Every time I take a look at Giesele Bündchen’s amazing body, I can’t help but get depressed over her almost 6 foot 34-24-34 measurements. So when I saw this interesting statistic I felt slightly better.
“The average American woman is 164 pounds and 5’4″. That’s about 35 pounds heavier and six inches shorter than the average supermodel.” - Glamour Magazine
Which means we’re actually closer to Botticelli’s Venus:
“Venus would have been 5’5″ 160 pounds and a size 12.” - Glamour Magazine
Post A Comment: How do you feel that the average American woman measures in at 164 pounds and 5’4″ tall?
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And by the way… it’s actually very offensive to some people, including me, whose measurments are close to or even exactly this for people to be making such comments as i didn’t know the average woman was “so overweight” or “its so sad this is how the average woman looks”.
I weigh exactly 164 and am exactly 5’4, and while I don’t consider myself to be skinny or in great shape by any means, “severely overweight” is extremely harsh…
I w/ #3s statistics. However. It is true that the majority of women in this country are overweight. So I would say I am not shocked.
I am 5’4″ tall. I weigh 133 which according to this site is normal. http://www.webcalcsolutions.com/Health-Calculators/BMI.asp?AcctNum=3
Body Mass Index 22.8
Classification Normal
Weight Range 107 to 145 lbs
So yes. 28.1 is overweight. Where most people will fall. For instance. I am not skinny, I am healthy/fit. Everyone I know that is my height has a little more packaging if you know what I mean. I mean I have plenty of overweight friends that I LOVE… ok before i take this a different way… The stats are true. Look around. Do you need a calculator to tell you America is overweight? I dont.
I dont want to sound mean. I love your site. I am just saying, its true whether you WANT to believe or not.
Given that two-thirds of the country is overweight, why is everyone surprised when they say the average women is overweight?
Oh and to add. – Number 10.. extra packaging.. thats all. I would not say Extremely Obese by our standards, However. It is overweight.
See these results.
This is for 5’4″ weighing 164 lbs.
Body Mass Index 28.1
Classification Overweight
Nrml Weight Range 145 to 174 lbs
wow, i’m taller and thinner than the average woman…cool! that stat needs to be broadcasted more, it definitely is a reality check. more girls need to hear this, most people don’t realize how unrealistic a supermodel body is!
is it the fact that the average supermodel is unrealistic due to americans growing obesity rate,esspecially in woman. since woman play more of a role in the media they are there main veiwers, and since more than half of the woman watching are them selves overweight why is it fair to gang up on thin people, from my veiwing wouldnt that be a biast oppinon. woman should read this articale and not think how unrealistic woman in the media are they should look in the mirror and realize that they them selves are un healthy and should probobly make some health life desisons to ensurre the best life. why should we let the unhealthy percent of america dictact to the rest of us what healthy is or isnt. if more girls are
What nobody is taking into account is body type. You can’t just look at the BMI without factoring that in. Isn’t there a waist-to-hip ratio?
Not every 5’4″ girl looks “good” at 120, I know I didn’t. I have big hips and big breasts, so I look “good” around 140-150, which for me, is size 8-10. When I was 120 I was a 4 and my face looked too angular with the rest of my body (Dear Lord, why did you give me a pointy chin AND big hips? My body doesn’t make sense! LOL).
At any rate, I need to lose about 15 to look “good!”
If being fat is our worst problem, we’re in pretty good shape.
No surprise. People are getting bigger and bigger. Too much food and not enough exercise.
I’m 5’5″ and 125lbs. It’s shocking that Americans are overweight. Yes, it’s true, they’re not the only ones in the world, but they still are the number 1 nation in obesity. It’s a known statistic.
Patrice, the truth hurts.
I’m sorry you are offended but maybe you need to take a good hard look at yourself.
