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Result

Based on your BMI, your estimated ideal weight range is:

Other evaluations using alternative formulas:

How to use this calculator

There are different ways to calculate the ideal weight, the quickest is to use our online calculator, for this, you must enter all the data requested: height, weight, and gender.

Once you have carefully entered this data in their respective boxes, click on “Calculate” and our simulator will do the rest.

The calculator yields different values:

What is the ideal weight

The term "ideal weight" has become popular, when attending a medical or nutritional consultation you have surely been evaluated and according to the result you were informed how far or close you are from that measure.

The ideal weight is the translation of the English "ideal body weight", but it has been misinterpreted making people believe that it refers to a single value as the ideal weight, which is the reference for everyone equally without considering the differences in terms of physical constitutions.

Hence, the use of the term "healthy weight" has been suggested, defining a range of body weight that is related to an optimal state of health, understanding that there must be a minimum and maximum weight limit where good health can be maintained. (1)

It should be clarified that the referential values of healthy weight are not synonymous with good physical appearance, the latter responds more to the distribution of body fat and the type of body you have, than to the amount of weight you possess.

Calculating the ideal weight for a woman

The physical and body structure of women is different from that of men. By their physical nature, they have a higher percentage of body fat than men as well as a lower muscle mass. The distribution of muscles is also different, the bulk of the muscle mass is located in the lower part of the body.

The constitution greatly influences the healthy weight. Three typologies are recognized:

As is known , men and women have clearly different body structures : to know which morphological type you belong to, measure the circumference of your right wrist in centimeters, and compare it with the following list:

Height below 1.58 m (5'2")

  1. Small = wrist size less than 13.9 cm (5.5")
  2. Medium = wrist size from 13.9 to 14.6 cm (5.5" to 5.75")
  3. Large = wrist size more than 14.6 cm (5.75")

Height from 1.58 to 1.67 m (5'2" to 5' 5")

  1. Small = wrist size less than 15.2 cm (6")
  2. Medium = wrist size from 15.2 to 15.8 cm (6" to 6.25")
  3. Large = wrist size more than 15.8 cm (6.25")

Height above 1.67 m (5' 5")

  1. Small = wrist size less than 15.8 cm (6.25")
  2. Medium = wrist size from 15.8 to 16.5 cm (6.25" to 6.5")
  3. Large = wrist size more than 16.5 cm (6.5") (2)

If you are in the third category it means that the weight you have calculated with our simulator is too high and you should reduce it by at least 5%, however, if you are in the first category it means that the result obtained by the calculator should be increased by at least 5%.

Calculation of the ideal weight for men

Men have a physical structure designed to have a lower percentage of body fat and therefore this is the best indicator to determine the healthy weight.

Regarding body mass, men's muscle tissue is much greater than in women and is concentrated especially in the upper part of the body.

As you can read above, men and women have highly distinct body structures, to discover the morphological type to which you belong measure the circumference of your right wrist in centimeters, compare the results and act accordingly:

Height over 1.67 m (5' 5")

  1. Small = wrist size from 13.9 to 16.5 (5.5" to 6.5")
  2. Medium = wrist size from 16.5 to 19 cm (6.5" to 7.5")
  3. Large = wrist size more than 19 cm (7.5") (2)

If you have a heavy morphology, you should reduce the figure previously calculated with our simulator by 5%, because it is too high, on the other hand, if you have a light morphology, it means that the result obtained is lower than your ideal weight, and therefore, you should increase it by 5%.

What happens in athletes ?

Although it is true that the formula that relates height and weight has a certain efficiency in the medical field, this cannot be extrapolated to the sports sector.

For some athletes, their ideal weight is much higher than what it should theoretically be . In fact, if an individual has a robust skeleton and practices a powerful sport, the result yielded by the traditional formula that only considers height and weight might be insufficient.

Formulas for calculating the ideal weight

BMI

The Quetelet index or Body Mass Index (BMI) is an anthropometric indicator that is calculated by dividing the weight in kilograms by the height in meters squared (BMI = kg/m2).

This index allows interpreting the distribution of weight in the body area. Due to the practicality of its calculation, it is the most used indicator to know the nutritional status and the ranges of healthy weight.

BMI Classification

The formulas we will describe below differ from BMI as they do not handle healthy weight ranges, if you have doubts about which result is most suitable for you, we suggest you consult with a nutritionist-dietitian, this professional with their experience and after performing a personalized evaluation will decide the formula that can best define your healthy weight.

