Intrigued by the BMI measurement, I did one here:
http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/adult_bmi/english_bmi_calculator/bmi_calculator.html

Here are my results:

Height: 5 feet, 3 inches
Weight: 96.5 pounds (99 pounds during period !)

Your BMI is 17.1, indicating your weight is in the Underweight category for adults of your height. For your height, a normal weight range would be from 104 to 141 pounds.

Talk with your healthcare provider to determine possible causes of underweight and if you need to gain weight.

---

I am wondering if this should be a concern for me... I remember a nurse at a clinic also told me that I am underweight. But I feel absolutely fine and happy with my weight and body shape. I am small-boned and Asian.

Perhaps I need a bit more fat for my progesterone production but... I am following SWAMI and feel better than ever in my life. I don't want to gain any more fat but I do feel hungry very often even if I follow the portion suggestions. Should I eat more beneficial animal protein or more frequent meals? Any suggestions?

I think you need to listen to your body-- I am 5'3 and weigh about 110-112..however, I feel I could lose 5 poundls and feel gret regardless of what anyone else says

how much fat are you eating? what about the carbs? do you workout?

Marjorie,

Well, my eyes are happy with how my body looks but the stomach is often growling  .

I am eating roughly 2-3 tbsp of ghee/almond oil/sesame/olive oil a day, and whatever fat is in the meat. But I usually eat meat that is quite lean. I also eat an egg a day.

I have cut down my carb/grain consumption to about 2-3 cups a week but it slows down my metabolism and makes me drowsy. When I eat carb/grain I feel less hungry but more heavy/bloated.

I work out quite rigorously (ballet dancing) at least twice a week (1-1.5 hours each time), and then walk for 20-30 minutes a day.

BMI is a very crude tool. Most adults' healthy weights fall into the "healthy weight range" BMI. Some adults are healthy at a higher weight, some at a lower. My "ideal weight" falls into the upper range of the "healthy weight" category. Yours falls below it.

We're all different.

That's true. We're all different. I remember doing the Genotype test and that my waist-to-hip ratio falls under the normal range. Besides, for my type--Hunter--it just feels right (at least for me) to be slim when in a healthy condition.

Maybe you could increase your portions? I know what you mean, I am hardly eating grains for the same reason.

also, what meats are you eating? any red meat?

do you eat fruit?

Enjoy your underweight status now.  I was under weight for most of my life until I hit menopause.  It happened to my mother and female cousins too.  Now I have to be careful with how much I eat and make sure I get enough exercise.  I never even thought about it before.

Quoted from marjorie

Maybe you could increase your portions? I know what you mean, I am hardly eating grains for the same reason.

also, what meats are you eating? any red meat?

do you eat fruit?

I am thinking maybe I should eat more frequently because I tried upping my portions and ended up having my reflux back. Maybe I should have an extra little meal with protein in between lunch and dinner, coz I don't get to eat dinner till around 9 or 10 usually, and I get so cranky while my stomach complains loudly!

I'm eating beef, lamb and chicken, all of which are bennies for me.

Re: fruits, I eat 3 pcs of beneficial fruit a day--mango, banana and mangosteen are my favorite seasonal fruits right now

Quoted from RedLilac

Enjoy your underweight status now.  I was under weight for most of my life until I hit menopause.  It happened to my mother and female cousins too.  Now I have to be careful with how much I eat and make sure I get enough exercise.  I never even thought about it before.

I do enjoy it right now, but then I also have pre-menopausal hormonal imbalance issue, which actually would benefit from having a bit more fat. I heard that it is Nature's blessing for menopausal women to gain some weight because the extra fat would help the body manufacture some estrogen to counter the drop of its level during menopause.

I would use BMI as reference data and not a goal.  Just another tool in your tool chest.

Since u said that your stomach is growling, I would eat small meals 4 or 5 x a day.  I wanted to gain some of my lost weight back & in 2 years finally got to a good weight & don't want to buy new clothes or gain anymore, so now I eat protein & vege meals 3 x a day w/ the smallest portion @ night.  I hope this stabilizes my gain because I'm going through menopause.

I did some experimenting to try to gain some weight (5'7 and 112 lbs right now) and increasing my food added between 2-4 pounds (I can get as low as 108 if I eat a little less for a few days). I will not be able to gain any more unless I start eating refined sugar and lots of unrefined carbs.

It is what is is and for what it's worth, I am in menopause and still can't a pound!! I thought for sure that would be the ticket that would "round me out."

We've had many talks on the forums about being "underweight." I think if we feel good and are eating correctly we have to accept it as healthy for us. They called me "bag of bones" as a kid but I have built more muscle in the last few years than I ever did, still skinny, though.

Also, I programmed my SWAMI to have me gain weight and the amount of food it has me eating in a day is just not possible. I try to reach it sometimes, but most days it is just too much food. I am supposed to eat 16 servings of protein a week and I eat about 14. Seven cups of veggies, 4 fruits, 4 grains, 1 serving nuts or seeds each day but very little ghee, butter or cheese, overall.

You say you feel great, don't worry!

Quoted from Wholefoodie

I did some experimenting to try to gain some weight (5'7 and 112 lbs right now) and increasing my food added between 2-4 pounds (I can get as low as 108 if I eat a little less for a few days). I will not be able to gain any more unless I start eating refined sugar and lots of unrefined carbs.

It is what is is and for what it's worth, I am in menopause and still can't a pound!! I thought for sure that would be the ticket that would "round me out."

We've had many talks on the forums about being "underweight." I think if we feel good and are eating correctly we have to accept it as healthy for us. They called me "bag of bones" as a kid but I have built more muscle in the last few years than I ever did, still skinny, though.

