BMI Chart for Men: A Measure for Health?

The BMI chart has been used for quite some time on both men and women to show potential health risks.

While this used to have much more weight, within the last few decades, BMI is used as an initial measure. With further testing, doctors and the fitness industry can get a much more complete picture of health.

In the Golden Era, BMI wasn’t a factor considered when competing. Body fat and muscle mass percentages were used, but actual circumference measurements were more important. However, bodybuilding competitors weren’t necessarily focused on their health so much as their physique.

What do you think of BMI? Do you think it’s a good indicator of health, or should it be just a small factor among many?

Today, you’ll learn more about BMI:

• What it is
• The history
• How wealth affects body composition
• How it’s used today
• What the research is showing
• Other ways to get a measure of health
• How to calculate your BMI
• Ways to change your BMI and body composition

What is BMI?

BMI stands for Body Mass Index. It’s a measure of body composition based on mass and height. The BMI chart is a metric most often used in the medical field to determine if you’re at a healthy weight. 

Once input, you’ll get a value that tells you if you are in the right range for your height class. Most BMI charts are listed in feet and inches for height (cm in metric) and pounds (kg for metric) for weight.

The BMI chart can be used for people of all ages simply by inputting the height and weight into a calculator. However, in kids aged 2 to 20, the BMI chart is compared to others of a similar age. Adults are placed into categories while children are placed into percentiles.

Here’s how they breakdown:

Before we get into the different uses for these numbers, let’s first look at the history of the BMI chart.

The History of BMI

The concept of the body mass index was first introduced by Belgian statistician Adolphe Quetelet over 200 years ago. This was first seen in his 1835 publication titled In Sur l’homme et le développement de ses facultés, ou essai de physique sociale (A Treatise on Man and the Development of His Faculties). 

It wasn’t until the year 1972 that the term “body mass index” was used to explain Quetelet’s calculation. Ancel Keys and other professors submitted a paper in the Journal of Chronic Diseases. Keys did extensive research leading up to this paper on how BMI could be used as an indicator of health.

He set out to determine if there was in fact a correlation between being overweight and suffering from chronic diseases. What he found was a U-shaped curve that showed higher instances of disease in the underweight and obese. Given his research, Keys was also critical of William Sheldon’s Trunk Index method to determine body type. 

Wealth as a Health Indicator?

Even back in the 1950s, he saw the correlation between wealth and having a higher BMI. That correlation still exists today, with the highest BMI affecting both men and women in the United States the most. 

This chart from the World Health Organization shows 62% of Americans are overweight while 26% are obese. The upper-middle-class income has the highest ratios. Men in the highest income have slightly higher percentages while women actually reduce at those income levels.

This phenomenon is not unique to the United States. Studies find that as other countries’ economies continue to increase, so do weight and body fat. This is not based solely on higher income levels, as some countries see increases in their poorest residents.

It makes sense sometimes, especially as wealth increases. People can afford to eat more and may not make the healthiest of food choices. This is true even more so for those who previously went without in poorer conditions.

For those who are still poor even when their economy flourishes, this could be because of several reasons, including:

• Limited access to fresh produce
• Abundant availability of nutrient-poor food
• Scarcity complex (bingeing when food is available knowing the next meal may not be anytime soon)

While income isn’t always tied to a higher body fat, it shows a trend in some countries. So, is BMI still an indicator for health? Let’s find out.

What is BMI Used for Today?

Do you remember the last time you went to the doctor’s office? Once you were called back, a nurse likely took some measurements:

• Height
• Weight
• Temperature
• Blood pressure

The temperature is used to see if you may have a fever or underlying immune response that needs attention. Taking your blood pressure helps to determine if you have the right amount of blood pumping through your body. If it’s too high or low, there could be indicators of certain health issues:

• Chest pain
• Heart failure
• Heart attack
• Stroke
• Chronic kidney disease

Your height and weight are used to calculate your BMI. They use the value provided as a baseline snapshot of your health. If you’re outside of the normal range, there could be some issues that should be addressed.

