I am continually surprised and delighted by the quality of important information one can come across on the web. However having said that, actually sifting through an overwhelming amount of useless communication is a little bit like looking for a needle in a haystack! So I hope some of the great pieces I came across in the past week or so may support you in your journey to achieve better health and wellness.

A topic near and dear to my heart is any news or tips on how to keep my brain healthy as I age. Having my beloved father be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s before he passed away a few years back made me take a closer look at my own situation. I came across several great articles that give me hope I am doing many of the right things to stay healthy. I also learned a few new ideas.

47 Ways to Fine Tune Your Brain is my top pick for a wow! article. Lots and lots of good tips. Hopefully, like me you will find one or more ideas you hadn’t thought of before.

A couple of other shorter but good articles about brain health include:

Seven Ways to Keep Your Mind Sharp

6 Foods to Increase Your Brain-Power (Will a certain handful of foods increase your brain function? The six foods in this list may or may not be the best or certainly the only foods that are important for your brain but I would put them at or near the top of any list I might make. Also included is a short list of the kinds of foods that may detract from brain health.)

On another note, if you enjoy exploring new recipes without spending a long time surfing the web, I think you’ll like a new recipe site online called recipe.com. This new site will incorporate some of the best recipes from Better Homes & Gardens, EatingWell.com, Fine Cooking, the Food Channel, and more all in one place. Be sure to check out the healthy cooking options and the cooking how-to information. Nice! Any drawbacks? The site seems to require registration and parting with your email address to access some of the content.

If you or anyone you know has recently decided to become a vegetarian you might want to take a look at What Makes for a Healthy Vegetarian Diet? Included with this short article written by a dietitian, are some links for helpful resources.

My last recommendation for a good read is one of the best on this list. If you need some excellent tips on ways to save money at the grocery store you will love 10 Specific Ways to Cut Your Food Budget . Even if you are a seasoned pro with budgeting your food dollars you might learn something new!

These articles are worth your time.

Have a great week!

Water Wisdom!

Your body is made up primarily of water. Depending on your body fat, water is 50 to 80 percent of your total body weight. Your muscles and brain are about 75% water and your blood is about 80 percent water but might at times be as high as 92% water. The rest of your body averages about 50% water. All together, total body water weight for adult women is about 60%.

You need water for many reasons–to transport nutrients, lubricate joints, regulate body temperature, and eliminate waste. About 4% of your total body water is lost every day without sweating. And if you are physically active or live somewhere with high temperatures, high altitude, or dry air the loss of water is greater.

So how much water do you need each day? The National Academy of Sciences (February 2004) recommends about 2.7 liters (91 ounces or 11.3 cups) for the average adult American woman. That may sound like a lot but it takes into account the water you get from food and beverages in addition to any you might drink as plain water. Also your need may be significantly less or more depending on your circumstances. For example, if you are sedentary and live in a cool climate your need will be less than someone who is physically active in a warm climate.

The actual amount of water you get from food depends on how much you eat and what you are eating. Fruits and vegetables are a much better source of water than say refined carbohydrates such as chips and crackers. The National Academy of Sciences suggest that women are getting somewhat less than 3 cups of water each day from food.  That means you may need an additional 8-9 cups of water from beverages.

The problem for many Americans is that in addition to meeting water needs many people are getting too many calories from beverages. This may be part of the reason you often hear the recommendation to drink 6-8 glasses of plain water. However it is possible to get plenty of water from unsweetened tea or coffee without extra calories.

At one time, not that long ago, caffeinated beverages were believed to be dehydrating. Recent research suggests that this is only true for individuals who are not accustomed to drinking a high level of caffeinated beverages and who then consume a significant amount of caffeine (the equivalent of 3-4 cups of coffee or 5-8 cups of tea). (School of Sport and Exercise Sciences, Loughborough University. Leicestershire, UK)

Some people enjoy drinking low calorie or calorie-free soft drinks to satisfy thirst. The FDA has approved a number of low-calorie or calorie-free sweeteners. Even so, I choose not to drink calorie-free soft drinks because I am concerned about the potential long-term negative effects of these sweeteners. There is also some indication that sweet but calorie-free or very low calorie beverages may actually encourage an individual to eat more food and thus consume more calories rather than less.

