What exactly counts as being "skinny?" Some healthcare experts believe a BMI in the 15-18 range to be clinically underweight. This seems to fall pretty close to what many everyday people consider to be "skinny" with a BMI of 18 or lower frequently listed as the indicator of someone considered to be slim.
If your BMI is less than 18.5, it falls within the underweight range. If your BMI is 18.5 to 24.9, it falls within the Healthy Weight range. If your BMI is 25.0 to 29.9, it falls within the overweight range. If your BMI is 30.0 or higher, it falls within the obese range.
The BMI score is meant to be a quick way of determining whether a person has too much body fat. BMI scores of 20 to 24.9 are considered normal, scores of 25 to 29.9 are overweight, scores of 30 to 34.9 are obese, and scores above 35 are extremely obese. Scores under 20 are considered underweight.
A BMI of 20-25 is ideal; 25-30 is overweight and over 30 is obese. If your BMI is under 18.5, you're considered underweight. If your BMI is 18.5-20, you're a bit underweight and can't afford to lose more.
Underweight: Less than 19.1 for women, Less than 20.7 for men. Ideal weight: 19.1 to 25.8 for women, 20.7 to 26.4 for men. Marginally overweight: 25.8 to 27.3 for women, 26.4 to 27.8 for men. Overweight: 27.3 to 32.2 for women, 27.8 to 31.1 for men.
Ideally, your BMI should be between 18.5 and 24.9. A BMI of 25 or over indicates that the person concerned is overweight, while obesity is defined as a BMI of over 30. Someone with a BMI of 20.5 is therefore within the normal weight range (see table).
The Skinny on Underweight
The American Dietetic Association (ADA) defines the ideal body mass index (BMI) as between 20 and 25. Thus, anyone below that range would be considered underweight and those with a BMI from 18.5 to 17.5 extremely underweight.
If your BMI is less than 18.5, it falls within the underweight range. If your BMI is 18.5 to <25, it falls within the healthy weight range. If your BMI is 25.0 to <30, it falls within the overweight range. If your BMI is 30.0 or higher, it falls within the obesity range.
Muscles are denser and heavier than body fat, so if you have high muscle mass, your BMI might indicate that you're overweight or obese. BMI treats a person's weight as one entity, instead of accounting for muscles, bone density and fat, which all make up a person's weight.
Normal: BMI of 18.5 to 24.9. Overweight: BMI of 25 to 29.9. Obese: BMI of 30 or higher.
A BMI of 23 is considered normal.
A BMI of 22 is considered normal. With a BMI of 22, no weight loss procedure is necessary or recommended. Useful information: If you have a BMI of 29 or greater than 29 a bariatric surgery procedure will be needed.
From a clinical perspective, an individual is considered “too skinny” if they are deemed underweight. According to the Centers for Disease Control, an individual is underweight if their Body Mass Index (BMI) is below 18.5 [1].
The American Exercise Council on Exercise recommends a BMI at or above 18.5 and body fat of 14 percent for women and six percent for men. The best athletes in sprint events tend to have a larger mean mass and height than long-distance runners.
Muscular athletes often have high BMIs but are healthy. There are many healthy people that have a higher BMI than the suggested healthy range of 18.5-24.9 due to a higher muscle mass than overweight individuals.
We tend to lose muscle mass, so our abdominal muscles aren't as tight as they once were, and the loss of elastin and collagen in our skin allows gravity to have its way so skin starts to sag. Both can cause the waistline to expand.
The BMI formula
a BMI of 18.49 or below means a person is underweight. a BMI of 18.5–24.99 means they are of normal weight. a BMI of 25–29.99 means they are overweight. a BMI of 30–39.99 or more means they are obese.
According to the DSM-5, a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa (AN) or “anorexia BMI” requires that someone have a BMI of less than 18.5.
What exactly counts as being "skinny?" Some healthcare experts believe a BMI in the 15-18 range to be clinically underweight. This seems to fall pretty close to what many everyday people consider to be "skinny" with a BMI of 18 or lower frequently listed as the indicator of someone considered to be slim.
A person with a BMI of 18.5–24.9 will be within the healthy range. According to guidelines, a person with a BMI of less than 18.5 is underweight and may need to gain weight for their health.