How Can I Calculate A Healthy Weight?
Have you gained weight over the holidays? Are your cheeks looking too chubby suddenly? Or do you feel as if your favorite shirt is getting tight for you? Should you start taking gym lessons? Or maybe it’s time to go on a diet?
You start feeling scared because various question marks are popping into your mind out of nowhere, and you’re unsure because the next step is the most dreaded one. Standing over the weight machine, feet apart and seeing that red pointer move as you think; Am I obese now? Am I underweight now? Or should I just call myself ‘healthy’?
We all have often gone through this phase of facing a social stigma regarding being too thin or too fat. Weight is one of the biggest dilemmas because it is often neglected, but it is time to ask yourself who is going to be responsible if you suffer from common health problems tomorrow? Who is to blame if you’re the culprit who’s rotting your own self?
Majority of people across the globe are experiencing obesity or under-weight problems, and it’s pitiful to see the common masses not having even a basic knowledge of what an ideal healthy weight should be.
What is BMI?
If you’re one of such individuals that are really motivated to keep a strict check on their health, then you should be familiar with the simplest way to calculate your body weight. This method is all about calculating the BMI – also known as the Body Mass Index.
Figuring out how much you should weigh is not simply a matter of looking at a height-weight chart, but includes considering the amount of bone, muscle, and fat in your body’s composition. This can be figured out by the BMI formula. This standard is a worldwide system used by people of all age groups to find out if they are actually healthy or not. The formula for calculating your BMI is very simple given as;
BMI = weight/height²
(Weight is taken in kgs and height in meters)
BMI Ranges
Now that you’ve gathered precise measurements of your weight (kg) and height (m), the next step is to put the values in the formula and calculate your answer. Compare your body mass index with the standard ranges to find out where you stand.
- Underweight: BMI is less than 18.5
- Normal weight: BMI is 18.5 to 24.9
- Overweight: BMI is 25 to 29.9
- Obese: BMI is 30 or more
This Body Mass Index can be used to screen for weight categories that may lead to health problems in the long run. Try keeping yourself at a BMI value of 20-21 which is considered ideal. This way, you can safeguard yourself from different weight-related disorders including hypertension, heart diseases common in obese people and anorexia, hypoglycemia occurring in underweight people.
How is BMI Useful?
Developing an understanding of your optimal weight can motivate you to remain consistent regarding your health. Always try keeping your BMI between 18.5 and 24.9, though slight fluctuations are also tolerable.
A wide range of normal BMI will make you less conscious about your weight and help you set realistic weight goals.
Never become too overweight or too underweight, rather learn to control your fat consumption. Keep in mind that being excessively overweight or underweight has its own consequences.
It is crucial to realize that height also contributes significantly to maintaining a person’s overall weight. This is the reason why the BMI incorporates both factors; weight and height.
Other calculations of weight do not include a framework of all the basic body components. BMI helps you gather a basic idea of the framework of your body if you have a small, medium or large frame.
Keeping your BMI Range Normal
If you’ve met with unsatisfactory BMI results finding that you’re obese or underweight, do not freak out. Weight is not a constant figure, and it always swings above and below the set limit. That’s totally normal. Plus, there are always ways to maintain a healthy weight.
• For Overweight People
If you are suffering from obesity, the biggest way to normalize your BMI is to start taking greater amounts of water and simultaneously cutting down the intake of fats. This includes avoiding junk, fast food, sugars, pizzas, sweets, chocolates, soft drinks, etc. These food items not only increase your cholesterol level but are the leading source of heart diseases and hypertension. This surely does not mean to go on a fierce diet suddenly, but reduce your intake of sugars daily step by step coupled with regular exercise. Change your body in a systematic and adaptive way.
• For Underweight People
For those of you who are susceptible to underweight problems and want to gain a few more pounds, the simplest method is to increase your carbohydrate intake. Drinking 2 glasses of banana milkshake or eating energy-rich foods is a great solution. In addition, boost up your dairy intake and drink a lot of milk. Nuts, rice, and red meat, will also help you put on weight. But remember that carbohydrates and fats are a totally different category, so avoid fatty foods because you certainly don’t want to have raised cholesterol levels.
No need to worry!
After all, by the end of the day, you do realize that you need to grow. You need to outgrow from those wrong concepts of weight and body mass and give your body the right to decide for itself whether it is healthy or not.
Every one of us is perfect and beautiful. Your weights and heights are perfect. All you have to do is maintain your health in the finest possible way. Let the person standing on the weight machine realize that weight is not just a number- it is a matter of health and sickness. And it is only you who can control these numbers because only if you maintain a healthy weight, you will be able to serve justice to your body.