The easiest way to way to stay well hydrated is to simply drink enough to satisfy your thirst. This may be a little more problematic for people who are older, particularly the elderly, because thirst may not be well regulated.  There is a simple solution. Pay attention to your urine. If it is very light in color or clear chances are good you are getting plenty of water. If not, find a low calorie beverage or plain water and drink up!

Here are some general guidelines for beverage consumption (Healthy Beverage Guidelines released in 2006 by a panel of experts):

1. Water – Drink 20-50 ounces each day (about 2.5 to 6 cups of water)

2. Unsweetened tea or coffee – Drink 0-40 ounces of tea or 0-32 ounces of coffee (caffeine is the limiting factor for coffee)

3. Low and non-fat milk and soy beverages – 0-16 ounces a day

4. Non-calorically sweetened beverages – 0-32 ounces

5. Caloric beverages with some nutrients – 0-8 ounces per day of juices. No whole milk. Consume sports drinks sparingly (except for endurance athletes) 0-16 ounces per day.

6. Calorically sweetened beverages without nutrition. No more than ONE 8-ounce serving per day.

Image via Wikipedia

Tip# 8

Don’t Forget the Fiber

Dietary fiber is one of nature’s best gifts. The benefits of fiber range from easing the transition of food through the digestive tract, to lowering blood cholesterol levels, and possibly reducing the risk of certain cancers. Best of all it can provide a pleasing sense of bulk to meals and snacks and give you a feeling of fullness without calories.

Dietary fiber is a complex carbohydrate found only in foods of plant origin. Your body cannot digest or absorb dietary fiber and as such it has no calories.

However, the micro flora (bacteria) in your large intestine may ferment the fiber. This fermentation produces fatty acids, some of which may be absorbed. Fermentation is also responsible for the unwelcome byproduct of gas.

Soluble Fiber

During digestion, soluble fiber absorbs water and becomes gel-like. This process helps to slow down digestion and the rate of nutrient absorption from your stomach and intestines. The soluble fiber helps you feel full longer. It may also help to lower blood cholesterol levels and stabilize blood sugar.

Soluble fiber can be found in oat bran, barley, nuts, seeds, beans, lentils, peas, and some fruits and vegetables.

Insoluble Fiber

Dietary fiber of the insoluble kind also pulls water into the intestinal tract. This type of fiber can absorb water but unlike soluble fiber it cannot dissolve in water.  Insoluble fiber adds bulk and speeds the passage of foods through the digestive tract. It may help to reduce the risk for certain types of cancer.

Insoluble fiber can be found in wheat bran, whole grains, and most fruits and vegetables.

Some research studies suggest that too much dietary fiber could bind and interfere with the absorption of essential minerals: calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, selenium, and zinc. However, this should not be a problem for adults who have a nutritionally balanced diet.

The National Academy of Sciences recommends women 50 years of age and younger have 25 grams of fiber daily. Women over the age of 50 are encouraged to have at least 21 grams of fiber.

ACTION STEPS:

1. Estimate how many grams of fiber you have in a typical day.

Keep track of all the food you eat for a day or two. Note what you eat along with exactly how much. You can analyze the fiber content of these foods using a free or low cost service online. To find a nutrient database that will meet your needs, you may want to read a review I published on my Women and Weight Website  Calorie Counts and Nutrients: Best Sites Online I am a member of MyFoodDiary.com and I’ve found the service they provide to be easy to use and very helpful.

2. For information on fiber and weight loss along with tips on how to increase dietary fiber in your meals and snacks, I have several articles on my Women and Weight Website:

Dietary Fiber: Can it Help You with Weight Loss?

High Fiber Diet for Weight Loss

Get Plenty of Fiber: Ten Tips

Tip #7

How much fat do you need?

Fat is necessary for many reasons! You need fat to help your body absorb and transport certain vitamins. And it is essential for healthy nerve tissues and cell walls.

Perhaps to your dismay, fat also serves an important role as body fat. The stored fat helps you maintain body heat, protects your vital organs, and provides you with a reserve source of energy. The ability to retain and hold on to body fat as a protection against times of food scarcity is an evolutionary advantage that humans have perfected over thousands of years.

We have not been programmed for life in a place and time in which there is continual abundance of food. However, there are ways to encourage your body to “let go” of the excess stored fat as well as ways to discourage your body from holding on to any more fat than is necessary.

