This strikes me as so funny. Why did they pick 87 lbs?? According to the NHI’s BMI calculator, if you are above 4’10" that’s considered underweight. And, BMI is a fairly strict definition . . . at 5’5", I would have to weigh 110 lb to be considered underweight, which seems pretty low to me. But I am kind of a fattie, so maybe my views are a little skewed.
Point being, 87 lbs is a really low target weight for anyone above 4’10" or thereabouts. Where did that number come from?
On an unrelated note, my new goal weight is 75.67 lbs.
I think 87 lbs is just about 40 kg (I’m also fairly sure the Chinese use kilograms, like we do in Korea). A round number makes more sense in this context.
I would say in Korea the ideal weight would be considered about 45 kg, for a woman. Anything above 50 kg is considered an embarrassment. It’s ridiculous.
Right, I get the 40 kgs part, but isn’t that so ridiculously low? Even 45 kgs is what . . . 100 lbs? 50 kg is 110 lbs. So, anything above 110 is an embarrassment? Are most women there under 5’5"? Because the NIH considers a weight of 50 kgs at 5’5" to be an issue of medical concern (not necessarily unhealthy in itself, but something to be looked at, much like a BMI 25).
Sorry, not to sound like I’m attacking you personally, but I guess I just don’t understand why the “ideal” weight, esp. for adult women, would be one that could be medically concerning. That’s like saying my “ideal” blood glucose level is 70, or something.
I know teenage girls in this country all want to be 5’7" and weigh 105 lbs, but then again, they’re known to be kind of dumb. But like if a 45 year old women at 5’5" was saying she wanted to weigh 110 lbs (if she didn’t weigh that naturally), I think most people would be like, “buh?”
Do Asians have very low bone densities then? That could explain unrealistically low target numbers.
If you search for even sven’s recent posts (last couple of months), she does a really good job of describing what’s going on with Asian women and body image issues in China (I assume Korea is similar).