What is Overweight for a 19-Year Old?

By 19-years old, many teenagers have ventured off on their own and left the familiarity of their parent’s house. Although your health has always ultimately been your responsibility, it is even more now that you have more independence. Maintaining a healthy weight does not mean you have to go on a strict diet, but it is more dependent on developing healthy eating and exercise habits that you practice on a daily basis!

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has determined that children and teenagers who are between the 85th and 95th percentile on their growth charts are classified as “overweight.” However, this measurement only accounts for age, height, and weight, and should not be the only information used to determine someone’s health status. Evaluating eating and exercise habits is much more helpful!

For example, a 19-year old female who is 5 foot 4 inches tall (64 inches) is classified as overweight above 152 pounds. A 19-year old male who is 5 foot 9.5 inches tall (69.5 inches) is classified as overweight above 181 pounds. Other heights and ages would be classified differently.

Read on for more information about what is a healthy weight for a 19-year old, what factors influence weight, why maintaining a healthy weight is important, when a 19-year old should lose weight, the best diet for a 19-year old, how many calories a 19-year old should be eating, and eating and exercise tips for teenagers!

What is a Healthy Weight for a 19-Year Old?

The CDC has decided on a method using body mass index (BMI) and growth charts to classify weight for children and teenagers as being underweight, healthy weight, overweight, or obese. The charts take into account growth that should be happening as you get older. These are the current classifications that your doctor will be using:

For help understanding and using growth charts click here.

For example, a 19-year old female who is 5 foot 4 inches tall (64 inches) is considered a healthy weight between 104 and 151 pounds. A healthy weight for a 19-year old male who is 5 foot 9.5 inches tall (69.5 inches) is between 129 and 180 pounds. Other heights have different ranges. A healthy weight range for 19-year olds is generally based on maintaining a body mass index (BMI) between the 5th and 85th percentile on the Center of Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) growth chart.

There are pros and cons to using these classifications. They can be a helpful tool because this is a quick, easy, and inexpensive measurement that can be repeated over time and give insight into how things have changed as you get older. On the other hand, this measurement only accounts for age, sex, height, and weight and therefore no information about body composition, frame size, genetics, or health habits are taken into account.

If you are not in the “healthy weight” category as defined by the CDC, don’t freak out! Plenty of people are perfectly healthy even if their body naturally sits at a higher weight. Your eating and exercise habits along with how well you take care of your body in general (i.e. mental health, sleep, etc.) are totally in your control and are much more tied to your overall health status.

What Factors Influence Weight?

If you think it is just what you eat and how much you exercise that impacts your weight, you probably aren’t seeing the whole picture. In fact, most of what influences your weight is NOT eating and exercise.

The main factor that impacts your weight is actually your genetics, which is something that you don’t have any control over. That means much of what determines your weight is out of your control. This is why I like to have people focus more on healthy exercise and eating habits- because that is what you actually have control over!

Stress, mental and emotional health, social atmosphere, food budget, and food availability are other factors that can influence a teenager’s weight. Some of these you have more control of than others. However, it is always good to be aware of the factors that are impacting you, your eating habits, and your health!

Why Is Maintaining a Healthy Weight Important?

I’ll be honest, sometimes weight is overemphasized in our society, even by healthcare professionals. Losing weight doesn’t actually fix all of our health problems… but sometimes that is the only advice doctors will give. On the other hand, there are correlations between disease risk and higher body weight, including higher risk for:

Joint pain

Gallstones

Cardiovascular disease

Fatty liver disease

Type 2 diabetes

Heartburn

Breathing issues

However, just because you are at a higher weight does not mean you will definitely develop one of these diseases, just like being in the “normal weight” range does not mean you are immune! Regardless of your weight, everyone can work on making small changes that will benefit their overall health and reduce their risk of disease. That should be your main focus!

When Should a 19-Year Old Lose Weight?

Weight loss is so often sought after and praised in our society, but should that really be the case? In reality, weight is just a number on a scale- it doesn’t say much about your health and doesn’t say anything about your worth as a human being.

What if we took the focus off of weight and instead focused more on health? Many people reach what might be technically considered a “healthy weight,” but they do it in a super unhealthy way, so think about it- is the pursuit of weight loss really the healthiest goal for you?

If you have a desire to lose weight, I recommend talking with a dietitian. They can help to determine if losing weight would be appropriate for you and can help you do it in a healthy, non-extreme way (AKA forming healthy eating and exercise habits!).

What is the Best Diet for a 19-Year Old?

Dieting is not recommended for children, teens, or adults. You might be surprised to hear this from a dietitian, but it is true! We live in a society that is OBSESSED with dieting, and the diet industry makes billions of dollars by pushing their products and services on people. But for most people, dieting causes more harm than good.

