So, Who Says I'm Fat?

For centuries the definition of fat has been up for grabs. A
hundred years ago, a man's bulging belly or a woman carrying 20 extra
pounds signified wealth, desirability and high social status. But if
today's rail-thin supermodels were transported back to those stodgy
times, their figures would doubtless be deemed undernourished and
under-sexy.

In more recent decades, insurance companies set general standards in
the United States for healthy height and weight. But their definitions
of overweight and obese have grown skinnier over the years.

So How Do You Know If You're Fat?

And how do you figure out what's the best weight for your
health? Sure, you could stand naked in front of a full length mirror
for a self-evaluation, but you may only focus on your face and screen
out the rest of your body the ultimate denial. Or, you could ask your
insurance company for a copy of its height and weight tables and see
how you rate. Or, you can have an exercise physiologist measure your
body fat level.

Perhaps the best way to know how your body fits into the fat spectrum
is to do as experts such as the National Center For Health Statistics,
insurance companies, and physicians do, and use the Body Mass Index, or
BMI.

The BMI is your weight in kilograms divided by the square of your
height, in meters. While the National Center For Health Statistics and
the U.S. Centers For Disease Control and Prevention offer guidelines
for evaluating overweight and obesity, it must be noted that these
still apply only to general populations and not individuals.

Calculate Your BMI

We've made it easy to calculate your BMI by translating the metrics to pounds. Try it!

1. Multiply your weight in pounds by 703.
2. Multiply your height in inches by itself.
3. Divide the first number by the second.
4. Round to the nearest whole number: that's your BMI.