BMI below 20?

all of the other site i go to say that you are still at a healthy weight at a BMI of 18.5, but cc says not to be below 20. im at 20.2 and was wondering what others thought of this, i look far from under weight.

my bmi is 18.5 and i am NOT underweight.

I think it depends on the person.  I would say SOME people could go below 20 and be ok, but for the most part, 20 is a good stopping point. 

Sarah1090, not knowing you, I can not say with absolute certainty, but I see your goal weight is 90 lbs and that is a BMI of 16.5.  By anyone's calculater, that is underweight (a lot).  Is that really what you want to do?  I am just a little concerned about your goal.

yes that is what i really want. i hate the way i look, i was very depressed last year, and im trying to give myself reason not to hate myself.  my first step in that direction is accepting my physical appearance, and i feel that i will be able to do that when i weigh around 90.

Being skinnier won't stop you from hating yourself.

maybe not, but it can help.

hey sarah- i saw you want a 13.2 secnd 100 m..thats great! so you run track i suppose? I just wanted to let you know that when I was a sprinter (now a distance runner) I had a great freshman year running in the low 13s and then sophmore year i lost some needed weight and I just was so much slower. as a sprinter you need to have muscles and you need to be strong. strength will not come with less weight. I would advise not aiming for 90 lbs..thats really low and you have to try to reconcile with the fact that as you get older you do gain weight, not that much, but you do. Good luck with track!

yes they are right 18.5 still healthy (i think i am about 20.1 and my ideal weight is 18.8) but i have been told that bmi is not a reliable indicator. i think it is still a good 'marker' to aim for though.

A 'normal' weight range is between 20 and 25 BMI.  Below 19 you are classed as underweight and at a very high risk of experiencing the medical problems associated with that.   Few women continue to menstruate sub BMI 19, for example.  To maintain yourself underweight you are, by definition, undereating.  Chronic undereating exposes you to the risks associated with malnutrition..... hair loss, tooth loss, anaemia, muscle wastage, damaged immune system, frequent chills, strain on vital organs, loss of bone density (early onset osteoporosis), depression... sudden death.

To the person at 18.5 who wants to go lower, starvation is more likely to increase your feelings of depression rather than alleviate them.  So no-one should take what you're planning to do and think it's a good idea to copy it.  You've got problems.

Original Post by sarah1090:

yes that is what i really want. i hate the way i look, i was very depressed last year, and im trying to give myself reason not to hate myself.  my first step in that direction is accepting my physical appearance, and i feel that i will be able to do that when i weigh around 90.

Sarah, if you are unhappy with yourself at 100lbs (which is already VERY thin) why do you think you will feel any better about yourself at 90? You'll still be the same person you are now, just unhealthily thin. If you want not to hate yourself, you need to work on it where you're at NOW, not where you 'think' you'll be perfect. Your photos '107 lbs ewww, what a FATTIE' etc. show that you have a very unhealthy attitude towards your own body and your natural growth, and it's not going to get any better by itself no matter HOW thin you get. People who keep on thinking that way end up in the eating disorder unit at the hospital if they're LUCKY.

yeah sarah, i hate to tell you, but the more weight you lose (when already underweight) the more depressed you WILL become. when you lose those extra pounds, you will be losing your health. the first step to not hating yourself is absolutely NOT accepting your physical appearance, that's the last step. the first step is accepting who you are, your personality, and the choices you make. you may even find that you'll be happier and more comfortable with yourself by GAINING weight. studies show that the mental health of those who are OBESE is usually better than someone who is even slightly underweight.  you are using your weight as an attempt to control your emotions and life, instead of your health, and that is a symptom of an eating disorder. you deserve happiness, and hurting your body is not the way to acheive that.

hm i guess that makes sense. argh now im so confused i dont know what to do with myself.

i think you should try to think about what you truly are unhappy about.  reevaluate your weight goals. try maintaining the weight you are at now, and possibly even gain some weight. see if it improves your mood. when you are underweight, your skin will be pale, your fingers cold, your lips can turn blue, and it's just not very attractive! if you have an intense fear of gaining weight, if you honestly see yourself as FAT, even while at a healthy weight, and if you still try to lose weight after reaching a healthy weight, you need to ask for help.

i know what im truly unhappy about--im overwhelmed with stress from school, my relationship with my parents, college stuff, my friends, how i cant seem to accomplish anything, my weight, and some other things.  I figured I could prove to myself I could accomplish something if I could lose some weight.  I am a very inconsistent person and I wanted to try to maintain consistency for once.  It has made me feel better.  I've been eating healthier than I ever have before..and I'm not starving myself.  I guess I realize that I want to be as skinny as I would at 90 pounds with my current muscle tone now (not very much), but with more muscle.  I guess I'm skinny fat.  So maybe I should be focusing more on muscle toning than being 90 pounds. 

