Why BMI (Body Mass Index) Is the Worst Calculation to Use As a Guide
Let's take a closer look at why this happened.
1. I'm Worthy ... But Am I Fat?
Say it now? If you are fit and have some sexy feminine muscles, then you will appear as fat on a BMI scale. This is because it does not take into account your body fat percentage.
Since you have more muscle mass than fat it will say that you have a high BMI. But obviously you are not fat.
All you need is a calculation that takes into account your body fat percentage ... and here's the problem.
2. Calculate your Body Fat
It is surprisingly painful in the ass to calculate your body fat percentage. You can use scale, but this is very inaccurate. You can use calipers that do a good job but you need to get measurements from different places in your body.
- Pinch the diagonal next to your belly button
- Under the bend of your hand (parallel to your arm)
- Draw a diagonal next to your shoulder blade (impossible to do on your own)
So when it's a big caliper ... it's hard to do on your own.
Finally you can pay a lot of money for absorption tests. This is where you get submerged in water and your computer can find you a percentage of body fat. It's the most accurate, but expensive.
That said you can see that finding a percentage of your unhealthy fats, though possible, can be painful. So what do you need to use.
3. My Favorite Fat Test
Get up and go see the mirror ... you're done!
Your mirror is the best fat test. If you can see the excess body fat in your body, then you are your scale.
Who cares what you weigh. It's all about how you look and how you feel. If you look great then you feel great. And am I right?
So stop using the "BMI" test. It's broken and worthless. Every once in a while, I recommend calculating your fat percentage as this can be a very motivating number to see a decline. And finally just look in the mirror and use it as your fit and fat test.
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