Your Body Mass Index

If you want to be your best in bodybuilding, it’s important to include in your technique a scientific approach. After all, bodybuilding is based heavily on science and data. To succeed in bodybuilding, many individuals look to the body mass index as a gauge to determine where to improve in your routine. If you learn exactly how it works and follow it carefully, you will have faster results and more progress.

Your body mass index (BMI) is a form of statistical measurement, and it helps determine whether an individual’s weight is proportionate to his or her height. The BMI was actually created by a Belgian man named Adolphe Quetelet somewhere between 1830 and 1850. The point of your body mass index is to figure out what weight would be ideal for a person of your particular height and gender.

These days, the BMI is used not only for bodybuilding goals, but also as a way to measure whether people are obese or not. Obesity has become a frightening epidemic, with an estimated 60% of American adults being overweight. While the BMI is not the final say in whether someone is considered to be obese, it is a good general indicator of how much someone of a certain height and gender should weigh.

To find your body mass index, divide your current body weight by the square of your height. The universal unit of measurement is kg/m2. The discovery of your BMI can help a professional determine how sedentary you are based on your body composition. It’s also important to note that the BMI can indicate when people are too thin as well, not only when people are overweight.

An ideal weight for a man is 18.5 to 25. Under 18.5 is usually underweight, and over 25 usually means overweight. Someone with a BMI below 17.5 is usually suspected to be suffering from anorexia or some other eating disorder. Conversely, someone over 30 is considered to be obese, and in some cases, morbidly obese.

Once you know your body mass index, you can use that information to determine where you want to go. One thing to keep in mind is that muscle weighs more than fat, so this can skew the results of your BMI if you aren’t taking it into account. Also, even if you have a BMI that indicates you are in the “ideal weight” category, this is still just a general guideline. You can be unhealthy and be in the ideal weight section, or be healthy and be in the “underweight” or “overweight sections”, because it’s still somewhat subjective.

As a bodybuilder, you can use your BMI to figure out whether you should lose more body fat or gain more muscle mass. You could find yourself in the obese category because of how much your muscle weighs compared to your height. Each point indicates how close you are getting to your goal. Hopefully, you can now use your body mass index to help you achieve your bodybuilding goals.