Also, I programmed my SWAMI to have me gain weight and the amount of food it has me eating in a day is just not possible. I try to reach it sometimes, but most days it is just too much food. I am supposed to eat 16 servings of protein a week and I eat about 14. Seven cups of veggies, 4 fruits, 4 grains, 1 serving nuts or seeds each day but very little ghee, butter or cheese, overall.

You say you feel great, don't worry!

I didn't start to gain weight until the past 2-3 years, and I went menopausal around 12 years ago.  It took a while, but it slowly crept up.  I have been skinny all my life before that.  When the weight came, it mostly came on my belly!  

I've lost about 14 lbs., but still have about 2 more lb.s of fat on my belly that I need to displace.  I'm 1/2 Asian and small boned, too.

I hear ya sistas! Here I am 5'3" at 92 lbs. It is what it is I guess. When I work out hard I can gain anywhere from 5-10 lbs in muscle mass fast, but I've since chilled out on that since I had adrenal issues. But yeah my metabolism in my biggest enemy.

hey nodoubt, you brought up a very good point and I just had an epiphany. I noticed my weight does increase if I workout 5 days a week.. or it remains stable around 110-112. However, if I cut back to 3- 4days, I instantly can lose 2 or 3 pounds within a few weeks or so.


I think this makes sense now, I am striving to lose weight, but then I will not workout as much ( which I love). Maybe it is what it is, and I should not try to lose anymore. Needless to say,  I had a huge salad with bison and loved every morsel of it. I usually dont eat as much as I did, but I was starving! I often think of what you said about the fat and how it is good for us o's. I just dont want to get too chubbby.... I am 10 years older than you.

Feels like it has been awhile since I saw your name! hope you are well.

Well, Narnia, maybe there's hope for me, not that I'm looking to add belly fat but a nice overall increase would be OK! Today was a good day. I weighed in at the gym at 117 lbs., minus about 4 lbs. for sneakers and clothes, I'm up to 113! Haven't hit that number in a while.

Listening to you all, looks like I need to lose about 5 pounds.

Good job, wholefoodie.

I wouldn't worry about it.  I wonder if you're fully digesting?  Maybe some digestive enzymes might help.  If you feel good though, ppffffffffft.  Forget the "charts".  My doctor keeps telling me to quit worrying about it.  I think if I was still losing I would be worrying.  But I bounce around 126-130 and I'm 5'8".  I wrestled at 140 my senior year in high school.  And I was losing weight to do that.  But I was much more muscular,  due to the fact of being in sports and I ate like a horse.  I had that see food diet.

Quoted from ruthiegirl

BMI is a very crude tool.

I agree 100%.  My BMI is 21.3 and according to the BMI tool I could lose an additional 18 lbs before falling into the "underweight" category.  I know my body and if I lost that much weight I'd be very sickly.    

Hi,

I have been underweight every since I started the BTD.  However, I really lose weight in the summer with all the garden work and heat that takes my appetite away.

I've stopped fretting about it and just do the best I can.  Like you, I am 5 ft and 94 pounds at this time.  In the winter with more cold weather in Canada, I eat more of course and weigh 100-103 pounds.

Luana

Half a year after posting my original post here, I have gained weight eating more closely to the portion size that my SWAMI suggested. At first I couldn't eat the suggested portions of meat for both lunch and dinner because prior to that I was on a semi-vegan diet. I guess my body has now found an equilibrium. Now I'm at about 100 lbs and am not feeling starved in between meals--just having an "itchy tooth" and want to eat snacks from time to time but I think this is mostly psychological. Anyway, I make sure I eat a good amount of protein by getting myself a little kitchen scale and weighing my meat for each meal. It would be 2-3 oz for lunch and 3 oz for dinner. I believe the protein intake has given my body what it had craved after having been on that vegan diet and gone anemic. I guess I should be happy about the weight gain... it's just that when I put on my dance leotard, I feel so self-conscious and "fat" ("fat" in the dance world standard)... Is there something wrong with me??? At the same time, I can't help snacking... I love to eat (bennies of course)!

I think that most people today have a very unrealistic view of "healthy body weight." A little bit of fat is NORMAL. If you've been underweight for a long time, and you're not "normal weight" then of course you're "fatter" than you were before, but that's not a bad thing.

Looking like an anorexic teenager shouldn't be the goal here.

looking good! keep up the positive attitude and love yourself more!

this is really interesting - when I was very underweight with a BMI of 13 (was very ill, couldnt eat and it seemed my muscles began to eat any fat I had) I was desperate to gain weight. I searched for ways I could do it. I had to have food guidance at my hospital and it took about 2 years to get 'normal'... a while after this I do remember wishing I was a bit skinnier again, even though my initial weight loss was completely unintentional

Quoted from balletomane

... it's just that when I put on my dance leotard, I feel so self-conscious and "fat" ("fat" in the dance world standard)... Is there something wrong with me???

There is nothing wrong with you!  You are thinking/feeling the way you have been trained to for, maybe, most of your life?  You are a dancer, and a ballet dancer, at that!  

I grew up dancing.  I went on my first diet when I was 12 years old...I weighed 110 at 5'4".  That was the beginning of a life long battle with poor body image.  I am 38 and haven't danced in 10 years, but I am still having that battle.  I really don't have any good advice for you    except to say, try to give yourself a break.  Know that you feel "fat" due to many, many years of that type of reinforcement.  That way you may be able to take the emotion out of it and simply look at it logically.  You need to find a way to combat the self talk that you've likely had running around your head for a long, long time.

If you figure out something that works...give me a shout!