Fat is important for another reason. Fat makes food taste better! It can provide you with a sense of fullness for a longer period of time than carbohydrates. Recent research suggests that protein provides an even greater sense of satisfaction and fullness than fat.

There are many different sources of fat and continued controversy among some experts as to which source is best. The majority of health professionals in the U.S. believe monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats to be better choices than saturated fats for overall health. I believe in the near future we will have a better understanding of the balance we need. What that balance may be will vary from one individual to another depending on one’s genetic makeup and the context of the overall diet and lifestyle.

For now, the most important thing for you to do is get a sense of how much total fat you need in a balanced diet. The National Academy of Sciences recommends that you have from 20 to 35% of your total calories as fat.

So how much fat do you need?

Action Step:

A. Determine the recommended number of calories you need as fat depending on your caloric intake (Choose to enter the calories you need to lose weight OR the calories you need to maintain).*

1. ____________ calories  x .20 = __________calories as fat

2. ____________ calories  x .35 = __________calories as fat

Your fat needs range from _______ (A1) to ________ (A2) calories with a total calorie intake of _________.

B. Fat yields 9 calories per gram. Given that, if you divide the number of calories you need as fat for a given caloric intake, you can determine the grams of fat that you need.

1. ____________ calories as fat from the lower end of the range

(from A1)/9 = ______ grams of fat

2. ____________ calories as fat from the upper end of the range

(from A2)/9 = ______ grams of fat

Your fat needs in grams range from ________ (B1) to ________(B2) grams with a total calorie intake of __________.

C. How does your current diet stack up with respect to fat?

To learn more, stop by the website for the Northwest Lipid Research Clinic,

http://depts.washington.edu/nwlrc/fis.html

and fill out the form you find there.

It will help you assess the amount of fat and cholesterol you have with your usual diet and give you some insight as to the kind of changes you may need to make. The results can be helpful for weight loss and better health.

1. Weight Loss: Reduce your caloric intake by reducing your fat calories. Gram for gram, fat has more calories than either carbohydrates or protein. But don’t overdo it! Follow the formula above to see that you are getting enough fat calories to meet your needs.

2. Better health: Assess your fat intake if you have a genetic need to keep your cholesterol levels in check to reduce your risk for cardiovascular diseases (heart disease, stroke, and more). (Note: This short assessment will only give you a sense of your fat intake by type of fat. Saturated fats seem to be a problem for many people but not everyone.)

*It is important that you get ENOUGH calories each day even when dieting. To learn more about the minimum number of calories you need I strongly recommend that you read my article posted on the Women and Weight Website with the title 1200 Calorie Diet: Getting Started!

Tip #6

How many carbohydrates do you need?

The very low carb dieting craze of the first few years of the new millennium would have had you believe that carbohydrates aren’t really necessary in your diet. Nothing could be further from the truth.

You need carbohydrates as an energy source. In fact, your brain’s preferred source of energy is glucose–a carbohydrate.

In the absence of sufficient glucose, your body will burn fat as an energy source. This might sound great but what happens is that your body must then perform on ketones–a fat breakdown product instead of glucose. This creates a physiological state of ketosis that radically changes the normal pattern of biochemistry for your brain and other organ tissue.

Very low carbohydrate induced ketosis does not seem to be a problem for most people for the short term. Long term effects are less clear.  Severe ketosis, however, such as might happen with diabetics (called ketoacidosis) is a much more complicated situation and potentially life threatening. What is most important to remember is that your body will function best when you have access to enough carbohydrates. So what exactly is enough?

Scientists with the National Academy of Sciences estimate that adults need a minimum of 130 grams of carbohydrates a day. This is what they have determined to be the average minimum amount used by the brain each day. For optimum health for most people, they suggest you get from 45 to 65% of your calories from carbohydrates. On a 2000 calorie diet this would be 900 to 1300 calories as carbohydrate or 225 to 325 grams of carbohydrate. You might ask why this is so much more than the minimum of 130?

Here’s why. The best sources of carbohydrates (such as whole grain breads and cereals, fruits, vegetables, and legumes) provide not only complex carbohydrates but also vitamins, minerals, fiber, and phytochemicals (such as antioxidants) to keep you healthy. (See Tip #4 Nutritional Balance Matters!).

