| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
jessiaka
Joined: 07 Jan 2006
|
 Posted: Thu Aug 24, 2006 6:54 am Post subject: |
 |
|
The BMI scale is so flawed. Bleh.
You have to realize that ALL it takes into consideration is someones height and weight. It doesn't take into account fat-free mass (think about heavy muscle).
Therefore, if someone is quite fit (which usually means more muscle!) their BMI will most likely tell them they're overweight or obese because of the simple fact that muscle weighs more than fat. |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
atlhockey
Joined: 20 Aug 2006
Location: Jeonju City
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 24, 2006 7:03 am Post subject: |
|
|
| jessiaka wrote: |
The BMI scale is so flawed. Bleh.
You have to realize that ALL it takes into consideration is someones height and weight. It doesn't take into account fat-free mass (think about heavy muscle).
Therefore, if someone is quite fit (which usually means more muscle!) their BMI will most likely tell them they're overweight or obese because of the simple fact that muscle weighs more than fat. |
But if someone is fit chances are good that they KNOW it and aren't worried about their misleading BMI. The fact remains, however, that for the adult of average activity level, the BMI is a decent estimate. No scale involving humans is going to be perfect, not even underwater weighing. There's too much variation from individual to individual.
Hard to judge the study before reading the original, however, as journalists are notoriously bad at interpreting results and/or reporting important details. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
EFLtrainer
Joined: 04 May 2005
|
| Posted: Thu Aug 24, 2006 5:50 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| crazylemongirl wrote: |
I have a body mass index of almost 23 which puts me on the heavy edge of normal. However I'm at the point now where if I drop even a bit of weight the Korean teachers start complaining that I've gotten too thin as there really isn't much fat on me.
I just think that the body mass index is flawed as it doesn't take into account overall fitness and lifestyle. Perhaps better would be a body fat % but of course that's a lot harder to mesaure than plugging in a few measurements. |
Yes, body fat is the key indicator. They creatd this stupid-ass BMI to make it easy for the avg. person, but it's nothing but a waste of time as it is simply not accurate. They need to add bone structure to it and how much you can pinch in a few different places, at minimum. Bonse structure probably would be easy. There are bound to be certain fairly constant ratios there. For example, wrist to height.. something easy to measure. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