You may be tempted to try out a fad diet because you have heard stories from other people about how certain diets have worked for them. The truth is, most diets do work in the short-term, but eventually your body and brain will reject it because dieting is not sustainable. Most people who diet will regain the weight they lost, plus some!

Diets also tend to put you in a negative headspace where you feel restricted in what foods and how much you can eat. This leads to feelings of guilt and shame around food and your body. Dieting can also increase your risk of developing an eating disorder because it really messes with your mind!

My suggestion, no matter your age or weight, is to stay far away from fad diets. If your doctor has recommended a diet for you, talk with a dietitian to get an opinion from a nutrition professional. Instead of dieting, evaluate your eating and exercise habits. What is one small improvement you can make to benefit your overall health?

How Many Calories Should a 19-Year Old Eat?

Calorie needs are going to be different for every person. Boys tend to burn more calories at rest than girls do, and those with a higher percentage of muscle mass will also burn more calories at rest. How physically active you are on a daily basis also is a major contributor to how many calories you need.

Sometimes we talk about calories in a very negative way. High calorie foods often get called “bad,” and low-calorie foods are marketed as a healthier alternative. While it is not helpful to consistently consume more calories than your body needs, it is important to remember that calories are actually healthy! They are energy for your body!

The charts below can give you a general idea of how many calories your body might be using in a day based on your gender, age, and physical activity level. Keep in mind that these are just estimates and every body will have slightly different needs.

It is impossible to guess exactly how many calories your body needs each day, but luckily your body is really smart and will let you know how much you need to eat each day if you are paying attention. Often when people track their calories on an app, they start listening to the app more than they listen to their own body! Pay attention to the cues that your body is giving you throughout the day and do your best to honor them.

Tips for Teenagers Who Want to Achieve and Maintain a Healthy Weight

So now you know that the best way to achieve and maintain a healthy weight is to establish healthy habits, but maybe you still don’t know quite what that means or where to start. This is my list of tips for you! Trying to make all of these changes at once might feel a little too overwhelming, so start by choosing one or two things that feel doable!

Eat regularly throughout the day and don’t go long periods of time without eating. Your body needs a consistent source of fuel as it works to keep you alive and functioning during the day, so skipping meals or waiting too long to eat is not going to be the best way to nourish your body. Plus, you are much more likely to overeat if you let yourself get overly hungry!

Start your day out with breakfast! You can’t expect your body to function at full capacity if you haven’t given it any energy. If you have a hard time eating breakfast, try doing liquids like smoothies, chocolate milk, protein drinks, juice, etc.
Balance your plate by including carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fats. These are called your macronutrients and they each do something special and unique for your body. They also work together to help stabilize your blood sugars, regulate your appetite and mood, and help you feel more satisfied after a meal.
Take time to slow down and eat. It often helps if you can step away from other things you are doing and really focus on eating. This also helps you pay more attention to your body’s hunger and fullness cues.

Get up and move every day! That doesn’t mean you have to go out and run every day, but at least take breaks from sitting and find some sort of movement you enjoy.
Get creative with your physical activity and do a variety of exercises that strengthen your muscles and bones. Think outside the box! Maybe try out snowboarding, take a dance class, go rock climbing, find an indoor ice skating rink, go to a skate park with friends, play pickleball, etc. There are so many options!
Get enough sleep. Leaving home for the first time and being in college can lead to some late nights, but do your best to consistently get enough sleep. It is hard for your body to function at its best if it doesn’t have enough time to rest and recover as you sleep.

Seek help for stress and other mental health challenges. You don’t have to “tough it out.” Reach out to a trusted friend or family member to get you the resources you need!

Summary

As you get older and gain more independence, it is your responsibility to take control of your health and wellbeing. The good news is, leading a healthy lifestyle and achieving and maintaining a healthy weight doesn’t have to be super complicated!

If changing your health habits feels overwhelming, and you feel like you have a long way to go, don’t get down on yourself. Healthy habits take time to build, but you can go as slow as you need to. Start with one small aspect of your health that can be improved and just focus on that until you feel like you can and want to do more.

Remember to keep your focus more on your habits rather than the number on the scale. With so many factors determining your weight, it is important to focus on the things you actually can control!

Resources

Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. BMI for Children and Adolescents. Eatrightpro.org. Published August 26, 2015.

CDC. Childhood Obesity Causes and Consequences. Cdc.gov. Reviewed March 19, 2021.

Ellis E. How Many Calories Does My Teen Need? Eatright.org. Published October 4, 2019.

United States Department of Agriculture. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025. Dietaryguidelines.gov. Published December 29, 2020.

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