If you stand five-foot-seven, you’ve probably spent a significant chunk of your life staring at those colorful BMI charts in a doctor's office. You know the ones. They suggest that for a 5 7 body weight, anything between 118 and 159 pounds is "normal." It’s a huge range. Honestly, it’s almost too huge to be helpful.
Body weight is weird.
One person at 155 pounds looks lean and athletic. Another person at the exact same height and weight might feel sluggish or carry most of their mass around the midsection. Why? Because the scale is a blunt instrument. It measures gravity’s pull on your bones, water, fat, and muscle all at once. It doesn't care if you just crushed a leg day or if you're dehydrated from a long flight.
The Problem With "Ideal" Numbers
Most people searching for the perfect 5 7 body weight are looking for a magic number that guarantees they'll look and feel great. Dr. Nick Tiller, a researcher at Harbor-UCLA, often points out that health isn't a static point on a graph. It’s a spectrum. If you’re 165 pounds but 12% body fat, you’re technically "overweight" by BMI standards. That’s obviously ridiculous.
Muscle is dense. It takes up less space than fat. This is why "recomposition" is a thing. You might stay the exact same weight for six months but drop two pants sizes. If you only look at the number, you’ll think you’ve failed. You haven't. You've just changed the quality of your mass.
Frame Size Matters More Than You Think
We don't talk about bone structure enough. Humans are built differently. If you have a "large frame"—which you can roughly check by wrapping your thumb and middle finger around your wrist—you’re naturally going to carry more weight. If your fingers overlap, you have a small frame. If they just touch, you’re medium.
A 5'7" person with a large frame might feel depleted and weak at 135 pounds, whereas a small-framed person might feel their best there. There is no "correct" setting. It’s highly individual.
5 7 body weight and the Body Mass Index Trap
The BMI was invented in the 1830s by a Belgian mathematician named Lambert Adolphe Jacques Quetelet. He wasn't even a doctor. He was a statistician trying to find the "average man" for social research. Somehow, his math became the gold standard for your health.
For a 5 7 body weight, the BMI formula is simple: weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared.
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- Underweight: Under 118 lbs
- Normal: 118 – 159 lbs
- Overweight: 160 – 191 lbs
- Obese: Over 191 lbs
But here is the kicker. It doesn't account for where you carry your fat. Research from the Journal of the American College of Cardiology suggests that "normal weight obesity"—where you have a healthy BMI but high visceral fat—is actually more dangerous than being slightly "overweight" with high muscle mass. Visceral fat is the stuff that wraps around your organs. It’s metabolic poison.
If you're 5'7" and 170 pounds but you can squat twice your body weight and your waist circumference is under 33 inches (for women) or 37 inches (for men), you’re likely in better metabolic shape than someone who is 130 pounds and "skinny fat."
Why Your Weight Fluctuates Daily
Have you ever woken up three pounds heavier than you were the night before? It’s impossible to gain three pounds of fat overnight. To do that, you’d need to eat roughly 10,500 calories above your maintenance level. That’s about 20 large pepperoni pizzas.
It’s water.
If you had a high-sodium dinner, your body holds onto water to keep your electrolyte balance stable. If you had a high-carb meal, your body stores that energy as glycogen in your muscles. Each gram of glycogen holds about three to four grams of water. This is why "keto" diets cause rapid weight loss in the first week. It’s not fat loss; it’s just the "whoosh" of water leaving your body as glycogen stores deplete.
For a 5 7 body weight, these swings can be dramatic. Don't let a Monday morning weigh-in ruin your mood. It's just chemistry.
The Role of Age and Hormones
As we get older, our lean muscle mass naturally starts to decline. This is called sarcopenia. It starts as early as your 30s. If you aren't actively strength training, your 5 7 body weight might stay the same over a decade, but your body composition is shifting toward more fat and less muscle. This slows down your metabolism.
Hormones like cortisol (the stress hormone) also play a massive role. High stress leads to fat storage in the abdominal area. You could be eating perfectly, but if you're sleeping four hours a night and redlining your nervous system, your body will fight to keep that weight on as a survival mechanism.
Better Metrics to Track Instead of the Scale
If the scale is a liar, what should you actually look at?
- Waist-to-Height Ratio: This is arguably the best predictor of cardiovascular health. Take your waist measurement (at the narrowest point) and divide it by your height in inches (67 inches for 5'7"). You want this number to be 0.5 or lower. It’s way more accurate than BMI.
- Relative Strength: Can you do a pull-up? Can you get off the floor without using your hands? These functional markers tell you more about your "useful" weight than a digital readout in the bathroom.
- Clothing Fit: Your favorite pair of jeans doesn't care about water retention. They tell the truth.
- Energy Levels: If you hit your "goal weight" but you’re too tired to go for a walk, that weight is too low for your biology.
Practical Steps for Finding Your Healthy Range
Stop chasing a specific number. Seriously. It’s a recipe for burnout. Instead, focus on the variables you can actually control.
Prioritize protein intake. Aim for about 0.7 to 1 gram of protein per pound of your goal weight. If you want to be a solid 150 pounds, eat 120-150 grams of protein. This protects your muscle while your body burns fat.
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Lift heavy things. You don't need to become a bodybuilder, but resistance training is the only way to ensure your 5 7 body weight is made of high-quality tissue. Two or three full-body sessions a week is plenty for most people.
Get a DEXA scan or use calipers. If you're really curious about your numbers, get a professional body composition test. Knowing you’re 22% body fat is infinitely more useful than knowing you weigh 158 pounds. It gives you a baseline for real health, not just a guess based on 19th-century math.
Walk more. It sounds boring, but "NEAT" (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis) is the secret weapon. Pacing while on the phone, taking the stairs, and hitting 8,000 steps does more for long-term weight management than a 45-minute HIIT class that leaves you exhausted on the couch for the rest of the day.
Watch the "Hidden" Calories. Liquids are the biggest culprit. Fancy coffees, sodas, and "healthy" green juices can add 500 calories to your day without making you feel full. Stick to water, black coffee, and tea.
The most sustainable weight for someone who is 5'7" is the weight they can maintain while still enjoying their life. If you have to starve yourself and skip every social event to stay at 125 pounds, that weight isn't healthy for you. It’s a prison. Find the balance where your blood markers are good, your joints don't hurt, and you actually have the energy to live. That’s your real "ideal" weight.