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BMI inaccurately calls some college athletes overweight
Posted on Mar 19th 2007 10:00AM by Bethany SandersFiled Under: Diet & Weight Loss, Fitness
Anyone who's working toward being fit for life knows that you can't define your progress solely by a number. Weight, measurements, BMI...they all play a part, but the big pictures is all about how you feel, your endurance, your progress. Body Mass Index (BMI) is just one way to measure your fitness, but a new study recently found that, especially in college athletes, it may need some adjusting.
Nearly 500 college age students, about 1/2 athletes and 1/2 non-athletes, had their body fat measured and compared to their BMIs. A body fat percentage over 20% was considered "overfat." What the study found was that, especially in male athletes, the BMI inaccurately predicted "overfatness," much of the time. Because of the greater amount of muscle mass found in college-age athletes, experts believe the BMI thresholds for this group should be raised.
Read more on what BMI is, how it applies to you, and why it's used to define obesity here.
Nearly 500 college age students, about 1/2 athletes and 1/2 non-athletes, had their body fat measured and compared to their BMIs. A body fat percentage over 20% was considered "overfat." What the study found was that, especially in male athletes, the BMI inaccurately predicted "overfatness," much of the time. Because of the greater amount of muscle mass found in college-age athletes, experts believe the BMI thresholds for this group should be raised.
Read more on what BMI is, how it applies to you, and why it's used to define obesity here.