Action Step:

1. Calculate your carbohydrate needs:

_____________ (calories needed for your age, weight, and sex for either weight maintenance or weight loss*) X .45 =  ________________ (A)

_____________ (calories needed for your age, weight, and sex for either weight maintenance or weight loss*) X .65 = _________________ (B)

Values A and B will give you the number and range of calories you need from carbohydrates.

2. To calculate the grams of carbohydrates you need do the next steps:

Divide value A by 4 (each gram of carbohydrate will give you 4 calories of potential energy) = _____________ grams of carbohydrate

Divide value B by 4 (each gram of carbohydrate will give you 4 calories of potential energy) = _____________ grams of carbohydrate

Now you should have an idea of the range of carbohydrates you need for your daily nutritional needs (both in calories and grams) whether you are on a diet or not. If your calculation comes up to be less than 130 grams we need to talk. You may be selecting a daily calorie intake that is too low for you. Even on a 1200 calorie diet your carbohydrate needs will be for 135 to 195 grams of carbohydrates a day.

**To determine your calorie needs for weight maintenance or weight loss see Tip #3.

Tip #5

How Much Protein Do You Need?

You need protein for growth, maintenance, and repair of body tissue and for the manufacture of enzymes, hormones, and other organic compounds. No matter what your age, you continue to "grow" in the sense that you are continually replacing tissue such as making new blood cells.

Protein needs per pound of body weight are greatest for children whose growth demands far exceed that of adults. Your needs will vary depending on how active you are. The more sedentary your lifestyle, the less protein you need.

According to the expert advice of the National Academy of Sciences, most adults need from .4 to .5 grams of protein per pound of body weight. The lesser amount of .4 grams is probably plenty if you are sedentary. If you are more active your needs will be about .5 grams per pound. If you are very active (endurance sports such as running marathons) you will need more (.55-.65 grams/day).

Another way to determine your protein needs is by percentage. The National Academy of Sciences recommends that adults get 10 to 35 percent of total calories (see tip #3) as protein.

So What are Your Protein Needs?

Having a more precise understanding of your needs will help you make better dietary choices for both weight management and health.

ACTION STEPS:

1. Multiply your weight by .4 Then repeat this step and multiply your weight by .5.

(A)__________ (your weight in pounds) x .4 = __________

(B)__________ (your weight in pounds) x .5 = __________

Your protein needs range from ___________  grams of protein (result A) to __________ grams of protein (result B).

2. Multiply your caloric needs for weight loss or maintenance (see Tip #3) by 10% and then by 35%,

__________ (total calories) x .10 = ____________ mininum calories needed as protein

__________ (total calories) x .35 = ____________ suggested upper limit for calories needed as protein

Note:

[Optional: Each gram of protein yields 4 calories. So if you would like to determine the calories you need from protein each day in Action Step 1 multiply the grams of protein x 4 for both (A) And (B).

In Step 2 divide the protein calories by 4 to get the grams of protein.]

Did you do the optional step? How do the figures compare? As long as you are getting the minimum needs for your current weight you will be fine. The latest research suggests that getting somewhat more protein (higher in the 10 to 35 percent range) will provide you with greater satisfaction on a reduced calorie diet and may provide you with other health benefits as well.

The nice thing about knowing YOUR needs is that when you read a nutrition label you are no longer looking at from the perspective of a "reference woman" needing 2000 calories. You can assess your food choices based on what you need not an average. This can be especially helpful when you are on a reduced calorie diet.

Tip # 4

Choose Health: Nutritional Balance Matters!

If you are managing your weight for either weight loss or maintenance, calories count as we covered in lesson #3. However, food provides so much more than just calories.

Each time you eat, you can choose foods that provide your body with the nutrients you need to be healthy. Or you can choose “empty calories”, foods that provide calories with little or no nutrients. Either way a calorie deficit (fewer calories than you burn in a given day) will lead to weight loss. But do you really want to lose weight at the expense of your health?

Achieving nutritional balance, even on a lower calorie diet, is the key to weight management success. Variety matters because no single food or food group can meet all your nutrient needs.

One recommendation for guiding your food choices is to follow the U.S. Dietary Guidelines. These guidelines are issued jointly by the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture. They are updated every five years and are based on the latest research studies in human nutrition. The guidelines are good, however politics often influence the outcome. The latest report is not as closely matched with the recommendations many Nutritionists and other health professionals would like to have seen.