For instance, if you fall into the underweight category, a low BMI could show the following health issues:

• Increased risk of depression and suicide
• Malnutrition
• Vitamin deficiencies
• Developmental issues (more prevalent in younger males and females with low BMI)
• Poor immune system
• Lack of energy
• Fertility issues

Those who fall into the overweight or obese categories can risk having some health issues as well:

• Type 2 diabetes
• High blood pressure
• Osteoarthritis
• Sleep apnea
• Higher risk for some forms of cancer (colon, rectum, gallbladder, kidney, breast)
• Complications during pregnancy
• Fatty liver disease

A doctor’s visit isn’t the only place where BMI can come into play. Here’s a look at different areas of the medical industry where BMI can be a focus.

Where else is BMI used?

A trip to the doctor’s office isn’t the only reason that BMI is used today. Whether or not you realize it, some life insurance companies also consider your BMI to determine the rate you’ll get. 

There are several factors also used and not all companies weigh this value the same. There are also some specific policies you can get that doesn’t even factor BMI into the equation. However, this is something to take into consideration and ask if you’re looking to get life insurance.

Also, some health insurance companies can increase your rates using BMI as a reason to do so. The thought is that the heavier you are with more body fat, the higher the costs to treat. Some studies also show that overweight and obese people:

• See the doctor more often
• Have more medical issues
• Use their health insurance more frequently with higher costs associated by doing so
• Are on more prescription medications

Whether this is right remains to be seen, as studies also find that even obese people can still technically be healthy.

Is BMI a True Indicator of Health?

As more data is collected and analyzed, researchers find that BMI may be a poor indicator of health. This is mainly because body fat percentage and muscle mass are not part of the equation.

You may have heard the adage “muscle weighs more than fat.” While that’s not true (a pound of muscle equals a pound of fat), muscle takes up less volume in the body. 

Take this comparison photo above, for example. Both men could weigh the same amount, but one has more muscle while the other has more body fat. If you were to look at them knowing no further information, could you tell they weigh the same?

This is a flaw with the BMI calculation, and some consider it a pretty big flaw. Studies are bringing to light the fact that we can only use it as part of the whole picture.

How many of you have been told that your BMI value indicates that you’re obese? Then, you look in the mirror at your physique and see what looks like the picture of health. A well muscled body with little to moderate body fat. 

What gives? Does this mean that no matter what, you will be labeled as unhealthy and at risk for cardiovascular diseases? Don’t worry, the research is catching up, showing that BMI really is not a true reflection of health.

What the Research Says

Consider this study from the International Journal of Obesity. Researchers studied over 40,000 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys completed from 2005 to 2012. Here’s what they found:

• Twenty-nine percent of obese individuals were considered metabolically healthy.
• Thirty percent of people considered normal weight were actually cardio metabolically unhealthy.

The General Physiology and Biophysics Journal did this study on 299 trained basketball players. Their BMI was calculated and body fat percentage taken by Tanita bioimpedance body composition analyzer. Of the 299, 85 showed a BMI over 25, yet only three of those subjects had excess body fat.

Another factor not always considered is the effect the BMI calculation has on mental health. Especially in men, who tend to skew higher on the BMI chart as being overweight or obese. Being told you are something on paper and seeing something different in the mirror can have negative effects.

We’d love to hear from you in the comments if you’ve calculated your BMI or had it used during a doctor’s visit. Has the number on the BMI chart affected your self worth? Do you think it’s had an effect (positive or negative) on your physical or mental health?

These aren’t the only studies that show BMI shouldn’t be used as an indicator of health. Sure, they can use it as a starting off point, but there are other ways to determine the true picture of health. We’ll get into those in the next section.

Better Ways to Determine True Health

Luckily, there are other ways to determine health factors other than BMI. If you have had none of these tests or calculations done, it may be something to consider.

For instance, body composition factors are used, including:

• Fat-free mass
• Skeletal muscle mass
• Appendicular skeletal muscle mass 
• Height-waist circumference

Appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASMI) is being used to compare to BMI to determine mortality and disease risk. ASMI is the lean body mass of your extremities (arms and legs) in kg.  Dividing this figure by height in meters squared gives your skeletal muscle mass (SMI).

