Putting Body Mass Index (BMI) in terms that are easy to understand…
In order to put Body Mass Index (BMI) into terms that are easier to understand, I’m going to use my BMI numbers. I’m 5′ 10″ and I weigh 230 pounds. That means I have a BMI of 33. According to my BMI score, I am obese. I need to drop my BMI to under 30 to go from being obese to being overweight and under 25 to be in the range that would be considered to be in the healthy range. For me to get my head wrapped around this, I need to think in terms of weight, which is something that I can more easily relate to. Using the BMI calculator, I determined that for my height, each BMI point equates to 7 pounds. That means I need to lose around 21 pounds to go from being obese to overweight and another 35 pounds to get to the top of my healthy weight range. So I need to lose a total of 56 pounds to be at the top of my healthy weight range based on BMI, which would put me at 174 pounds. Wow! I can’t remember the last time I hit the scales at 174 pounds. BMI is nebulous. Thinking in terms of weight rather than BMI helps me put things in perspective. Thinking about my actual weight measured against a healthy target weight is something I can relate to. I had a heart attack in September of 2013. In retrospect, I should have started thinking about making changes at that time. One thing I’m learning in my coach training is that change is hard and people tend to remain entrenched in their own comfort zone. The good news is that it’s never too late to start working on health. You can’t change your wellness history, but you can make positive changes that contribute to your wellness story going forward.
- What changes would you like to make for the New Year? - January 2, 2015
- Welcome to GarlandSmith’s Coaching Blog - January 1, 2015
- Believe… - December 29, 2014
