat – this is the amount of fat you need to survive. Women require a higher percentage than men. Essential fat is 2%-5% in men, and 10% – 13% in women.

Storage fat – this consists of fat accumulation in adipose tissue, some of which protects our internal organs in the chest and abdomen.     Total body fat percentage – this is essential fat plus storage fat.

Any male whose body fat percentage is over 25% or female over 31% is either overweight or possibly obese.

Conclusion: You can work out your BMI, WHR, or Body Fat Percentage.

BMI & WHR can be done easily in your home.

WHR is more accurate than BMI.