Determining Your Body Weight
Obesity is one of
the key opponents to enjoying a rewarding life and has
become the major threat to health. The mechanics of
overcoming obesity is very basic and rather simple at
best; and yet there is an entire industry
marketing an array of gimmicks ranging from fad
diets to herbal pills in an effort to mask the one
fact that in order to lose weight you must consume
less than what your body burns. In reality, no
matter what your approach to losing weight, the
bottom line will be the same: your body must burn
more calories than what you eat.
Many people start
out with grand intentions of losing weight only to
lose interest or motivation instead. This is partly
because they do not have a plan or see the vision of
what their goal is; they simply want to lose weight
but do not understand the “how-to’s” involved
with it. Knowing how much weight to lose, how to lose
the weight, how long it will take, and how it is done
changes the dynamics of everything; it can give a
person purpose and a sense of control over what they
are trying to accomplish. It will increase their
motivation and determination to follow through and
accomplish their weight-loss goals. It will not take
long until you begin to notice considerable results,
which will give you a greater sense of
encouragement. Nothing breeds success like success.
There
are four main ways to determine ideal body weight,
each of these are briefly highlighted below and come from excerpts
acquired from NutriBase Software. By knowing your
approximate body fat, and then comparing your weight,
body fat, and body size with that of established
criteria, you will be better prepared to create a
health and fitness plan that will work best for you.
Consider the following excerpts from NutriBase:
In
1942, Louis Dublin, a statistician at Metropolitan
Life Insurance Company, grouped some four million
people who were insured with Metropolitan Life into
categories based on their height, body frame (small,
medium or large) and weight. He discovered that the
ones who lived the longest were the ones who
maintained their body weight at the level for average
25-year-olds.
These
Metropolitan Life tables became widely used for
determining recommended body weights. In 1942, the
tables gave "ideal body weights." In 1959,
they were revised and became "desirable body
weights." And in 1983, they were revised once
again, this time called "height and weight
tables." The weights given in the 1983 tables are
heavier than the 1942 tables because, in general,
heavier people live longer today.
Experts
have criticized the validity of these tables for
several reasons:
1)
Insured people tend to be healthier than
uninsured people.
2)
Frame size was never consistently measured.
3)
The people who were included were predominantly
white and middle-classed.
4)
Some persons were actually weighed, while some
were not.
5)
Some wore shoes and/or clothing, some did not.
6)
The tables do not consider percentage of body
fat or distributions, which are now known to be
important factors in longevity.
Many
experts say the 1942 tables are more accurate because
they indicate lower "ideal weights." Many
experts support the use of the 1983 tables, citing
that these are the latest statistical sampling of such
matters. The American Heart Association recommends
using the 1959 tables rather than the newer tables
that suggest somewhat higher weights. This Guide shows
you the 1959 tables.
Some
experts criticize the Metropolitan Life tables stating
that they are okay for persons in their forties, but
that the numbers are too heavy for younger persons and
too light for older persons. For this and other
reasons, the recommended body weights are shown from
four sources: the 1959 Metropolitan Life Insurance
chart (table 1), the U.S. National Center for Health
Statistics (table 2), North American Association for
the Study of Obesity (table 3), and the U.S.
Department of the Army (table 4). The heights and
weights from these charts are displayed, showing you
the entries that are appropriate for your sex, height,
frame size, and age.
The
Metropolitan Life chart is organized by sex and body
frame size (small, medium, or large frame) and all the
other charts are sex and age-graded except for the
North American Association for the Study of Obesity,
which lists weights by sex only.
Table
1
|
Weight Chart for Men and
Women
|
|
Metropolitan
Life Insurance Company, 1959
|
|
|
Small
Frame
|
Medium
Frame
|
Large
Frame
|
|
Height
|
Male
|
Female
|
Male
|
Female
|
Male
|
Female
|
|
4’ 09”
|
-
|
90-97
|
-
|
94-106
|
-
|
102-118
|
|
4’ 10”
|
-
|
92-100
|
-
|
97-109
|
-
|
105-121
|
|
4’ 11”
|
-
|
95-103
|
-
|
100-112
|
-
|
108-124
|
|
5’ 00”
|
-
|
98-106
|
-
|
103-115
|
-
|
111-127
|
|
5’ 01”
|
105-113
|
101-109
|
111-122
|
106-118
|
119-134
|
114-130
|
|
5’ 02”
|
108-116
|
104-112
|
114-126
|
109-122
|
122-137
|
117-134
|
|
5’ 03”
|
111-119
|
107-115
|
117-129
|
112-126
|
125-141
|
121-138
|
|
5’ 04”
|
114-122
|
110-119
|
120-132
|
116-131
|
128-145
|
125-142
|
|
5’ 05”
|
117-126
|
114-123
|
123-136
|
120-135
|
131-149
|
129-146
|
|
5’ 06”
|
121-130
|
118-127
|
127-140
|
124-139
|
135-154
|
133-150
|
|
5’ 07”
|
125-134
|
122-131
|
131-145
|
128-143
|
140-159
|
137-154
|
|
5’ 08”
|
129-138
|
126-136
|
135-149
|
132-147
|
144-163
|
141-159
|
|
5’ 09”
|
133-143
|
130-140
|
139-153
|
136-151
|
148-167
|
145-164
|
|
5’ 10”
|
137-147
|
133-144
|
143-158
|
140-155
|
152-172
|
149-169
|
|
5’ 11”
|
141-151
|
-
|
147-163
|
-
|
157-177
|
-
|
|
5’ 12”
|
145-155
|
-
|
151-173
|
-
|
166-187
|
-
|
|
6’ 00”
|
149-160
|
-
|
155-173
|
-
|
166-187
|
-
|
|
6’ 01”
|
153-164
|
-
|
160-178
|
-
|
171-192
|
-
|
|
6’ 02”
|
157-168
|
-
|
165-183
|
-
|
175-197
|
-
|
|
6’ 03”
|
117-126
|
-
|
123-136
|
-
|
131-149
|
-
|
Table 2
|
US National Center for
Health Statistics
|
|
|
18-24 yrs.
|
25-34 yrs.
|
35-44 yrs.
|
45-54 yrs.
|
55-64 yrs.
|
|
Height
|
M
|
F
|
M
|
F
|
M
|
F
|
M
|
F
|
M
|
F
|
|
4’ 10”
|
-
|
114
|
-
|
123
|
-
|
133
|
-
|
132
|
-
|
135
|
|
4’ 11”
|
-
|
118
|
-
|
126
|
-
|
136
|
-
|
136
|
-
| |