A better guide is the Healthy Core Diet based on the OmniHeart study conducted by Harvard University and other medical institutions. This study has its origins in the original DASH study. DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. The more recent OmniHeart study was designed to determine how diet might reduce risk for heart disease in more ways than just reducing blood pressure. Heart disease remains the number one killer of Americans each year.

Given that the OmniHeart diet is healthy and well balanced, it seems that it may prove to be the basis for reducing risk for many diseases and not just heart disease. In fact, recommendations for dietary choices to reduce risk for cancer and diabetes as well as heart disease are very similar.

What is the key difference between the OmniHeart diet and the U.S. Dietary Guidelines? The U.S. Dietary Guidelines fail to distinguish good carbs, fats, and protein sources from those that are not so good. However, the OmniHeart diet plan for number and size of servings at various caloric intakes is not yet available online (that I’m aware of).

So for now make the U.S. Dietary Guidelines your reference for determining the basics with respect to portion size and the number of servings you need from each of the food groups at your pre-determined daily calorie level (see tip #3). To do this you will use the interactive MyPyramid, the newest version of the government food pyramid based on the dietary guidelines. I will be providing more information for you in upcoming lessons about the specifics of choosing good carbs, fats, and protein sources.

ACTION STEP:

1. Go to MyPyramid.com (at this site you’ll find a user-friendly interactive guide to determine your daily food needs based on the U.S. Dietary Guidelines):

http://www.mypyramid.gov/

2. If you have not done so already, start a food journal or diary to keep track of what you eat. Include exactly what you have eaten, when (time), how much, and your mood when eating (hungry? frustrated? bored? etc.). If you are doing formal exercise, keep track of that as well.

You can do this on your own with just paper and pencil. However for more detailed information with respect to calories consumed, calories burned, and nutrition information I recommend MyFoodDiary.com. I have used this service for quite some time and I’m very happy with what it provides. To learn more you can read my review (Food Diary Review: MyFoodDiary.com).

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

2005 U.S. Dietary Guidelines

http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2005/document

OmniHeart.com (the basics and sample diet plans are provided as downloadable pdfs)

http://www.omniheart.org

I love the short video clips that Nic Askew produces for monday9am.tv. Each week he explores a different topic. I get too busy to watch every time a new video is posted but when I do, I am not disappointed.

Nic is in the process of moving his family to the United States. For the sake of time he posted a clip that he had shared a while ago. It’s all about the choices we make. How do you feel about your life?

What we do with the life we’ve been given and how we feel has such an enormous impact on health. If you have a couple of minutes, watch this video clip. Hopefully it will get you thinking and maybe provide you with the motivation to make some changes.

If you are happy with your health and life, would you share your thoughts? What are you doing that works? Is there anything you would change?

Tip #3

Calories Do Count!

Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Calories do count! If you consume more calories than you burn in a day, the extra calories are stored as fat.

What you observe in life may not seem to fit the concept of energy input equaling energy output for weight maintenance.  Some people seem to eat all they want and not gain weight, whereas others eat very little and have difficulty just maintaining. What you have observed is correct! But there is good news. There are some choices you can make to influence the number of calories you need and thereby tilt the balance in favor of a higher calorie intake without weight gain (or provide you more ease in burning calories).

Your calorie needs are dependent on your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) plus your activity level. BMR is a measure of the number of calories your body needs when at rest. Even when lying still your body is at work pumping blood, removing toxins in your liver, breathing, etc. If you are a sedentary person most of your caloric needs are for BMR.

There are ways to increase your Basal Metabolic Rate and your energy expenditure otherwise. The best way to get started is to be more active. Simply put–get up and move (start with whatever you can do). Activity burns calories.

To lose a pound of fat in a week from activity, whether by formal exercise, work, or play, you will need to burn an additional 500 calories a day beyond your caloric needs for basal metabolism.  Resistance training (weight lifting) can improve muscle performance and may increase your potential to burn extra calories even when at rest (increase basal metabolism).

Determine Your Caloric Needs for Weight Loss and Maintenance

Some of the most accurate and revealing calculators for determining your caloric needs and expenditure that I have found online are at the Global Health and Fitness website. (http://www.global-fitness.com/at.cgi?a=424649&e=bmr.php) Go to this site to complete the action steps.

