Body Mass Index Explained: How to Calculate BMI

Body mass index (BMI) is a value that estimates body fat based on a person's weight and height. A high BMI can indicate that a person has high body fat, while a low BMI can indicate that a person has low body fat. Since BMI does not take into account a variety of external factors for overall health, including muscle mass, gender, age, or family history, BMI cannot determine how healthy a person is.

To calculate your BMI manually, there are two formulas you can use: one for English system measurements (pounds/inches) and one for metric system measurements (kilograms/meters).

Where:

• BMI = Body Mass Index
• W = Weight (in pounds)
• H = Height (in inches)

Where:

• BMI = Body Mass Index
• W = Weight (in kilograms)
• H = Height (in meters)

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