In people with mitochondrial disorders, SMI is used to determine the severity of the disorder. It’s also been used in men and women to compare with their BMI. This study shows that when accounting for muscle mass, BMI skewed downward toward normal ranges.

Researchers at Cedars-Sinai have also created a formula called the Relative Fat Mass Index (RFM). The formula is slightly different for men and women, shown here:

Relative Fat Mass Formula

MEN: 64 – (20 x height/waist circumference) = RFM

WOMEN: 76 – (20 x height/waist circumference) = RFM

When using the RFM formula, all males and females involved show BMI chart obesity misclassification.

Other methods used to determine body fat mass include:

• Skinfold thickness measurements (with calipers)
• Underwater weighing
• Bioelectrical impedance
• Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA)
• Isotope dilution

However, these methods should be done by trained professionals for accuracy and can be more expensive. The main reason that we still use BMI as an initial indicator of health is because it’s cheap and easy.

Now that we’ve gone over the pros and cons with using BMI values, let’s look at the ways to calculate it.

Calculating Your BMI

If you’re interested in calculating your BMI, there are a couple of ways you can do it.

First, you can calculate it yourself by taking your weight and dividing it by your height (in inches squared). Then, multiply that figure by 703. You can then compare the resulting value to the BMI chart to determine where you fall.

If you’d rather not, then you can use our calculator right here. Simply input your height and weight and the calculator will give you the BMI value.

Of course, if you have higher amounts of muscle compared to body fat, don’t be surprised by your BMI category. Men are much more common to be considered obese or even very obese by BMI standards.

Once you’ve got your BMI, you may not be happy with the results. Here’s what you can do to fix your value.

Ways to Increase your BMI

If you’re underweight and want to gain, using a supplement like Vintage Build™ will help you bulk up. It’s designed to help you build muscle and not bulk while you’re working out using BCAAs, creatine, and glutamine.

You can also work to gain weight with a healthy diet that’s higher in proteins and fats. This, along with the right supplements, can help even the hardest gainers improve their body composition. 

Look at how fellow hard gainer, Larry Scott, perfected his physique during the Golden Era.

Things to consider when changing your diet to gain weight:

• Increase healthy fats and reduce unhealthy fats
• Eat smaller, more frequent meals throughout the day
• Get more protein in your diet
• Swap out simple carbohydrates for complex carbs
• Hit the weights harder and limit cardio

Ways to Lower your BMI

If your BMI is too high, and you’d like to lower it down towards the normal range, try Vintage Burn™. This premium weight loss supplement is specifically designed to preserve muscle while maximizing fat loss.

Now, if you have a lower body fat percentage, you may not need to make any changes. As you’ve found in this article, BMI is just one piece of the puzzle. However, if you can stand to lose some body fat, doing so will improve your muscle gains.

When it comes to diet, here are some suggestions:

• Reduce calories (if needed)
• Eat more protein, moderate fats and carbs
• Increase cardio sessions
• Maintain strength training but possibly reduce the amount of weight

Hopefully some of these tips will help you get closer to the body composition you’re looking for. Not all the tips will work for everyone, so try something for at least four to six weeks before you stop.

If you’ve found something that works, we’d love to hear about it in the comment section. You might just be able to help someone else out who is having the same issue.

The Bottom Line

When it comes to using BMI calculations, men tend to have higher numbers. This translates to being labeled as overweight or obese, without factoring in body composition.

As you saw today, BMI is not an indicator of your true health and it’s being recognized in the health community. Body fat percentage and skeletal muscle mass are much better health and composition measures.

If you’ve gotten a surprisingly high or low number when calculating BMI, you’re not the only one. The tips we provided can help you lose or gain weight, which can also help improve any health concerns.

Have you had your BMI and body fat percentage calculated before? Were you surprised by the results? If you’ve worked to make changes, what helped and what didn’t? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.