Body Mass Index (BMI)
Body Mass Index assesses the normalcy of your weight in relation to your height. As BMI rises above
‘normal’, so does the risk of a wide range of conditions including hypertension (high blood pressure),
stroke, coronary heart disease, high cholesterol, diabetes, certain cancers, sleep apnoea, osteoarthritis,
gallbladder complications and renal disease.
EIHA Average BMI 2008 = 25.9
You can compare your BMI with the classifications shown in this table.
Classification BMI range
Normal/Healthy 18.5 – 24.9
Overweight 25.0 – 29.9
Class I Obese 30.0 – 34.9
Class II Obese 35.0 – 39.9
Class III Obese 40.0+
Although BMI has its uses, it does also have its limitations. BMI does not take body composition into
consideration, it simply assess an individual’s mass without assessing fat mass, muscle mass, hydration,
bone density etc. Therefore, athletes or individuals with a large muscle mass often have a BMI that is
classified as overweight or obese. It is for this reason that we must not use BMI in isolation when
assessing anthropometry in sporting populations. Additionally, it is now becoming apparent that a BMI
of up to 27.0 is still considered healthy in active populations.
Body Fat Percentage
Our bodies are made up of different components, one of these is fat which can be split into essential fat
and storage fat.
• Essential fat is stored in the vital organs, muscles and central nervous system. It is crucial for normal
functioning and represents approximately 3% of total body mass.
• In females, essential fat includes additional gender-specific fat which distinguishes between the
body composition of males and females. It represents around 9% of body mass in women, so
essential fat in women averages 4 times that of men.
• Storage fat surrounds and protects our vital organs and is deposited subcutaneously – we can
gain or lose it as it can be used as an energy source. Storage fat represents approximately 12%
body mass in men and 15% in women.
Therefore, the average male would have total body fat of about 15% and the average female about
Body fat accumulates in specific sites around the body and it increases if more energy, in terms of
calories, is consumed than is expended. Having too much body fat means that we are carrying excess,
non-functional weight and this has been linked to conditions such as heart disease, high blood pressure,
diabetes and some cancers. Excess weight may worsen conditions such as back pain, lower limb pain
and arthritis and it can also be detrimental to performance, slowing you down, causing you to fatigue
more quickly and increasing your likelihood of injury.
EIHA Average Male Body Fat 2008 = 16.3% EIHA Average female Body Fat = 26.7%
BlueSkies Health, Fitness & Well-Being
| Page 2
| Page 3
| Page 4
| Page 5
| Page 6
| Page 7
| Page 8
| Page 9
| Page 10
| Page 11
| Page 12
| Page 13
| Page 14
| Page 15
| Page 16