To #15, Ann, actually being fat is a continually growing problem that affects EVERYONE. I just heard a news story several days ago about a county in Florida that had to invest in larger autopsy tables because the weight limit of the average tables (several hundred pounds) would not be able to support many of the bodies coming in each week. These tables cost approximately $3,500 each. This Florida county is also modifying their ambulances to accommodate 300+ lb people. Do you know where the money for these and other modifications for obese people are coming from? Your tax dollars. So next time you think that overweight people don’t affect you, think twice.
I agree with Kelsey (#19), being overweight is not as simple as just being overweight, it’s DANGEROUS to make this the norm. It’s like saying majority of the US is in danger of having heart disease, it doesn’t mean having heart disease is okay because everyone else has it, it just means we’re all in trouble.
And being overweight is no means the biggest problem of the US, the effects of the war, the income indistribution, the rise of the homeless, etcetc etc. They just happen to be not the main topic of this post.
This is totally disgusting to me. That is WAY above healthy weight. America is full of fat *itches and because that’s the average some people look at it like it’s ok. I’ve worked hard over 2 years to lose almost 70 pounds and get into my healthy weight range. This is a scary and appalling statistic… I would rather be 35 pounds lighter and 6 inches taller…then at least I would be healthy. I’m totally disgusted.
Wow. A little harsh, guys. Maybe it’s not the magazines and supermodels that make ten year old girls want to start dieting. Maybe it’s the harrassment you all seem to dish out when someone looks a little differently than you that makes girls everywhere feel that they have to diet in order to be accepted.
I highly doubt Vera posted this to get all of you to add to the depression of girls everywhere because their weight doesn’t fit someone else’s standards of what is beautiful and what is right.
You all seem to be hiding behind the ‘health’ aspect, but what you are really doing is accusing overweight people of being at fault for how their body is made. People are built differently, end of story. Grow up and get over your high school popularity hierarchy.
And Amanda, post #11. It sounds like you’ve got more issues than your friends with “more packaging” have. If they were truly your friends, you wouldn’t be classifying them as overweight; they would just be your friends. Perhaps you keep them around to feel a little better about yourself, since you seem to be the skinny friend. I’m sure that’s going to get you far in life.
Katie,
Well said! I agree with everything you mentioned except – Vera doesn’t do the writing on FitCeleb – but nonetheless – your point was well made! We need to stop all this negative energy ASAP!
- Jackie
There certainly is a lot of negativity on this site. Love your site, Vera, but you should realize that postings like this bring about some very cruel comments.
I am 5’1″ and 110 pounds and wear a US size 4 petite. I also have large breasts and hips but a 23″ waist, it is the way I am built. Most of the posters would probably call me fat, just because of the boobs and hips and they fact that I am not at 100 lbs—-ridiculous.
I just returned from visiting Italy and the women there are absolutely beautiful—-but guess what many of them have boobs and hips. Think Monica Bellucci and Sophia Loren—two of the most beautiful women in the world who are not a size 0. People are built differently, it is a fact!
The size metioned in the article may be a bit overweight, but is hardly obese. Instead of making those who are overweight feel horrible about themselves, perhaps some kind words of encouragement would be more helpful. For example, tell them how you stay fit, what foods you eat, what sort of diet you follow to stay thin, etc….
Be helpful, not hateful!!!
1. The BMI is very flawed. Research is proving that it is not reliable as there are far too many factors and variables that it does not take into consideration. People who exercise a lot, those with good muscle ratio, very lean people (not skinny), young people, and even the very obese have all been discovered to not be able to calculate a BMI correctly – the formula doesn’t work for their body types. This is pseudo-science that rode a fad but will be out of fashion in the very near future.
2. Muscle weighs more than fat. Weight should not be considered if you are healthy and fit. A woman at 5’4″ and 140 lbs and a woman at 5’4″ and 155 lbs could essentially look the same and have a similar shape…one is soft and the other is ripped.
3. I’m 5’8″ and 20 years ago, my healthy weight range was 135-175…today, it’s 122 to 165. Who decides that in the first place? And how and why did it change. Trust me…in my 20′s I was underweight at 125 pounds (metabolism issues and couldn’t gain weight), and I was a freakin’ skeleton! No way that is healthy.
