You may wonder if you should try to lose weight if your body mass index is already in a healthy range. Eating a healthy diet and exercising is always going to be part of a healthy lifestyle. You want to make sure you are doing the best for your body. You may not know if your diet should be one for weight loss and not weight maintenance. Understanding your BMI is important, but you must understand who should and should not lose weight when BMI is within healthy limits.
BMI Defined
Your BMI tells you if your weight is in proportion to your height and is an estimator of body fat. Your health care providers use your BMI for screening your risk of weight-related diseases. High BMI ranges increase your risk of diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers. A low BMI may indicate malnutrition or an eating disorder. The body functions best when it is in a healthy weight range, but some people in a healthy weight range may need to lose some weight.
Upper Healthy Limits
If you are at the upper end of the healthy BMI range, then you might want to consider losing weight. For example, if you are a female who is 5 feet 6 inches tall, you should not weigh more than 154 lbs., an indication of a 24.9 BMI. With a weight of 154 lbs., you would not be able to gain 1 lb. before going into an overweight category. This can place stress on you. You would need to count every calorie you eat religiously, not be able to slack on exercise or experience water retention -- which accompanies weight gain. This is almost impossible, so it might be a good idea to lose some weight if you are at the higher end of the healthy weight range.
Lower Normal Ranges
If you are at the lower end of a healthy BMI category, then you should not try to lose weight. For example, if you are a man who is 5 feet 11 inches, the lowest you can weigh is 133 lbs., which is a BMI of 18.5. People with a BMI lower than 18.5 are in an underweight category. Underweight people may not be getting the nutrients they need for optimal health.
Pregnant Women
Pregnant women should never try to lose weight. March of Dimes says that even if a woman is overweight before becoming pregnant, she should not go on a weight-loss diet as it could compromise the health of the fetus. If you are overweight and want to become pregnant, start a weight-loss diet before you try to conceive. Your body will be stronger and healthier for carrying a child.
Considerations
You doctor may not want you to lose weight, regardless if you are in a healthy BMI range. Those with anorexia nervosa, bulimia and other eating disorders should not try to lose weight without discussing weight loss with their doctor. Bulimics tend to be in a healthy weight range, unlike those with anorexia nervosa, but bulimics use unhealthy methods to lose weight, which could put their health at risk.
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