Dear LPG

It is probably a fact that most of us have heard the term BMI lots of times in the past and we know it has something to do with wellbeing, but the other day I actually Googled it and my findings were quite interesting. 

The acronym stands for Body Mass Index and it is a way to calculate if you can boast a healthy weight or not.  I hear you saying, ‘that old chestnut’, and although it is important not to get overstressed about such issues, it cannot hurt to take a look at just how we measure up.  It is a simple calculation and with pencil, paper and quite a lot of time, I think I could resurrect sufficient of my mathematical skills, but why bother.  There are lots of online calculators that will do the job for you in minutes these days.  I am hoping that LPG will find one and add the link at the bottom of my letter.

I have learned that being overweight can contribute to some of the many medical conditions that typically affect us oldies.  For instance, being overweight is not good for our legs; as we get older they get a bit worn so imagine the advantage of having to carry a little less weight with each step they take.   Breathing problems could be a result too.

If we are really overweight our GP is likely to let us know, but I found it surprising that quite a few of my friends who don’t look as if they have an ounce of extra fat on their bodies get results that leave just a little cause for concern. 

We are fairly near the beginning of the year still, (well we have at least ¾ of it left anyway) so there is time to do something about it, and it is good to know just where you are, so have a go at entering your weight, height a few other details, see where you stand, and if you need to do anything about it. 

DP, Crofton Park

LPG found some information for our readers including an easy-to-use online calculator regardless of whether you use imperial or metric rules to measure your height and weight.

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As DP pointed out, it is important not to get really stressed by the result, after all, you have lived with this BMI reading for quite a while even though you have just found out about it.  Perhaps it would be good to think about what you can do in the long term to improve yours though…

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