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If you're officially "overweight", and not any category of obese (at least by BMI), you might be better off not trying to lose any more. There seems to be a gr

by rflrob 12y ago

If you're officially "overweight", and not any category of obese (at least by BMI), you might be better off not trying to lose any more. There seems to be a growing consensus that the best all-causes mortality rate is actually for people in the overweight category [1]. Yes, correlation and causation and all relevant caveats apply. Personally, and IANAMD, I think as long as the weight is not causing noticeable quality of life drops, you're better off not stressing about it, and just trying to live life comfortably. Eat well and exercise, but if your body doesn't want to give up that extra reserve, don't force it. [1] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23280227 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23280227 --- n.b. I haven't actually read the article, but I'm assuming the abstract isn't lying when it says "overweight was associated with significantly lower all-cause mortality".

PeterWhittaker 12y ago
It considers me to have a high BMI - yet my body fat is relatively low. I was lighter and fatter until I started working out; now I am heavier and slimmer. My clothes are generally looser, except my shirts and jackets, which are snugger around the chest. Considering that, overall, my doctor believes I had a low risk of cardiovascular disease before I started exercising regularly, and now believes my risk to be lower, I take the risk numbers with a grain of salt - and a dab of butter. Speaking of fat, as others have noted, total cholesterol may be meaningless. If I told you my total, you'd likely call an ambulance. But my triglycerides are low and my HDL/tri and HDL/total ratios are so good they are silly. Based on everything my doctor knows - and she's scientifically minded, curious, and thorough, traits unusual in family doctors AFAICT - my risk of cardiovascular disease is in the low single digits. Yet this test tells me my best case is mid 30s and my current close to 50. Yeah, uh huh, I'm going to take medical advice from an app prepared by someone who lived an anecdote. (No disrespect intended. Our personal experiences tend to not be transferable, no matter how much we learn about our case, because we learn about our case - not about all cases, with a dash of probability and a hint of objectivity.)

by rflrob 12y ago

PeterWhittaker 12y ago

It considers me to have a high BMI - yet my body fat is relatively low. I was lighter and fatter until I started working out; now I am heavier and slimmer. My clothes are generally looser, except my shirts and jackets, which are snugger around the chest. Considering that, overall, my doctor believes I had a low risk of cardiovascular disease before I started exercising regularly, and now believes my risk to be lower, I take the risk numbers with a grain of salt - and a dab of butter. Speaking of fat, as others have noted, total cholesterol may be meaningless. If I told you my total, you'd likely call an ambulance. But my triglycerides are low and my HDL/tri and HDL/total ratios are so good they are silly. Based on everything my doctor knows - and she's scientifically minded, curious, and thorough, traits unusual in family doctors AFAICT - my risk of cardiovascular disease is in the low single digits. Yet this test tells me my best case is mid 30s and my current close to 50. Yeah, uh huh, I'm going to take medical advice from an app prepared by someone who lived an anecdote. (No disrespect intended. Our personal experiences tend to not be transferable, no matter how much we learn about our case, because we learn about our case - not about all cases, with a dash of probability and a hint of objectivity.)