I have had trouble asking for help when I need it, but thanks for helping me realize that my goal is not really what I want.

i just want to say, from experience, being underweight changes your brain chemistry and makes you feel more and more depressed.  because everything feels out of control, you're turning to controlling you're weight, and i completely understand.  i'm just going to tell you now, it really won't make you feel any better (not even muscle tone), until you figure out and deal with everything else.

have you considered talking to a therapist?  that really helps, because they help you sort out everything.  also, that "feeling good" part from "eating healthier to get to 90 lbs" will disappear in no time, because you'll start to feel cold all the time, have blue fingers and feet, lose your hair (as in clumps will start falling off...no joke), lose your friends, etc...  i just want to warn you, so you don't have to go through all this.  best of luck.

Sarah, I remember looking through your gallery about a week ago, and I saw the picture of you where you called yourself a fattie, and it made me immensely sad, because of how thin you already are. I wish you the best of luck in realizing how beautiful you are right now.

healthy weight is

• Normal weight = 18.5-24.9
• Underweight = <18.5

hope this help

tennislove98, yes i have talked to a therapist and that just makes me more depressed. i just find it hard to believe that losing 10 pounds will make me lose my hair, etc. because all my friends are much skinnier than me and they are perfectly fine... thanks for the heads up though.

emilyd22222, haha thank you very much. im sorry it made you sad but it shouldnt because i will never realize 'how beautiful i am' because im not..im gross.  I know I'm not fat but I'm not thin either..all of my friends are skinnier than me and I feel extremely self-conscious when I'm around them and i'd like to change that.

im sorry ive caused so much commotion in this forum that was intended for other purposes.  i just seriously, honestly dont believe that having a bmi a little bit below 18.5 puts me or others at severe health risks.  I feel that it's ok to be a bit overweight and its no different to be a bit underweight.  im sure many people dont agree with that, but that's my opinion. 

i was a much, much happier kid when i was slightly underweight, so id like to get back to that point. thanks for the support though.

having a bmi of 16.5 is not a LITTLE bit below 18.5.  18.5 is considered underweight, and 16.5 is EXTREMELY underweight.  i know it may be hard to believe that having such an underweight bmi can be detrimental to your health, but to put things into perspective, one of my best friends was just hospitalized last week because of being severly underweight. she is 5'2" and 93 lbs. that's a higher BMI than the one you are aiming for.

you say you were a much happier kid when you were underweight. you're right, you were a kid then. now you are a woman who needs an adult body. you gained this weight because your body is maturing. to lose weight, you will be stunting your growth and going BACKWARDS.

your friends may be perfectly fine underweight because that is the way their body is naturally. if you allow your body to find it's natural weight, you will be beautiful. if you try to manipulate it, you will experience negative physical side affects. if you have good friends, they will support you and think you are beautiful the way you are. you should not have to change yourself. if your therapist doesn't make you feel better, or doesn't help you find ways to cope, i would suggest finding someone else. preferably someone experienced in dealing with eating disorders.

you have the chance right now to avoid something horrible, and potentially life threatening. hopefully these posts have made you aware of the dangers of being underweight. please make healthy choices :)

Sarah, BMI is a VERY individual thing and cannot be used as an EXACT guideline for every one

I am not skinny but I feel healthiest and look best when my BMI is 18.5 - 19. It is slim, but the right weight for me

Every one has a different bone structure and has different genes so a BMI of 20 may look “ skinny” on some people, and large on others, it depends what your natural shape is

LISTEN TO THIS: at your age I was lazy and hadn’t achieved anything and I turned to controlling my weight to feel in control and etc.

Using my weight as the only thing I “ could” achieve lead to an eating disorder that could have killed me.

When you get time, LEARN about how many carbohydrates/ protein/ and fats are ideal and experiment by finding what works best for your body; if you eat the right amount of those 3 Macronutrients for you then you will feel your best.

If you give your body what it needs to function at its best then this can make it easier for you to think clearly, and make it more likely that you can take the steps you need to get out of the predicament you are in.

Once my body was functioning better, I could think clearly enough to find out what was holding me back, and how to go about changing things in order to improve my life and to move forward.

Start at a basic guide line for the right amount of carbohydrates, protein and fats, and then experiment until you find the best mix for you, you can only know if you try things out!

Original Post by sarah1090:

emilyd22222, haha thank you very much. im sorry it made you sad but it shouldnt because i will never realize 'how beautiful i am' because im not..im gross.  I know I'm not fat but I'm not thin either..all of my friends are skinnier than me and I feel extremely self-conscious when I'm around them and i'd like to change that.

 

Hm, somehow that made me way, way more sad. Even if you never decide you are beautiful, I hope you learn how to value yourself for more than just how you look.