Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - BMI still dropping nicely

A while back I posted about how pleased I was to be overweight. Specifically the fact my BMI had dropped to 29.9 meaning I was "overweight" rather than "obese".

Today I weighed myself and found my BMI is now down to 28.4 - largely thanks to my two-wheeled machines. If I can drop another 28 pounds I'll get it down to 25 and technically won't even be "overweight" any more.

I was noticing on my readout from yesterdays weigh in at Physicians Weight Loss Center that my BMI is 29.9 now, for the first time in quite a while...Gee, I'm just 'overweight'......

Tractor Tom in Okeechobee, FL

Cool... it's the little milestones that help the feeling of achievement. I remember having been "obese" for so many years I was pretty happy to be "overweight", even if the dividing line to "obese" was a mere 0.1 point away.

Congrats! Keep up what is working for you.

I hear ya contango! I became "over weight" in February and it was pretty exciting...

Here's to making "normal" some time this year and keeping it there.

Congrats on the improving fitness. I would suggest that in addition to your BMI, you also keep track of your bodyfat percentage. A simple $12 caliper will give you a decent approximation. The reason I suggest this is that the BMI, while useful, is not an accurate tool. For example, if in one year you lose 10 pounds of fat but gain 10 pounds of muscle, your BMI stays the same even though your bodyfat percentage has changed significantly with a big improvement in fitness. There are a couple of new BMI calculators out that add additional points of information, usually measurements of waist, thigh, chest or some other combination, in an attempt to circumvent this weakness in the previous BMI tools.

Not trying to rain on your parade. On the contrary, if you have been cycling a lot, you have probably gained some muscle in addition to losing fat and thus your improvements would be even greater than indicated by your BMI.

Congrats on the improving fitness. I would suggest that in addition to your BMI, you also keep track of your bodyfat percentage. A simple $12 caliper will give you a decent approximation. The reason I suggest this is that the BMI, while useful, is not an accurate tool. For example, if in one year you lose 10 pounds of fat but gain 10 pounds of muscle, your BMI stays the same even though your bodyfat percentage has changed significantly with a big improvement in fitness. There are a couple of new BMI calculators out that add additional points of information, usually measurements of waist, thigh, chest or some other combination, in an attempt to circumvent this weakness in the previous BMI tools.

Not trying to rain on your parade. On the contrary, if you have been cycling a lot, you have probably gained some muscle in addition to losing fat and thus your improvements would be even greater than indicated by your BMI.

Sure, I hear what you're saying. My quads are visibly bigger and more powerful than they were a couple of years back so if I took the weight of the extra muscle away I don't doubt I'd be lighter still. When I started cycling people kept saying I'd lost weight even though the scale was pretty clear that I hadn't, and then the scale stayed the same even though my clothes were loose, and so on.

If I spot a cheap bodyfat caliper I might take a look (I'm in the UK so the $12 caliper you mentioned probably costs £39.99 over here), but failing that I'll also use my clothes as a good gauge - when I have to buy new jeans for the third time in three years because they are too loose I know that whatever the scale says I'm doing something good.

Sure, I hear what you're saying. My quads are visibly bigger and more powerful than they were a couple of years back so if I took the weight of the extra muscle away I don't doubt I'd be lighter still. When I started cycling people kept saying I'd lost weight even though the scale was pretty clear that I hadn't, and then the scale stayed the same even though my clothes were loose, and so on.

If I spot a cheap bodyfat caliper I might take a look (I'm in the UK so the $12 caliper you mentioned probably costs £39.99 over here), but failing that I'll also use my clothes as a good gauge - when I have to buy new jeans for the third time in three years because they are too loose I know that whatever the scale says I'm doing something good.

Congrats on the weight loss. I was consistently losing weight before I started riding my hybrid bike (over 250 miles so far). Since I started riding my bike, my weight loss has stopped but I can tell that I have lost inches off my waist and thighs. I have also noticed that my calfs and quads are a little bigger and defined. Not sure what I can do to lose the pounds. I want to be thin so maybe I need to run more.