Waist size less than 1/2 your height?

Aaaack! Was watching Oprah when Dr. Oz said that your waist size (measured at the navel) should be less than half your height. I'm 59 inches short, so my waist size should be 29 inches or less. I measured myself and realized my waist measures 35 inches. Talk about reality check. I didn't think it was that bad. I need to lose 6 inches from my waist. WOW! What do others think of this rule? And how do you measure up?

Wed. Jan 7, 6:48pm

Oh my! That certainly puts things into perspective doesn't it? I should have a waist size of 32 inches!! I haven't seen that in over 10 years. Good thing I joined the gym yesterday!!

Wednesday, January 07, 2009, 7:40 PM

that seems a little deceiving. my waist, first of all, is way higher than my navel - i mean everyone's navels are in different places.. i've seen people with navels just under their chest! my waist is 33" which is less than half my height but if i measure around my navel which is where my hips start/love handles, it would be way more.

Thursday, January 08, 2009, 12:28 AM

Cool info.....

Thursday, January 08, 2009, 1:43 AM

My height is 66 inches and if I measure my waist at my navel it is 32 inches which should be fine according to this info but trust me I have loads of tummy fat and I don't think this information is correct because I do look fat because of my tummy fat...

Thursday, January 08, 2009, 10:38 AM

I believe this info was for your heart health, not necessarily your weight. If your waist measurement is too high, it puts you at a risk for a heart attack. So you could still have tummy fat but not necessarily be at a risk for a heart attack.

I'm within a normal range of weight for my height, and my BMI, body fat %, and blood pressure are all normal. I carry most of my fat in my midsection as well, but my waist is less than 1/2 of my height, so that indicates a lower risk of a heart attack.

BTW, I read this on MSN.com on how to measure your waist. It says to feel your pelvic bone along your side and go up until you reach the top of your pelvic bone. You should measure your waist around the area between the top of your pelvic bone and bottom of your rib cage.

Thursday, January 08, 2009, 10:50 AM

This was about heart health, and how much fat you are carrying in your omentum, not about overall body fat or how we look. It's just another 'guideline' number to be aware of when assessing your health, not a fast rule for how we should look.

Link

Thursday, January 08, 2009, 12:29 PM

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