Why BMI mislabels muscular people
BMI is calculated purely from height and weight. It cannot tell muscle from fat. Muscle is denser than fat, so a lean, well-trained body weighs more than an untrained one at the same height.
The CDC acknowledges this: BMI is an estimate of body-fat risk at the population level, not an individual body-composition measurement.
What to use if you lift or train hard
Waist-to-height ratio (WHtR): keep your waist under half your height. This catches fat around the organs, which is the real health risk.
Body fat percentage (Navy method, DEXA, or a caliper) tells you what BMI cannot.
Frame size adjusts the healthy range for bone structure.