ACTION STEPS

1. Determine the calories you need to maintain YOUR CURRENT WEIGHT with your current activity level entered accurately–be honest! (BMR + Calories for current physical activity level)

2. Determine the calories you would need at different activity levels for YOUR CURRENT WEIGHT. Notice the caloric differences as you move from very light activity to very heavy activity (sedentary to very active).

This is all you need to do for this for this lesson if your goal is to maintain your weight. If your goal is to lose weight continue on with the next steps:

3. Now determine the calories needed at YOUR GOAL WEIGHT (what you hope to weigh). Choose a realistic goal. See Tip #2 to determine a healthy weight. Remember, if you are significantly overweight, ANY HEALTHY WEIGHT LOSS–meaning mostly fat, not lean body mass (muscle, organ tissue, bone, or water) is good.

4. The calorie count from ACTION STEP 3 will likely be less than what you need to maintain your current weight (ACTION STEP 1). Let me know if it is not. The difference in the number of calories needed at your current weight and the number you will need at your goal weight represents the minimum number of calories you must cut back on (or burn with additional activity) each day.

The easiest way to lose weight and in many ways the most effective way is to set your weight loss calorie intake at the level needed for maintenance at your goal weight or at most only 200-300 calories less than what is needed for maintenance. It may take longer to lose weight but the loss will be steady. You may not be as likely to hit plateaus. And you will already be accustomed to the calorie intake you need to maintain and thus be less likely to overeat and regain the lost weight when you reach your goal.

Achieving and maintaining a reasonable weight is the basis for good health. But what determines a healthy weight? And what do you need to do to find out what a healthy weight might be for you? In this week’s challenge I will share with you the quickest and most accurate way to determine your healthy weight range without consulting a professional.

Tip #2

Determine Your Healthy Weight Range

The easiest way to determine your healthy weight range is with Body Mass Index (BMI). What exactly is BMI?  It is a reliable but indirect measure or estimate of your body fat. More specifically, BMI is a mathematical measure of the relationship between your height and weight and the resulting number or index provides one way to assess potential risk for disease.

High levels of body fat have been linked to increased risk for diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and certain types of cancer. Therefore “ideal” BMI is associated with the lowest risk of chronic disease or mortality. However, BMI has limitations:

•    BMI may overestimate body fat in athletes and others who have a muscular build
•    BMI may underestimate body fat in older persons and others who have lost a significant amount of muscle mass
•    The correlation between the BMI number and body fatness is fairly strong; however the correlation varies by sex, race, and age (source: CDC 2007)

Once you have calculated your BMI, you will have a way to determine your healthy weight range. There are four basic BMI categories:

•    Underweight = <18.5
•    Healthy Weight = 18.5-24.9
•    Overweight = 25-29.9
•    Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater

These are the standard values you may have seen listed in many places on the internet and elsewhere. For greater accuracy each of these categories should be adjusted by sex and age. (They may or may not vary somewhat by race but more research needs to be done to answer this question.)

Healthy Weight BMI Average

Age Range

(20-29) BMI of 19.5 for women and 21.4 for men
(30-39) BMI of 23.4 for women and 21.6 for men
(40-49) BMI of 23.2 for women and 22.9 for men
(50-59) BMI of 25.2 for women and 25.8 for men
(60-69) BMI of 27.3 for women and 26.6 for men
(70-79) BMI of 27.8 for women and 27.0 for men

(Source: Tufts University Health & Nutrition Newsletter, Nov. 2006)

Don’t be discouraged if the suggested healthy weight range for your BMI seems like an impossible goal. Even a small weight loss (just 5 to 10 percent of your current weight) will help lower your risk for the diseases associated with high body fat.

Action Steps:

1. Calculate your Body Mass Index (BMI) at a government website for your height and current weight (http://www.consumer.gov/weightloss/bmi.htm)
2. Determine your healthy weight range with the Body Mass Index Table provided at this site. Look at the weight range for a BMI of 18.5-24.9 for someone of your height. Adjust this range to more closely match the “ideal” BMI for your age and sex.

To Learn More:

1. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provides additional information about BMI, body fat (and body composition) and health risks at their website. (http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/bmi/adult_BMI/about_adult_BMI.htm)
2. Read my article: Weight Loss for Women: Does it Matter?