There seems to be as many opinions and misinformation floating around about personal weight that I thought we might share and perhaps open our minds a bit. Here are the questions that I feel will provide useful info:
Age
Sex
Height
Present weight range (many people vary 3-4 lbs over a day)
Ideal weight range for optimum health (your opinion)
Ideal weight range for optimum swimming performance
What steps are you taking, or will you be taking, to lose or
gain the weight difference between present & optimum.
I'll start
54
M
6'1"
220-224
190-194
182-188
Drastically cut down drinking & desserts; resume active training
As several posters have noted, the "ideal" weights from health practitioners (and from Weight Watchers although that is a sound nutritional program) seem very low. Recommendations based on BMI also frequently seem too low especially for athletes. BMI calculations do not assess body fat percentage so athletes often have a higher than "ideal" BMI but are not overfat as they have a higher muscle mass than non-athletes.
There is far too much emphasis on ideal numbers. The emphasis should be on overall health and secondarily on performance.
If you follow a healthy diet with alcohol in moderation and exercise regularly, you will be healthier, live longer, and have a better quality of life than if you eat junk and never move. Proper nutrition and regular training improve performance as well.
At any weight, a person who exercises regularly is healthier than a person of the same weight who is inactive. If we would concentrate on healthy habits instead of ideal numbers, we would all be healthier and happier.
As several posters have noted, the "ideal" weights from health practitioners (and from Weight Watchers although that is a sound nutritional program) seem very low. Recommendations based on BMI also frequently seem too low especially for athletes. BMI calculations do not assess body fat percentage so athletes often have a higher than "ideal" BMI but are not overfat as they have a higher muscle mass than non-athletes.
There is far too much emphasis on ideal numbers. The emphasis should be on overall health and secondarily on performance.
If you follow a healthy diet with alcohol in moderation and exercise regularly, you will be healthier, live longer, and have a better quality of life than if you eat junk and never move. Proper nutrition and regular training improve performance as well.
At any weight, a person who exercises regularly is healthier than a person of the same weight who is inactive. If we would concentrate on healthy habits instead of ideal numbers, we would all be healthier and happier.
