Living long, and Ideal Body Weight

This is a graph I found on a medical database that shows the relationship between dying and Body Mass Index (BMI). Body Mass Index is a way of mathematically figuring out how underweight or overweight you are. It takes into account both your weight and your height, since taller people are naturally going to weigh more. It is basically an indication of how fat you are for your height.

This is a useful thing to know, because - as can be seen from the above graph - it predicts your chances of dying. People who live the longest have a BMI of around 25, which is where I drew the orange vertical line.

You can calculate your own BMI by measuring your weight in Kg, and dividing it by the square of your height in meters. Or by using a nomogram, such as the one shown here.

To figure out your BMI, draw a line from your height on the right verticle line, and connect it to your weight on the left verticle line. What your BMI is will be shown on the middle verticle line.

The most ideal BMI to have for a long life is within the orange oval. If you are not within the orange circle, you are not at your ideal body weight. To work out your Ideal Body Weight, start again with your height. Then draw a line from there right through the middle of the orange oval, and find out what weight you genuinely should be from the left side verticle line.

At this point patients often say to me "Get F^%king serious, Doc. I haven't been that weight since I was 18!" Which is true - for many of us the last time we were at our ideal body weight was when we were 18. Which is not always attainable, and you shouldn't beat yourself up if you can't get there. But it is what the math shows is going to be your best shot at living to be 100.

As an example, I will show my favorite fat paddler. I am about 184 cm (6 ft.). If I match that up with my weight (100 kg) then my BMI comes out at about 30. Which puts me right on the border between overweight and obese.

Which I find hugely annoying. But numbers don't lie.

So, it is time to:

• eat less calories
• eat healthier ( because modern ultra-processed foods have sugar and endocrine disrupting compounds that make people fatter)
• exercise more
• Shave off the beard, and get a lighter paddle