Ideal body weight may be defined as the body weight that provides the lowest health risk. This varies widely by individual, but some methods exist so that you can determine your healthy weight range. These methods typically take factors such as height, age and gender into account.
Body Mass Index
The body mass index (BMI) is a common method of comparing weight with height to obtain ideal weight ranges. The BMI may be calculated as BMI = w/h^2 in which "w" is the weight and "h" is the height. Most references use a BMI based on metric units (kilograms and meters.) The formula works with pounds and inches by multiplying weight by 703 before dividing by height squared.
Healthy BMI
The healthy weight range for adults is traditionally given as a BMI between 19 and 25. This standard is the same for both genders, and more recent definitions have a separate range for males and females. A normal BMI range for adult females is commonly given as between 19.1 and 25.8. The corresponding BMI range for adult males is between 20.7 and 26.4.
Children
The normal BMI range for children must be assessed differently because their height is still changing. After the BMI is calculated for a particular child, the BMI chart for that child's gender may be consulted. The child's BMI is cross-referenced with the child's age, and that point is compared with percentile curves on the chart. These curves provide the approximate BMI percentile score for that child.
BMI Percentile Score
A child's BMI percentile score indicates the percentage of children in that child's gender and age group that have a lower BMI than that particular child. A BMI percentile score between 5 and 85 percent indicates a normal weight.
Limitations
The BMI is designed for people with average frames and may provide inaccurate results for those with light or heavy frames. It's also most useful for people who are generally sedentary and will tend to classify athletes as overweight.
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