5. Different people are different shapes, different densities. I have a very tiny frame – even when I was 40 pounds overweight at one time, my face, wrists and arms looked so petite. My sister on the other hand is built like a linebacker. She has a heavy frame, has large breasts, and even though she is extremely fit and toned (much better than me), and we’re about the same height, I look so tiny while she looks much bigger.
6. Boobs! I don’t care what anyone says, large breasts do make you look bigger even when you’re not. My sister is a case in point.
7. Most models admittedly survive on a diet of cigarettes and champagne. When you’ve got a host of makeup artists and photoshop geniuses to make you look great…all you need to do is starve yourself to a skeleton.
8. With all this negative body image from all sides represented on this post, it is no wonder that eating disorders are up dramatically. A friend’s daughter is 4 and will not eat any desserts or sweets and no carbs at all because all she hears from her mother (who DOES NOT exercise) is that carbs are evil. Here is a developing child who needs carbs for energy and nutrition, who is depriving herself of necessary foods. She eats only half of what she is given at a meal, drinks only water (no juice or milk), and is constantly checking herself in the mirror to make sure she doesn’t get fat.
The comments on this forum have influenced her mother and in turn a 4-year old! How sad…a form of anorexia and she hasn’t even started kindergarten yet.
I have to agree with what #3 posted, whose daughter is a nurse. I am a Critical Care nurse (ICU, cardiac, open heart), and thanks to three things I will always ALWAYS have a job: obesity, alcohol abuse, and smoking. I have seen people that have gotten a simple respiratory infection or the flu, and because of the complications that one (or all) of these things cause, they have died. It just kills me (no pun intended) that people will abuse their bodies for years and years, and when they come in to the hospital and they and their families expect us to just fix them right up, and can’t understand why we can’t save their mom or dad or husband or wife no matter what we do. You can’t erase 25, 30, 40 years of smoking, overeating or overindulging with some antibitotics and surgery.
Carly, I hope someone steps in and gets your friend some help for the sake of her daughter. If reading fitness blogs is turning your friend into an anorexic and she is sending that message to her young daughter, your friend has some serious issues and NEEDS help before its too late. Hopefully someone will step in and get that girl some help. She sounds like a very young single mother, probably under 20.
It’s different for people who are built curvy or whatever, but for the rest of the fatties out there who eat tonnes and tonnes without exercising. SHAME on you.
Although I admit, the media beautifies unnatural levels of skinniness, but I’m sure, in America at least, that the obese outnumber the anorexic by far.
“Maybe it’s the harrassment you all seem to dish out when someone looks a little differently than you..”
The majority of American women is OVERWEIGHT not underweight, following this logic maybe we should all get fat to fit in.
wow folks, look at venus again. she is not overweight. if she were overweight she would have a large tum tum wouldn’t she. do you really need a bmi index for that? how ridiculous. if we all looked alike how boring would that be? i am 5’9″ at 115 but wouldn’t even my shape be ruined by a tum or handles, and wouldn’t (no matter what i weighed) that be un-healthy? it is not the size or shape it is the level of fit period
It’s not the site that is hateful or negative, it’s some of the comments.
I think the original intent of this article was to point out to those individuals that wished they looked more like a model, that their bodies are not the norm.
I have a friend that is signed with Elite Models in NYC and trust me, when you see,in person, a high fashion model their bodies are freakish! But it works in a photograph. Those models that look “good” in a photograph are extremely skinny and gangly in person…..
To Patrice, I never said “so overweight” I just said overweight. And by BMI standards, the average woman is overweight.
I know BMI can be total bunk for a lot of people. Take me, for example, I’m 5’7 and 160. Wow, that’s actually overweight, too! But I ran a sub-4 hour marathon last year, and two halfs. I work out 12 hours a week and red meat or fried food hasn’t touched my lips in about 4 years… I’m overweight with 15.7% body fat. Hmmm…
I think, for the average American though, BMI probably does make more sense as your average woman isn’t all that muscular.
