subject: What is BMI and How Do I Get Rid of It? [print this page] What is BMI and How Do I Get Rid of It? What is BMI and How Do I Get Rid of It?
If you read morning newspapers or watch the evening news, you've no doubt heard this statistic: two-thirds of Americans are overweight or obese. But what exactly does that mean?
According to the government, "overweight" is defined as having a Body Mass Index (BMI) between 25-29.9, and "obese" as having a BMI between 30-39.9. A BMI over 40 and you're really in trouble (not just with the government, but with your doctor as well).
To find your BMI, use the following formula:
BMI = (Weight in Pounds / ( Height in inches x Height in inches ) ) x 703
The first time I used the formula, I came up with a BMI of over 87,000, so make sure you do the math correctly. If you don't trust your math skills (I never trust mine), then use this handy Adult BMI Calculator.
As you can see, your height and weight have something to do with your BMI. If you're 4'3" and you weigh 150 pounds, you have a different BMI than if you're 5'10" and weigh 150 pounds. Unfortunately, there's no way to make yourself taller.
There's no way to get rid of your BMI either. At least, not for now. In the meantime, the best we can do is manage it. The best way to manage a high BMI is to lower it. The best way to lower a high BMI is to slowly increase the amount of physical activity we get and decrease the number of calories we eat. (By slowly, I don't mean next year.)
According to the government, all of us should be getting a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate physical activity at least five times a week. Examples of moderate physical activity include walking briskly, dancing, light weight training, gardening, hiking, etc.
If your day doesn't allow time for gardening and dancing, you can get those 30 minutes in other ways. For instance, maybe you take one 15-minute walk at lunch and another one when you get home from work. You can break up the 30-minutes in other ways too, but the goal is to get at least 10 minutes at a time. Walking to the water cooler doesn't count, unless it's around the corner and down three blocks.
The second thing we can do to lower a high BMI is to decrease the number of calories we're getting. There are lots of easy ways to do this without enrolling in a prepaid meal plan. One of the easiest is to stop drinking soda pop every day. A 16-ounce bottle of soda pop has about 200 calories. If you drink two of these a day, that's 400 calories. Skip them and you've already made the adjustment.
The good news is that you can get started right away. Keep up your efforts every day and you will gradually improve your BMI. To your health!
