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How to Calculate Your Weight Based on Height and Age

Contributor
By Mary-Kathleen Freeman
eHow Contributing Writer
(1 Ratings)

Even though weight sits on us all differently, there is a way to calculate what your ideal weight should be. Using your height, age, and weight, you can calculate this number, usually called the body mass index (BMI).

Difficulty: Easy
Instructions

Things You'll Need:

  • Calculator Tape measure Scale A BMI chart

    Calculating BMI

  1. Step 1

    Measure yourself and note the height in inches. For example, if you are 5'10", then in total you are 70 inches.

  2. Step 2
    Scale
     
    Scale

    Square your height; that is, multiply the number of inches of your height by itself. Using the previous example of 70 inches, that would mean that you multiply 70 by 70 to get a result of 4,900.

  3. Step 3

    Divide your weight in pounds by the squared number you just came up with. Keeping along with our example, if the 5'10" person is 160, they will divide 160 by 4,900.

  4. Step 4

    For North Americans working with pounds and inches, multiply the number you got from dividing your weight by your squared height by 703 to get your BMI number. U.K. residents should multiply by 6.35 instead of 703. If you are using the metric system, you may skip this step.

  5. Step 5

    Look up your BMI number on the BMI chart. Some charts will incorporate age into the chart while others do not. BMI charts are easily found on the internet by searching for the keywords "BMI chart."

Tips & Warnings
  • BMI charts vary by region and ethnicity, so it is important to make sure you have the correct one.
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