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The good news is I’ve lost a pound in the last 3 days. But that’s all the good news there is. In fact, since I’ve been seriously considering contributing to this blog I’ve discovered nothing but bad news about myself. Escaping the tag “obese” shouldn’t be that hard for me, but getting down to a “normal weight” is going to be very tough, in fact, it may not even be possible.
It’s well known that America is fat. According to the CDC, Between 1970 and 2004, the percentage of obese, adult Americans (aged 20-74) has increased from 15% to 32.9%. But America is not the only nation battling obesity. Obesity rates are rising world wide, and it seems that no one has figured out how to win the battle against fat.
The health risks of being obese are also well documented:
Hypertension (high blood pressure)
Osteoarthritis (a degeneration of cartilage and its underlying bone within a joint)
Dyslipidemia (for example, high total cholesterol or high levels of triglycerides)
Type 2 diabetes
Coronary heart disease
Stroke
Gallbladder disease
Sleep apnea and respiratory problems
Some cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)
I don’t have any of these problems–sometimes I don’t sleep well, but I don’t think I have sleep apnea–yet.
But back to me and my plight. I’ve done some BMI number crunching and have come to some sobering conclusions:
At 220 pounds, my BMI is 31.6, which classifies as mildly obese. In order to escape the “obese” category, I have to lose 12 pounds. 12 pounds isn’t so tough. I could do it in a month. I’ve done it before, but it has always come back. This is supposed to be get fit slowly, remember? Here’s the hard (and sobering) part about my weight. My goal is to be healthy, both in terms of body weight and activity level–right now, I’m neither. In order to achieve this goal, I have to drop my weight down to 173 pounds. This would give me a BMI of 24.8. At 1-2 pounds per week, that’s 24-48 weeks from now. I’m not worried about the time frame because this is a lifestyle change, not a diet. But I am worried about dropping that many pounds. It seems like I will waste away to nothingness just trying to get to the highest level of the normal weight category. If only I could grow 3 inches as well!
J.D.
7 responses so far ↓
1 Sally Parrott Ashbrook // Oct 31, 2007 at 2:28 pm
Has anyone explained to you what a crock BMI is? It was started by a guy who was working with an insurance company to help them determine what ‘risk’ rates to charge for what weights. Do you think that MAYBE that might skew it in favor of labeling you fat when you aren’t? They have messed with the numbers since then a bit, but really–it’s still skewed. Look at the BMI Project to see illustrations: http://flickr.com/photos/77367764@N00/sets/72157602199008819/
Dan was only considered ‘normal’ for his BMI when he weighed 175 pounds. I didn’t know him then, but he looks GAUNT in photos of him at 6′ tall and 175.
I’m still considered obese (just barely) with the weight I’ve lost (10 pounds or so more than when we saw you), and when I look at myself, I do not see an obese person.
Sooooo . . . I’m not saying don’t lose weight. I’m just saying that’s not the metric I’d use to measure success.
2 macdaddy // Nov 1, 2007 at 8:17 pm
3 Russell Heimlich // Nov 12, 2007 at 9:27 am
I came to the same conclusion on my 22nd birthday. After looking in the mirror, I decided to change a few things in my life so I could get back to a healthy weight. For one, I tried to concsiously cut out junk food. Instead of canned chef boyardee for dinners I turned to Healthy Choice frozen dinners. Instad of a bagel with cream cheese for breakfast, a bowl of cereal. No more 1% milk, I went to Skim. I’ve been using SkinnyR .com to track my weight which helps keep my weight and the decions affecting it in the forefront of my mind.
My highest recorded weight was 217.4 lbs. Just recently I dipped below 200 and even touched 195.8! All it took was a few simple changes and I shed some extra pounds. Next stop 190!
You can see my real time progress here -> http://static.skinnyr.com/swf/FCF_Line.swf?dataUrl=http://www.skinnyr.com/xml/charts/1288.xml
4 Don J // Nov 13, 2007 at 10:55 am
My numbers are almost identical to yours (macdaddy), except that I am further along with the weight loss — had my lowest weigh-in to date this morning at 190.2 lbs!
I am looking at the BMI as one of several guidelines, and the biggest warning I hear about it is that it doesn’t work AT ALL for people with any significant level of muscular development. My main focus is on body fat percentage, and I think the target I am aiming for is around 15%. Oddly enough, my quick calculations show that I would need to be around 170 lbs to hit that body fat percentage — which is the same number for me to get to a “normal” BMI.
I do think, though, that I am likely to build some muscle along the way. That means I won’t need to lose twenty pounds to take my body fat from the current 25% down to 15%. For now, 170 lbs is my target, but I will adjust that according to changes in body fat as I lose weight.
Does anyone here have any good information on body fat percentage? I have seen a bunch of websites listing healthy ranges, but I have no idea if they’re reasonable.
Also, for the record: last time I was at 190 lbs, I was very happy with my body. I am a LOT happier at 190 lbs now than I was at 220, but I definitely feel that I still have a lot of excess body fat that I could stand to lose. 190 is a great target, but when you get there be sure to reassess! I think it is easier to keep losing weight than it is to stop at 190 and then decide to drop to 180 later.
5 How Fat is Too Fat? // Nov 18, 2007 at 2:32 pm
[…] A few weeks ago, Mac revealed that his BMI is 31.6. I computed mine today: 31.0. I, too, am mildly obese according to this metric. Mac calculated that he could achieve a “healthy” BMI in 24-48 weeks. My personal goal is to achieve a weight “around” 160 pounds. Mac wants to lose 47 pounds. I want to lose 44. We both want healthy, sustainable lifestyles. […]
6 Pam // Nov 18, 2007 at 4:46 pm
I know exactly where you are mentally right now! I used to weigh 276lbs at 5′9″. I told myself I wanted to get down to 180 at the very lowest - I thought I would be “too thin” at that size. Well, 3 years later, I am now 167 and thin enough that I am happy with my size (a size 8), but now it’s changed into a health thing. I’ve started running and lifting weights and the pounds are still coming off. The human body is an amazing thing and yours will end up surprising you I think
Just as mine has!
7 Lazy Man and Health // Nov 20, 2007 at 4:55 pm
As mentioned, please don’t use BMI. I’m not even sure if it’s even a tool at all. I think the body fat percentage is a bit better, but it’s still not great.
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