Why BMI measurements and the scale can be EVIL.

According to a BMI calculator I found online, and the standard accepted measurements of what a "healthy" BMI is, I am severely OBESE. This is total bull. BMI is nothing but your height/weight ratio. So essentially, two people who are the same height and same weight would have the same BMI regardless of what their body fat percentage is. So you could have a 200 lb body builder and a 200 lb guy who has a lot of fat and very little muscle and they would have the same BMI and thus be categorized in the same way, regardless of their fitness levels or body fat percentage.

I agree that if I had an "average" amount of muscle for a woman and weighed what I do, yes that would probably mean I was very obese. Why? Because fat doesn't weigh as much as muscle, and the amount of fat I would have to gain on my body to keep my weight where it is without the muscle would be substantial. I've known people that weighed less than me, but who had a higher fat percentage and were less fit.

Everyone's body is different. We all have different fitness levels, muscle/fat ratios... to try and judge someone based on their height/weight ratio alone is ridiculous.

Due to the fact that muscle weighs more than fat, the scale can be deceiving. You could have been eating right, going to the gym, and see that you've gained weight. When I spent some time body building after college I gained 12 lbs of muscle. I looked and felt much better than I had before, even though I weighed more than I ever had.

For women, the scale can also be very misleading during those times when we're retaining water and getting a little bloated. So we should remember not to freak if we go up a couple pounds and instead wait and see what the longer trend seems to be before jumping to conclusions.

In my journey towards losing weight and getting healthier, the 50 lbs I want to drop this year is a guideline. I'm also paying attention to how I look, how I feel and what my body fat percentage is. If I only lose 40 lbs but manage to drop 10-15% body fat and a few pant sizes, I'll consider that a huge success!!