A Great Way to See Your Progress-BMI

[Kat817 19]

I agree that BMI is a nice tool to have to track progress, similar to the scale---meaning it is helpful, but it does not tell the whole story. My beautiful DD is just like Ceredad, she is tall 5'9", and ACTIVE!!!! According to the charts she would still be overweight, and by more than a simple pound! But this girl is a 36D, on top and wears a size 7 in Juniors!!!! But she has muscle tone that is incredible. She runs marathons! She lifts weights 3 X weekly, and does cardio 2X weekly one week then swaps the next. She only gets this time, as she does it in the company gym---but her weekends she is running with the dogs, she is GO GO GO!!!

There is actually not that many pounds separating my DD and I---------but the shape we are in is totally different!!

Her body fat is very, very low.....mine is slowly going down!

We love having ways to track our progress, and scales, and BMI charts, are great, but a measuring tape, and a good physical cannot be replaced by either!

In all honesty it saddens me to think something like a chart can say she is overweight, when ANYONE looking at her, would just shake their heads. You do not see her bones poking through----and you don't see body builder level of muscles, but she looks like I dream of looking!

Kat

[Kelgirl68 0]

I just realized that I went from a BMI of 45 at my surgery date to a 38 as of a couple weeks ago!!!!! Thanks for posting this, what a boost for the ego! :biggrin:

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

I think we should take into account % body fat as well as it makes a huge difference as well as bone structure. I have a small bone structure and my % body fat is about 33% right now. Now if I reach 8-10 % body fat at any weight I will most likely get an unfill and be very happy. I think body fat plays a very important role, maybe even more so than BMI in how healthy someone is.

That being said to answer questions of how I lost so quickly: In Aug 07 I started my pre-op diet at 350 pounds, but Sept 07 I was 333 and had surgery. 4 weeks post-op I started working out, 20 minutes a day and now I'm up to a few hours a day. I mainly do cardio, but have recently (in the last 4 weeks) added some strength training. The less I weigh the more I work out and the more energy I have to dedicate to my workouts. I have a room dedicated to working out in my home and I moved my recumbant bike to the living room so I get in additional workouts while watching TV.

Yes I am a bit obsessive about working out. I figured I payed so much for surgery that this is going to work. And I'm going to make it work.

I watch every little thing that goes into my mouth, literally every thing. I switched to soy milk as I became lactose intollerant. I can't/don't eat bread, rice, Pasta, candy, Cookies. I allow myself one slice of pizza a month from a medium thin crust pizza from Domminos. But on that day I add an extra hour to my workout. I drink lots of Water and 2-3 cups of tea a day. On a day I try to get in about 600-800 calories and as much protien as possible. I also quit eating meat, due to the fact that I get sick of chewing it and then it looses its taste. I eat boco burgers, tofu, smartdogs and egg whites for protien. Since being banded I haven't had a whole egg, only whites. And I'm very satisfied eating this way. The only craving I get is for hot tea, probably because it's winter here.

I have to laugh, I could have written this post. Well, except the "smartdogs" ... I don't know what that is.

You are working the band the right way and it is paying off. Congrats to you! I wanted the fat chapter closed once and for all. I kept it at 600 calories, watched every bloody thing that went in my mouth, overhauled my eating habits, busted my butt in cardio, it was ALL worth it.

Congrats to you!

[LiseSeattle 0]

very nice chart. i'm severely obese. dear lord. i think when i get to "normal" i will tattoo it on my forehead!

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

very nice chart. i'm severely obese. dear lord. i think when i get to "normal" i will tattoo it on my forehead!

Don't let the labels get to you.

Where did I hear this??? Something about the reason your eyes are on the front of your body is so you can see where you are going, not where you have been. ;o) You are headed for "healthy" weight. You merely started a little higher.

I was MO too, I was thrilled when I was merely obese. Then the best one is when I was just plain fat (overweight). Aka chunky, not a bean pole, chubby. ;o)

It only gets better! Give it time.

[georgia girl 35]

Whoa, I started out Superobese (54.9 BMI) and now I am on the lower end of Morbidlyobese (42.9 BMI). I still have a long way to go but it does help me realize how far I'm come when I look back at where I was. I'm going to be soooo excited when I'm just obese, then overweight, then NORMAL!!!! It's gonna be great!!

[juliegeraci 7]

I was 49 BMI and now am at 32 BMI. My goal is 28 BMI. I am 30 lbs from goal.

[Angelyco 0]

So...what if your BMI is over 60? :tongue:

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

So...what if your BMI is over 60? :tongue:

All it means is that you are here and headed in the right direction. Nothing more.

[shortgal 5]

In an effort to try to help Ceradad's explanation on why BMI is just one measurement of healthy weight, I took this quote off one of the pages on a BMI calculator:

BMI is not always an accurate measurement for very fit people with low body fat. More often I think men fit into that category becasue they naturally have more muscle mass than women.

BMI charts are a good measurement for the average adult. The chart totally applies to me... all jiggily and all!

Part 1: Assessing Your Risk

According to the NHLBI guidelines, assessment of overweight involves using three key measures:

• body mass index (BMI)
  
• waist circumference, and
  
• risk factors for diseases and conditions associated with obesity.

The BMI is a measure of your weight relative to your height and waist circumference measures abdominal fat. Combining these with information about your additional risk factors yields your risk for developing obesity-associated diseases.

What is Your Risk?

1. Body Mass Index (BMI)

BMI is a reliable indicator of total body fat, which is related to the risk of disease and death. The score is valid for both men and women but it does have some limits. The limits are:

• It may overestimate body fat in athletes and others who have a muscular build.
  
• It may underestimate body fat in older persons and others who have lost muscle mass.

[Fed_Cop 0]

Hi Kelgirl68!

It's so good to see someone from Nebraska on here. I'm attending my first seminar on the 17th (March) and wondering what your thoughts are about Dr. McBride? Also, did she require a liquid diet? Thanks so much for your help with my questions.

[gweniper 0]

thanks i have been looking for one of these to use

[Bergdorfblonde 3]

Angelyco, I read your blog and I think you are incredibly courageous for doing this! I would say forget about BMI for a while and just focus on your goal of fitting into a store bought wedding dress. That is definitely a great first goal. I can totally relate to a lot of things you said on your blog, especially when you said you have a great job and a great boyfriend, etc but people just see you for your weight. That totally hit home. Thats how I feel about myself too. I am much more than a fat girl and now I am ready to show the world that!!

So...what if your BMI is over 60?