I’m 5’1 and 145 pounds so I’m ‘overweight’ by BMI standards, but to look at me you would just say i’m average. Not thin, but not fat. I think its a great message that this post shows. Supermodels are freaks of nature lol. Almost no one has or can have their measurements
Give me a break #28, shame on us for eating and not exercising? Please… Never ever again refer to fellow women as fatties. We are normal, just like everyone else. We just have different figures and different lifestyles.
According to the BMI, I’m overweight. But according to myself, I’m beautiful, and perfect.
I agree Sophia Lauren was definitely not overweight – she had a waist to hip ratio of 0.7. The waist hip ratio is considered a better predictor of health then the BMI. A BMI of 0.7 is considered most desirable by men in the European and North American cultures. It is also considered to be considered the healthiest by the medical profession in looking at long term health risks. Asian cultures tend to prefer a ratio closer to 0.6 and African cultures 0.8 or 0.9. Basically you take the measurement of your waist at the most narrow part and the measurement of your butt and hips at the widest part. Divide your waist measurement by your butt/hip measurement and you have your ratio.
I so Totally agree with you. My daughter was harraseded so bad in school that she is now bulimic. All because she was not a size o. Women are terrible people who are constantly judging. We need to be more like the guys that just don’t give a crap
Obesity is not just a problem in America but it is becoming a worldwide problem. As a non-american perhaps I can give you more non-biased opinion. I have seen so many fit americans and i have seen some that are not. Just like in any other country. However, compared with other countries I think many AMericans are extreme.if they diet they go crazy with it and if they slip they feel it is the end of the world. If they exercise they run marathons or exercise like a maniac. So unhealthy that kind of mentality. Where did the internal balance go? Why not eat in moderation, improve the quality of food consumed, walk a little more, exercise occasionally, and live an overall healthier lives.
actually, i hate to be the one to break it to you but you actually are overweight (your not obese) but you are overweight…so if you valued your health youd make some changes…your prob gonna ignore this and say that i’m crazy as an excuse, but i think itd be a good idea to talk to your doctor before you do
5’4″, 164? I’m 5’4″ American female and 164 is overweight for sure. Needs to lose AT LEAST 20 lbs, if she has a large frame. Probably more like 30 or 40.
So the average woman is overweight? I didn’t know this.
I understand that America has an obesity problem and I’m not saying I’m perfect but I don’t think they should have just left it at the The average American woman is 164 pounds and 5?4? and not explain that this weight is considered overweight no matter what frame size you are and that there are health risks involved with that. I think it’s great when women feel good and proud about their bodies, thin or overweight, but it almost sounds like the magazine is condoning being overweight. It can be very devastating to your body to carry extra weight and I just think the magazine should have stated this.
Wow! I’m taller and lighter than the average American woman.. that makes me smile! Definitely not even remotely close to a supermodel unless the “24″ is my thigh measurement! haha
It’s very comforting to know that people with extra weight can’t possibly be accepted. Jackie, #28, said “The majority of American women is OVERWEIGHT not underweight, following this logic maybe we should all get fat to fit in.”
That is great logic (insert sarcasm). You are pointing out, in reverse fashion, how any girl, boy, woman, man feels who have extra pounds no matter how much have to loose weight. “I’ll just starve myself to get thin.” There are obvious health concerns with being overweight, but don’t for a minute over look the health concerns of losing it the wrong way either. The pressure to be thin is absolutely ridiculous and just from the comments I’ve read on this page I see that not all of it is to blame on Hollywood and the media alone, but to people we think of as our friends or family. How cruel can you be and for what purpose other than to drive someone that doesn’t fit your idea of a perfect body image. Whatever happened to judging someone based on their personality?
Yes, obesity is a problem but 164 is not obese. If you aren’t a person’s doctor or mother, don’t concern yourself with their weight. No one needs that added pressure or to be called a “fatty” by their so called friend.
