What Is A Good BMI For Women?
BMI is identified by your weight relative to your height. For many females, calculating their body composition using BMI ranges can assist in identifying body fat levels. What is a good BMI for women? Liftyolife (liftyolife.com) will help you answer the question in this post.
1. What Is BMI (Body mass index)?
BMI (Body Mass Index) is calculated using a formula that considers your height and weight. It does not directly evaluate body fat; however, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) claims that it correlates with methods of evaluating body composition, consisting:
- Evaluating fat directly taken from skinfold thickness (with calipers).
- Using a weak electrical current through your body to evaluate bioelectrical impedance and resistance.
- Measure heaviness oneself underwater.
- Measure lean muscle mass and bone using a dual-energy X-ray.
Your current BMI can help identify your risk level for many metabolic diseases. Though this is not a diagnostic tool, it can show you if you are underweight or overweight, and this information allows you to identify how many pounds to reach and drop to maintain optimal health.
2. How To Calculate BMI?
To count your BMI, you need to use the adult BMI calculator. Besides, you can also use the below formulas to calculate your BMI:
- The USA units. (Weight in pounds ÷ height2 in inches) x 703 = BMI
For instance: 100 pounds ÷ 702 inches x 703 = 14.35.
- Metric units. Weight in kilograms ÷ height2 in meters = BMI
For instance: 80 kilograms ÷ 1.82 meters = 24.7.
3. What Is A Good BMI For Women?
What is a good BMI for woman? What is a good BMI for a woman? A good BMI for women is between 18.5 and 24.9. To find your BMI, you can look at the information below:
BMI | Weight identification |
Under 18.5 | Underweight |
Between 18.5 and 24.9 | Normal |
From 25 to 29.9 | Overweight |
30.0 or above | Obese |
4. Why BMI for women is not always reliable?
Females’ BMI ranges could be unreliable if you are:
- Postmenopausal.
- An ethnicity is other than white.
- An athlete.
For postmenopausal, the older they are, the more body fat they have a tendency to have. Because females would go through menopause, their hormone levels decline. As hormones decrease, it leads to reducing muscle mass and increasing belly fat.
Besides, ethnicity can influence your muscle mass and body fat distribution. One study claimed that females of Mexican descent had more body fat than Black and white females.
For athletic women, the more active they are, the more muscle mass they have a tendency to have. Yet, BMI doesn’t factor in muscle mass and body fat, so it is useless.
5. Others Methods to Measure Weight And Health
Women can use other methods to understand their weight, disease risk, and body composition.
- Waist-to-hip ratio (WHR): This method is used to measure abdominal fat and can be a strong indicator Trusted Source of future health problems.
- Waist circumference: This method evaluates belly fat, which is the primary indicator Trusted Source of a person’s risk for weight-related disease.
- Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA): DEXA is a bone density scan that shows you your rate of muscle mass, bone mass, and body fat.
What is a good BMI for women? A healthy BMI for women falls from 18.5 to 24.9. However, the BMI indicator isn’t accurate for females of an ethnicity other than white, postmenopausal, and athlete. To measure weight and health correctly, you can use other methods such as waist-to-hip ratio, DEXA, and waist circumference. With this knowledge above, Liftyolife (liftyolife.com) hopes you enjoyed this post about a good BMI for women.