So, I have lost 123 lbs so far but still have around 24 more lbs to go before I am out of my obese BMI and 63 more to go before I have a normal BMI. The crazy thing is that when I share this with others they are in disbelief. And, I have to say that while I still feel a bit overweight, I actually don't think I look obese at all anymore. Almost everyone assumes I am already done or just have a tiny bit more to lose. I know it is awesome that I carry my weight very well but technically my weight is no healthier than someone of the same BMI who looks bigger. It is frustrating that while I feel good about how I look, I still know that I am technically obese. That makes me feel like I must be fatter than I realize. I know that thinking isn't rational and that I should just not focus on the # at all, but that is hard to do. I am so glad I feel healthier and look a lot better but I am ready to be able to say that I am NOT obese anymore...

I know what you mean about wanting to have a good bmi. It's still important, but what you have done is amazing! Congrats! And that's really great that people assume you have just a little left to lose. Soon that last bit will be off, right? Don't give up!

I know how you feel a little bit. I've lost over 50lbs and I'm still at a 41 BMI which is 2 points away from just being obese and not morbidly obese. It's kinda discouraging to work so hard and still be labeled as morbidly obese!

On a similar note, I'm not sure how I feel about telling people how much weight I've lost. I'm honestly embarrassed that I've lost 50lbs and am still really big. I'm going to stay with a friend pretty soon and his parents know I'm dieting, so I'm dreading the "how much have you lost since you were here last?" question and I'm hoping they don't ask. I'm pretty sure his mom weighs less than 100 pounds so if I tell her 15 pounds since late December (when I left their house) she would probably be shocked and confused. To someone who I'm assuming always been thin I'm sure that seems really strange.

I know how you feel! When I tell people how much weight I have to lose, they seem to think I'm nowhere near large enough to need 120 pounds gone, or I only have a little bit left to go. Still, I know that I need to keep losing for my BMI to be healthy and to avoid future health risks. It's probably best to focus on the number and concentrate on health over looks (or how others see you), although that's definitely not an easy task!

Good luck on the rest of your journey, you've done incredibly well so far!

BMI is a meaningless number for everyone but more so for you. You're 6'2" so BMI does not apply. BMI is flawed because it assumes that a body's mass increases as the square of the height. Generally mass increases with the cube of the linear dimensions, so a formula using the square will skew to higher BMI's for tall people.

Also, if you've been lifting weights since you started losing weight it is practically guarenteed you carry more muscle than the average woman thus further screwing up the BMI calculation.

Forget BMI.

Thanks everyone! ps. I am attaching a current pic of me... I may just have a skewed perception of the way I look but I don't see an obese person in the mirror now...

John - I never knew that about BMI and taller people. It makes a lot of sense though. That actually makes me feel a lot better. I want to keep going with my weight loss because I would still like to get smaller. However, I have a sneaking suspicion that when I am still not in my "normal" BMI range, I might feel that I am small enough to stop. We will see. I have huge bones so I start looking pretty skeletal if I really get into my normal range much at all. (thats how I looked in High school... too small).

I will try to just focus on how I feel and how I look and forget the BMI.

Oh, and you are right, I know that I definitely do carry a lot more muscle mass than an average woman. I actually was really lucky and didn't loose much from my athletic younger years so I had a good base to work with.

My BMI is 26 which means I'm over weight, except that I'm not overweight I'm just too tall for BMI to apply at all. Unfortunately I don't have the overly muscled thing to go by.

I agree BMI is innaccurate. Maybe you can have your bodyfat % measured instead? I think it gives a more realistic, individual look at where you are health-wise. The trick is to have someone who knows how to do it for you so that it's accurate- and the BEI scales can't do it accurately, so don't trust them either!

Wow, I think you look great! Definitely not obese

I agree, you look wonderful! Not at all "obese". I do think BMI tends to be a bit messed up for taller people. I'm not as tall as you, but I do get "there's no way you weigh that much" from nurses at the doctor's office when they'd weigh me. I'm also willing to bet that you wear smaller size clothing than other people at your weight.

Awesome job losing 123lbs so far, btw! You rock!!

BMI for individuals is MEANINGLESS. BMI is only good for using for data for masses of people, nothing more. So FORGET the BMI - PERIOD.

I have a 5 year old son, who, like me has a very large frame (I know, I know... don't all fat people say that? Well, for me it's TRUE!). AND he's very tall. When he steps on the Wii, depending on the day, it has him at obese or at risk. When you look at the growth charts for children, he's way over the 95th percentile for height AND weight. Yet, he's a slim boy! No doctor has EVER said he was overweight or his BMI is too high, because it's simply not true!!!

Now, is it true that you probably could lose a bit more to be at your "ideal" weight. Yes. But that does not make you obese. Only you can know what your ideal is and really, I would get a caliper test down by a professional or a dunk test taken to see how much 'fat' you really have left. BMI is absolutely meaningless.

And wait, how can you need to lose 63 lbs to have your BMI be in the perfect range? That would mean your "ideal" is 127 pounds when you're 6'2" tall? My wii says my ideal at 5'6" is 136 (for a normal BMI) and I know that's WAY too low for me. I would be underweight. Did you miscalculate somewhere? Are you sure you didn't plug in 5'2"?????

BMI correlates pretty well with body fat for most people. John's right about very tall people and bodybuilders, but I'd caution against assuming that that BMI is "guaranteed" to be wrong for anyone who lifts. Most non-steroid using women lifters simply can't put on enough muscle mass to skew BMI calculations enough to nudge them into the overweight or obese category. This makes sense: just as the categories seem sticky on the way down, as the OP noted, so too are they sticky on the way up.

Moreover, in my experience (15+ years at this) most women who want to build muscle are also pretty careful about keeping body fat low. There are exceptions, particularly in women's powerlifting and related sports. But, the typical woman lifter isn't willing to accept a big jump in fat in order to maximize muscle gains (the classic bulking strategy), so her actual weight and hence BMI isn't going to shift around all that much, even if she lifts heavy.

Imperfect though it is, BMI is consequential because its correlated with health outcomes, and health insurance companies care deeply about these correlations. They're not going to test all their potential clients for body fat: it's way too expensive and besides, every known BF% testing method, short of post-mortem dissection, has known measurement error. For the average American, BMI isn't that much worse than these more expensive measures, and it's averages, and average risk propensity, that drive insurance companies' profits. Aetna simply doesn't care whether you or I are upset that we're labeled "obese" vs. "overweight."

//b. strong,
Kim

BMI wasn't designed for individuals but has been co-opted for them because it's very easy to measure and does have correlates with health outcomes.

But I would say that you can choose your end goal, and don't worry too much about BMI per se. Worry about your fitness and health. Talk to your doctor and go from there.

You are gorgeous, southerbelle!