I always thought the average 5’4″ American woman weighed 140-145. This is rather disturbing to think the average American woman is overweight. According to the BMI calculators if you are 5’4″ and weigh 164 your BMI is 28.1 which is overweight. If you weighed 145 you would be at the highest weight to still be in the average catagory. No wonder we have so many health problems in this country. My daughter is a nurse in the cardiac unit and she said it is very sad that a lot of her patients are in their 50′s and are overweight. If they had taken better care of themselves this one thing that might have been prevented. Losing weight is not just about looking better, it is about staying healthy and living a long life.
exactly AMY ..
the average American woman is overweight and that is the only thing anyone should take from that sentence!
I have fought anorexia twice to look good in front of crowds, I’ve exercised upwards of 15 hours a week, limited my calories to 800 a day for months, fought my body fat to below 15% and still hated myself. NO boobs but a great waist and legs – trust me.
Now I have curves – including great cleavage but not that 26 inch waist anymore.
Guess what – you can lose or gain weight to change the way you look but it can’t change ugly on the inside and for some you are still ugly on the outside.
so, get over it and accept that GOD did not put you on this earth to be “perfect” or to judge others for not being so.
5’9″ and a size 14 = glamazon all the way baby!!
I’m all about curves, but being healthy is one thing. Making excuses for American woman is wrong. Granted, I’m not a size 2, but I work hard at my fitness regime and it shows. People are just too lazy and unmotivated to do work out and eat sensibly. We shouldn’t rejoice at the fact the average woman is 164 pounds!
It’s not only in America. We’re not the only fat population. Check the globe, it’s everywhere.
#18 sara, that was such a rude thing to say! What’s with all the hate???
You girls that are bashing women who you consider to be overweight, get off your high horse. I am sure you are perfect, right? I’d rather be a few pounds overweight than a rude skinny jerk like most of the posters on here.
Health officals have stated that the BMI is BS! Mine is a 25 and I look better than most people who have the BMI in the teens. DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY????? Because you need to take things like muscle, fat distribution, height, bone thickness etc. in and BMI is just height to weight. Most Olympic swimmers, for expample are in the obese bracket. So, obviously, if you look fat, you are, if you don’t, you’re not!
I don’t buy the estimate of Venus’ weight at that height. Weights vary a lot though, so it depends who’s estimating. I found this really enlightening:
http://flickr.com/photos/77367764@N00/sets/72157602199008819/
Obviously the American population has tilted to overweight (along with several other countries), but even people who are attractive and/or aren’t overweight feel down after looking at the images of women common in the media.
Yikes. I am 5’9″ and 115 lbs. I’m tiny, but that’s crazy that our American average is so overweight. :O
Wow… I find it sad that we have turned what is supposed to be an inspirational post into something negative… the point of this post is not that the average woman or american is overweight, the point is that the average supermodel is not average at all, but instead at the very bottom of the statistics. We should embrace this fact, and stop comparing ourselves to these far-from-average women.
the average AMERICAN woman is overweight.
im happy with my body
i have decent boobs i think…and a small waist
but im hippy with a big ole bum.
5’7″ and 130 lbs.
but i work hard to be in good shape and more importantly, healthy!
#25. that’s why the BMI has a range to count those factors in, it’s not perfect but BMI is very usefull to asses your weight..
To Emily, (Comment #8), who said:Yikes. I am 5?9? and 115 lbs. I’m tiny, but that’s crazy that our American average is so overweight. :O
Emily, you’re not tiny, YOU’RE ANOREXIC!
I’m 5’6″ and weighed 115 about 6 years ago. People kept commenting on how skeletal I was. I was weak and sometimes felt woozy. I have since gained 10 pounds. I look better, and have more energy.
160 lbs is not all that bad. It might be heavy for some, but for others, its perfectly healthy. I weigh 167, weigh size 9/11 jeans, and am in great health. However, I have felt very self-conscious my whole life because of people bashing those naturally built with bigger bodies.
the past few months, i have cut down the size of my meals, don’t allow myself snacks, and drink mainly water except for a 1/2 glass of milk in the morning. i do 50 push-ups every night, and go on walks about 3 times a week. i have lost 10 pounds from 170-some pounds. i still fit in the same clothes with a little more room.
and yet, i can’t lose any more weight, though i eat less than those around me who are so much smaller.
there are so many things that play into what size you are: genetics, metabolism, activity level, how much you eat, body percent composition. . . .
