Formula for Calculating Ideal Body Weight – Male – Female

Before we go further with more tips on how to lose weight fast, let’s check whether you’re actually overweight, obese or it’s just your wrong thought. We’ll proceed by looking at a common formula for calculating the ideal body weight both male and female in this article.

For other posts on how to lose weight fast, see:

When you are overweight, you might already felt it from how your clothes fit or how you appeared. But, do you really have excess weight? If so, by how much are you indeed overweight? And how much weight do you need to lose?

You can answer these questions by finding out the ideal weight for your height. However, there is no single ideal weight for your height since every one of us has different shapes and sizes. As an alternative you can calculate a range of weights that are healthy for your height. One most common formula for calculating ideal body weight is by determining the body mass index (BMI).

First, you need to know that being overweight is not the same as being obese. You’re considered as overweight if you have too much excess weight. On the other hand, when you store a truly great amount of body fat, you're obese. This is where the body mass index (BMI) helps decide whether you have an ideal weight, overweight or obese.

As stated by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), the BMI "describes body weight relative to height and is correlated with total body fat content in most adults". So you should be assure that in most cases the body mass index will exactly represent your weight and the amount of body fat as a function of your height and weight when classifying you as ideal, overweight or obese.

Here is the formula for calculating ideal body weight which applied both to male and female:

To get your BMI, you just need to multiply your weight in pounds by 703. Next, divide that result by your height in inches. Then divide that result by your height in inches one more time.

Your BMI = [ (your Weight) / (your Height x your Height) ] x 703

For example:

If you weight 155 lbs and are 65 in height, then

Your BMI = [(187) / (65 x 65)] x 703 = 31.12

The accepted definitions of weight categories by BMI are:
  1. Underweight, BMI less than 18.5
  2. Ideal weight, BMI between 18.5 and 24.9
  3. Overweight, BMI between 25 and to 29.9
  4. Slight obese, BMI between 30 and 34.9
  5. Obese, BMI between 35 and 39.9
  6. Excess obese, BMI greater than 40

Note: These BMI values only relevant to adults both male and female aged over 18 years and are based on researches of Caucasian populations. So, they are not relevant to younger and adolescents and they probably not accurate for people of other cultural backgrounds.

Based on the chart above a BMI of 31.12 means you’re slight obese.

Try calculating your ideal body weight by altering variables around in the same formula:

Your ideal body weight = [ (ideal BMI / 705) x (your Height x your Height) ]

So in the prior example if your BMI is 31.12 and you decide the ideal BMI number is 24.5 then,

Your ideal body weight = [ (21 / 705) x (65 x 65) ] = 125.85

You should weight 125.85 lbs which means you have to lose about 29.15 lbs (155 lbs - 125.85 lbs) of weight.

Other way to estimate your weight and check whether you’re storing too much fat around your belly is to measure your waistline, using a tape measure. If you're male, your waistline should be less than 37' while for female it should be less than 31". When you gain more weight and your waistline get larger you become more prone to diseases. Of course, this will be varied from person to person but you’ll sense it when you gain more weight and your waistline is too big for your shape.

Now it should be easy for you to use the formula for calculating your ideal body weight as described above and find out how much weight you need to lose. If you are overweight or obese try to avoid gaining more weight and keep your BMI number below 25 to maintain an ideal body weight and improve your health. This will benefit you in the future when you get older and tend to gain weight easily. By losing only a few pounds your overall health will be significantly improved.