How to Calculate the Ideal BMI

Body Mass Index is a mathematical formula used to identify the percentage of fat a person is carrying. This measurement is a more accurate indicator of overall health than just weight alone, as it takes sex, height and body type into account. There are numerical ranges on the index that pinpoint the level of fat and indicates if the current weight falls into a healthy range or not.

Instructions

• 1

  Stand in your bare feet, back against a flat wall with your heels touching the wall, to measure your height accurately. Take a hardcover book and place it on the top of your head. Looking straight forward, make a small mark on the wall where the bottom of the book touches the wall. Take a tape measure and measure from the base of the wall to the mark. This is your height.

• 2

  Measure your weight with an accurate scale. Before your do this, make sure that your scale is calibrated correctly. The starting value must be zero for an accurate reading. If it is not, adjust the scale or move it to a location where the floor is flat. Remove all your clothes and stand on a scale. Read the value and record it.

• 3

  Take the values of height and weight and insert them into the formula. The Body Mass Index value is the total body weight divided by height. The weight is measures in kilograms and your height is measured in meters. The value is your body mass index.

• 4

  Calculate your body mass index. Less than 18.5 is considered to be underweight. Anywhere between 18.5 and 24.9 is healthy. A BMI from 25 to 29.9 is more than healthy weight, and 30 or higher is an unhealthy or obese weight.

• 5

  Multiply your ideal BMI by your height in meters. The solution is your ideal weight in kilograms. Calculate for both the lower value of the Ideal BMI range, 18.5 as well as the higher value, 24.9 to see the lowest and highest weight you can be to fall within the ideal BMI range.