God made some people to be skinny and beautiful, others with lean muscle for speed, and others stocky and strong for hard labor and childbearing.
i, by no means, am abusing my body by eating and eating. i am proud to be strong and covered in muscle. i don’t have a body made for show, but i have a body made for good honest work. and like what was said in an earlier post, i’d rather be a few pounds heavy than be skinny and uppity against heavier people.
i dont really think bmi is that important as long as you are healthy. i am 5’4 and it says i’m supposed to be in the 120 to 130 range. well i was 125 before and i looked ridiculous. i’m curvy, have DD boobs, and being that weight just made me look like a freak. women should be soft looking not like a manly man and so skinny you can see bones. it just is not appealing and just because there statistics saying you are overweight does not mean you are unhealthy. i weight 145 pounds and i am damn sexy!
Gym Class Heroes Muscle Boys Muscle Girls…
I didn’t agree with you first, but last paragraph makes sense for me…
I am currently and nutrition and dietetics major, and working to be a registered dietitian. People in general come in all shapes and sizes, and truth be told there are three different body types, ectomorph (Kate Moss and Jennifer Anniston), mesomorph (Body Builders), and endomorph (Bionce, Jack Black, people with more curves). Health shouldn’t be looked at a “weight” standpoint, nor do all the fad diets work. The truth is, dieting will actually make a person gain fat over time. This is because when you diet, and lose more than two pounds a week, all your losing is muscle. So you go on this diet, lose muscle, then gain back the same weight in fat, go on another diet, lose more muscle, and so on and so on.
Our culture is obsesses with beauty and physical attractiveness. Weight affects your health, but a technically “overweight” person who exercises is healthier than a rail thin person who does not exercise.
Also, people who have low self-esteem are affected by the world around them. Many of the things said in this forum are exactly why. Women need more fat on them, our hormones are stored in fat. It is the way our bodies are built. Diet and exercise should not be looked at for cosmetic reasons. Instead, look at it via health, don’t look at weight. Other ways that encourage unhealthy weight-loss and body obsession or unhappiness is also by complimenting people who had lost weight. This encourages this type of behavior, particularly for eating disorders. Also, making references to ‘fat’ or ‘weight’ in day to day language. Be careful what you say, you don’t know who your talking to, and most people who are really having trouble won’t necessarily come out and say it.
This article was meant, as far as I can tell, to help with women’s self-esteem. Hopefully these numbers give women out there some hope about their own images. Its a lot easier to try and get healthier when you know what the norms are rather than reaching for a seemingly impossible goal.
THIS IS DISGUSTING! that a bunch of grown women are saying that an average woman at 164 is “obese and gross”. i am 5’2″ i have dieted, i have starved myself, i have thrown up food, and i have OVER exercised and the smallest my body would ever allow me to be was 140. so what the heck is wrong with me? NOTHING! the problem is YOU! you lil skinny minis who have called me fat, that i am lazy, and “unmotivated”. do you know what you do to a woman when you criticize her looks? YOU DO! because people have criticized you. YOU are what is wrong with this society, YOU are what has defined “beauty” and has cause our girls to starve themselves. so get your head out of your butt and look at what beautiful woman are out there that may not be a size 0 but have curves. you’re probably just jealous cause you skinny girls don’t have boobs!
Average women are fat and unattractive. 95% of women I see on the street have fat asses and fat stomachs, gross. I’d take a skinny supermodel in a second and 99% of men would too, if they say different then they either are just saying that to be nice or they think that they have no chance with a hot skinny babe. Women need to stop worrying about makeup and cloths and start dieting and exercising. Seeing out of shape women with expensive clothes and makeup can just look sad. A fit skinny girl is jeans and a t-shirt is way hotter than an out of shape girl in a thousand dollar gown and make up.
Thx for this great information that you are sharing with us!!!