How To Calculate Your BMI For Free

• 1). Know your height. Measure yourself without shoes on, standing straight and tall. Write down this measurement to reference during calculations.
  
  
• 2). Weigh yourself. For a true reading, step on a scale in the morning before breakfast after using the restroom and without wearing clothing or shoes. Weighing yourself daily at the same time will provide a more accurate representation of body weight, since weight varies based on water retention.
  
  
• 3). Enter your height and weight into a BMI calculator online. Numerous sites provide this resource including, but not limited to, MayoClinic.com, CDC.gov and BMICalculator.org. (See references 2, 3, 4) Occasionally, the calculator will request your gender as well.
  
  
• 4). Know what your BMI measurement actually means. A normal or healthy BMI is 18.5 to 24.9. Overweight BMI is 25.0 to 29.9. A BMI of more than 30 is considered in the obese range. (See reference 5) If you do not have Internet access, you can do the calculations manually. BMI equals your weight in pounds multiplied by 703 and divided by the square of how tall you are in inches, reports BMICalculator.org. (See reference 5)
  
  
• 5). Recognize that BMI is not a flawless calculation. BMI calculations may not accurately determine the health of an extremely muscular person who participates in an intense weight-training program. In addition, BMI is not a good measure of what somebody should weigh for optimal health if that person is pregnant, nursing or has recently given birth. (See reference 5)