Miller's Formula

Miller's formula for calculating the ideal weight was established in 1983. Miller is based on the belief that the ideal weight for a man should be 56.2 kilograms at 5 feet (1.52m). For every inch above 5 feet, an additional 1.41 kilograms should be added. However, the ideal weight for women should be 53.2 kilograms and add 1.36 kilograms for every inch after 5 feet in height.

Formulas: ( 4 )

It is a A simple formula to use, the problems found in its implementation is that it only uses height to establish the ideal weight, which can overestimate the weight if you are a very tall or very short person.

Robinson Formula

Dr. Robinson in 1983 created his own formula based on the Devine index. Robinson established that the ideal weight for a man was 52 kilograms at 5 feet. For each additional inch over 5 feet, an additional 1.9 kg should be added. As for women, it should be 49 kg at 5 feet tall and 1.7 kilograms more for each inch over 5 feet.

Formulas: ( 4 )

Like the Miller formula, it only takes height into account and in the particular case of Dr. Robinson, he worked with the American population limiting its use in other races.

Hamwi Formula

Dr. GJ Hamwi's formula was established in 1964 and his original formula is set in pounds. He considered that a woman who is 5 feet tall should weigh 100 pounds. On the other hand, a man of 5 feet tall should weigh 106 pounds. For each additional inch over 5 feet, you add 5 pounds if you are a woman and 6 pounds if you are a man.

The formula is similar to the previous ones, but Hamwi introduced a new concept of Body Structure to adjust the ideal weight. The results can be adjusted by increasing 10% for those with a large build or decreasing 10% for those with a small build, those with a medium build should not make adjustments.

Formulas: ( 4 )

Although Dr. Hamwi gave value to body structure, his formula presents the same weakness as the ones mentioned before, an overestimation of weight for very tall or short individuals.

Devine Formula

The Devine formula from 1974 was established to quickly calculate the ideal weight that would serve for the dosing of medications such as *theophylline, digoxin, and gentamicin*, among others. It is worth noting that the Devine formula was not empirically based on population data, but rather on estimates.

Formulas: ( 5 )

Like the other formulas, it uses only height and has become the most commonly applied method for both academic and medical purposes. In this case, it is considered that the formula underestimates the weight of women even more if they are of short stature.

Lorentz Formula

The Lorentz formula was launched in 1929, inspired by the Brocca formula making improvements in relation to height and sex, which is why it has two versions.

Its weakness is that it does not take into account age or body structure, nor is it useful for adults shorter than 150 cm.

Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Formula

The Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (MLIC), now called MetLife, is a life insurance provider with a major presence worldwide. After conducting research collecting data from 25 life insurance companies in the USA and Canada, they published tables indicating the ideal weights according to gender and age. These tables gave rise to a formula to calculate the ideal weight.

- ideal = 50 + (0.75 * (height – 150)

This formula could yield underestimated results since the compilation of the tables dates back to 1983, from that year to the present the Anglo-Saxon population has increased muscle mass modifying the scale of ideal weights. ( 6 )

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Bibliographic Resources

  1. Ramírez LE, Negrete LNL, Tijerina SA. Healthy body weight: Definition and calculation in different age groups Rev Salud Publica Nutr 2012; 13 (4). Available at: http://www.medigraphic.com/pdfs/revsalpubnut/spn-2012/spn124f.pdf
  2. Calculation of body structure size [Internet]. Medlineplus.gov. 2016. Available at: https://medlineplus.gov/spanish/ency/esp_imagepages/17182.htm
  3. 10 facts about obesity [Internet]. Who.int. 2017. Available at: http://www.who.int/features/factfiles/obesity/facts/es/
  4. Peterson CM, Thomas DM, Blackburn GL, Heymsfield SB. Universal equation for estimating ideal body weight and body weight at any BMI. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2016;103(5):1197-1203. Available at: http://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.115.121178
  5. Kirkpatrick CMJ, Duffull SB, Begg EJ. Pharmacokinetics of gentamicin in 957 patients with varying renal function dosed once daily. British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. 1999;47(6):637-643. Available at: http://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2125.1999.00938.x
  6. Himes JH, Bouchard C. Do the new Metropolitan Life Insurance weight-height tables correctly assess body frame and body fat relationships? American Journal of Public Health. 1985;75(9):1076-1079. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1646328/