Am i overweight? I'm 13 and about 5 foot 5. I don't know if i am, but yesterday i went to the doctors and when they weighed me the scale said that i weigh 170 pounds. Is that overweight for me or not? I kind of feel like i am, but i don't know for sure. Thanks

Probably the best thing for you to do is to go to a site like fitday.com (http://) and do a free personal profile to help you decide if you are overweight.

If you decide that you are going to lose some weight, PLEASE come back to DietTalk and take advantage of the wisdom some of us have gained over the years concerning weight management.

You are at a perfect age to understand that it is your HEALTH that is most important. When you take care of your health through good nutrition and daily exercise, your weight will not be a problem.

Good luck!

Lynn

If you don't do anything active except walk to and from the car then you are overweight. If you are a weight-lifter or something like that then you are probably not. But my guess is that you aren't very athletic. Did your doctor not say anything.

I would guess that you're probably technically "overweight." Do you know about BMI (body mass index)? You can find online calculators that will tell you what yours is. Anything much above a BMI of 25 is considered overweight, unless of course you're especially muscular. You wouldn't be that muscular unless you were a serious athlete or lifted weights several times a week, though.

The other way to tell if you're too heavy is to get your body fat tested. If your parents' insurance covers it, you can get this done at a nutritionist's. If your body fat percentage is high, like 30% or greater, then you need to lose fat to be considered in ideal health.

It can be hard to judge by the number on the scale since we're all different, but at least for me (I'm your height... 5'5) I would be carrying around a lot of extra weight at 170 lbs.

Don't freak out about it... you're really young, and you'll probably get slimmer as you get older, as long as you're eating right and getting regular exercise.

I have to agree with Jenny, I am also 5'5 and 162lbs. I carry my weight well and look about 140lbs. Even if you aren't overweight it wouldn't hurt to eat healthier and get some excersize. Don't over-do it though, don't try to starve yourself or anything, that just makes problems worse. It would also be wise to talk to your doctor or a nutritionist to find out about how to eat healthy. You can also get alot of information on the web. This is a good one http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hppb/nutrition/pube/foodguid/ It's based on the Canada Food Guide, You will also find out alot by reading and posting on diettalk. Remeber to take things slow, good luck.