What Should I Weigh?

Health Tip:

Body Mass Index ( BMI), is the quickest and easiest way to determine what your weight should be. It is a range used by healthcare providers to determine what we should weigh based on our height. The formula is used by the American Diabetes Association, and can be found at: http://www.eatright.org/Public/content.aspx?id=6844


It seems that everyone has a different ideal or idea of what their weight should be. Is anyone ever really happy with their weight? Clinically, I have found that people are often set on a certain number, often a random ideal that they have set up for themselves. As we consider what an epidemic obesity is in the US, I have found it very helpful to use the BMI chart to give people an idea of the range their weight should be. For example, 20-25 is the ideal, and over 30 is considered obese. This is a range that has been shown by research to be the healthiest for a person based on their height. It is a formula that works well to protect our overall health. In fact, the BMI is often used like a vital sign to determine a person's overall health in many clinics. Most people find it a lot less intimidating than the random weight number they've dreamed up in their mind.

I think the most important point when considering our weight is to realize that this is an area we can have an active part in protecting. Most chronic diseases today are correlated with excessive weight. Did you know that simply walking 20 minutes a day can have immense effects on your heart health? In fact, weight aside, research by the American Heart Association (AHA) that there is a 'fat fit' person, who although their weight may be in the overweight  section, their daily exercise compensates for that- even if the weight doesn't come down quick or enough.

I am so inspired by my patients to stay in shape to the best of my ability. In concluding, I want to tell you the story of Martha. When Martha was diagnosed with cancer, she didn't let that stop her from getting outside everyday for her walk. She always told me that not only the exercise, but, the daily fresh air kept her going, even through the chemotherapy treatment. Martha lived for year after she was diagnosed with cancer. She walked up to the last month of her life, and her zeal had inspired many in her life to start walking too. In her frequent visits to the office she reminded me that she knew her purpose in this life. While she lived her life to the fullest, she also knew how to keep her eyes anchored in the unseen world of HOPE.   Martha's life lived out the truth of 2 Cor 4 " we fix our eyes on what is unseen, for what is seen is temporary, but, what is unseen is eternal."

As we consider the many struggles that come our way everyday to keep healthy emotionally, physically, and spiritually , I pray you may be encouraged by Martha's story and others like her- to forge ahead in the daily discipline of life, with hope in Christ as our guide!