What do many people consider to be one of the toughest processes in existence? The answer for many is losing weight. Losing weight is hard enough, but losing weight, keeping it off, and maintaining a healthy weight is a real headache for most of us. Have you ever noticed how there are some people out there that can seemingly eat and drink whatever they like, whenever they like, and barely gain a single ounce in weight? Then there’s you, that seemingly just has to glance in the general direction of a cookie or other deliciously rich product, and you find yourself 5 pounds heavier than you were at the same time the day before? Life is decidedly unfair in that respect, but rather than moaning or complaining, we simply get on with it instead. When it comes to your weight, you’ve probably heard a lot about BMI, or Body Mass Index. But what is BMI, what should your BMI be, and how can you calculate it yourself? Here’s a look at what BMI is, a few facts about BMI, potential flaws, and how to create a BMI calculator.

What is BMI? – Your body mass index is basically a calculation which takes into consideration, a person’s height and their weight, in order to determine whether or not they are at a weight which is deemed by healthcare experts to be healthy and beneficial. Basically, this calculation is used as an indicator of a person’s overall health and well-being. You see, if you have what healthcare officials deem to be a high BMI, you will be at a much greater risk of a wide variety of chronic illnesses and diseases, including, but not limited to:

• Type-2 Diabetes
• Fatty Liver Disease
• Hypertension
• Cardiovascular Disease
• Heart Attack
• Stroke
• Some forms of cancer

As you can see, based on the info above, having a high BMI is generally not considered a good thing. This is why it’s so important to have a healthy BMI. 

What is a healthy BMI? – According to experts, a healthy BMI is anything from 18.5 to 24.9. individuals in this range should try to stay within this range as it will greatly reduce the likelihood of illness and disease. Anything at 25 or above is considered high, and will, therefore, class an individual as overweight. Being overweight puts you at risk for a wide range of illnesses and ailments, including those we previously listed. However, it is also possible to have a low BMI, which is also dangerous. If your BMI is below 18.5 you are classed as underweight, which can also be very dangerous.

BMI flaws – Speaking generally, using the Body Mass Index calculation to get a general overview of a person’s health and well-being is fairly beneficial. However, the system is far from perfect, and it does have many flaws and drawbacks. You see, BMI only takes into account a person’s weight. Now, if the entirety of their weight was made up of body fat it would be fine, but it isn’t. Water, both in the body and from our food, can cause us to weigh more, as can muscle. Muscle is twice as dense as fat, so the more muscle you carry, the more you weigh. A 5ft 10-inch bodybuilder weighing 225 pounds of muscle, with a body fat percentage of 14% and visible abs, would be carrying very little body fat, and would obviously be about as far removed from being obese as you can get. On paper, however, he is simply 5ft 10 and weighs 225 pounds, which according to BMI, would make him obese.

How to calculate BMI – Now we’ll finish off by looking at how to calculate BMI yourself. It’s actually very simple. Simply divide your overall weight in KG, by your height in metres. Then finish by dividing the answer by your height in metres again. This is now your BMI. So, if you weighed 80kg and were 1.80 metres tall, you would divide 80 by 1.80, which would give you 44.4. Now, divide 44.4 by 1.80, giving you a BMI of 24.6.