1. Why You Should Maintain Your Ideal
Knowing and maintaining your ideal body weight not only ensures that you are feeling great in your own skin, but also provides you with a number of health benefits. Studies show that excess body weight can increase your risks for a number of medical conditions, including depression, heart disease and diabetes. Additionally, there are just as many risks involved with being underweight, as malnutrition and vitamin and mineral depletion are almost always a factor. Having too little body weight can cause nervousness, depression and leave you open to infection.
2. The Simple Numbers
Body mass index (BMI) is the standard method for gaging how much body fat is present on your body and can be a great place to start when determining your ideal body weight. Most medical professionals use BMI to calculate ideal body weight as it is fast, inexpensive and accurate. To calculate your current BMI, first square your height in inches. Divide your weight in pounds by your squared height and multiply the result by 703.
3. Recognizing Your Ideal
Once you know your BMI you can determine exactly how much weight you need to gain or lose to reach your ideal body weight. Ideally, your BMI should be between 18.5 and 24.9. This may seem like a wide range; however, you must keep in mind your activity level, your age and your sex. Men, athletes or those with more muscle mass as well as people under 20 should all be near the higher range. Additionally, it is natural for the body to have a higher BMI as you get older. As long as your weight is within this range, you should feel good about your health and body weight. Keep in mind as well that being overweight, or falling between 25 and 29.9 BMI increases your health risks, but being obese, or above 30 is extremely dangerous.
4. Setting a Goal
To determine how many pounds you need to gain or lose to reach your ideal body weight determined by BMI simply requires a reversal of the equation. Divide your goal BMI by 703 and then multiply the result by your height in inches squared. The resulting number will be your ideal body weight in pounds. Subtract your current weight by your ideal body weight to reach your weight gain or weight loss goal.
5. Be Realistic
It is important to be realistic when setting weight loss goals, as studies have proven that getting to the lower ranges of BMI can be far more difficult for those who have been overweight since adolescence and those over 40. Start at the higher range of BMI, as the lowest BMI does not necessary mean the healthiest BMI. Once you have entered into the healthy range, you and your doctor can decide whether gaining or losing a few pounds is right for you.
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