Being a 5'11" woman is a bit like being a statistical outlier in a world designed for people six inches shorter. You’ve probably spent your life ducking under low hanging branches or dealing with the fact that "regular" jeans are basically high-waters on you. But when it comes to the scale, that height changes everything. Most of the standard advice you see online or on the back of cereal boxes is geared toward the average woman, who stands about 5'4". If you're 5'11", your body is a totally different machine with different caloric needs and a much larger frame to support.
Finding a healthy weight for 5'11 female isn't about hitting some "magic" number you saw in a magazine. It’s about understanding how that height distributes mass. Honestly, a weight that looks "fit" on you might look "overweight" on someone else, and that's exactly where the confusion starts.
The BMI Myth and Why Your Height Changes the Math
We have to talk about the Body Mass Index (BMI). It’s flawed. We know this. But doctors still use it as a starting point. For a woman who is 5'11", the standard "normal" BMI range falls roughly between 133 and 179 pounds. That is a massive 46-pound window. It’s huge. You could lose 40 pounds and still be "normal," or gain 40 and still be "normal." This is why the number on the scale is often a terrible way to measure your health.
If you have a large frame—which many tall women do—133 pounds might actually make you look emaciated and leave you feeling constantly fatigued. On the flip side, an athletic 5'11" woman with significant muscle mass might easily weigh 185 pounds and have a low body fat percentage, even though the BMI chart would technically flag her as "overweight." Muscle is dense. It’s heavy. When you have long limbs, you have more room to store that muscle, which naturally pushes your weight higher than the charts suggest.
The CDC and the National Institutes of Health still use these metrics because they work for broad populations, but for the individual "tall girl," they can be misleading. Dr. Nick Tiller, a researcher at Harbor-UCLA, often points out that BMI fails to distinguish between fat and fat-free mass. For someone with your verticality, the lever lengths of your bones and the sheer volume of your skeletal system add weight that a 5'2" person simply doesn't have to account for.
Body Composition Over Raw Weight
Forget the scale for a second. Let's look at body composition. This is what actually matters for your long-term health. Because you're tall, your surface area is larger. You have more skin, longer bones, and a more extensive circulatory system.
A healthy weight for 5'11 female is better defined by her waist-to-hip ratio or her body fat percentage. Generally, for women, a body fat percentage between 21% and 32% is considered healthy. If you're an athlete, you might be lower. If you're more sedentary, you might be at the higher end. The point is, two women can both be 5'11" and weigh 170 pounds, but one might be a size 8 with high muscle tone while the other is a size 14 with less muscle. They weigh the same. Their health profiles are completely different.
Think about your energy levels. Are you sleeping well? Can you climb a flight of stairs without getting winded? Tall women often face unique orthopedic challenges. Carrying too much weight can put extra stress on your long levers—your knees and your lower back. But being too thin is equally dangerous; it increases the risk of osteoporosis, which is a major concern for taller women as they age. You need enough weight to maintain bone density, but not so much that you're grinding your joints down.
The Caloric Reality of Being 5'11"
Here is the "perk" of being tall: you get to eat more. Sorta.
Basic physics dictates that a larger engine requires more fuel. A 5'11" woman has a higher Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) than a shorter woman. Even if you're just sitting on the couch watching Netflix, your body is burning more calories just to keep the lights on—pumping blood through those long limbs and maintaining that larger frame.
According to the Harris-Benedict Equation, a 30-year-old woman who is 5'11" and weighs 160 pounds has a BMR of roughly 1,550 calories. That is just to stay alive in a coma. Once you add in walking to the car, working, and exercising, that number jumps to 2,100 or 2,400 calories very quickly. Many tall women struggle with their weight because they try to follow "standard" diets of 1,200 or 1,500 calories. For you, that’s a massive deficit. It’s starvation. Your body will react by crashing your metabolism and making you feel like garbage.
What Most People Get Wrong About "Tall" Weight
People see a number like 175 pounds and think it sounds "heavy" for a woman. It’s not. Not for you.
There is a psychological hurdle to overcome when you realize you might weigh more than some of the men you know. It’s okay. Your bones are longer. Your organs are literally larger. Your heart is bigger. Your lungs have more capacity. All of that adds up to a higher baseline weight.
I’ve talked to women who are 5'11" and felt "fat" at 165 pounds because their shorter friends weighed 125. That comparison is poison. It’s like comparing a Greyhound to a Great Dane. They’re both dogs, but they’re built for different things. A Great Dane at the weight of a Greyhound is a sick dog.
Real-World Markers of a Healthy Weight
So, if the scale is a liar and the BMI is a guess, what should you actually look at?
- Waist Circumference: For most women, a waist measurement under 35 inches is a good sign that you aren't carrying dangerous visceral fat around your organs.
- The "Pinch" Test: Honestly, how do your clothes fit? Are you gaining inches in your midsection specifically? That’s usually a better indicator of health risks than the total weight.
- Bone Health: Taller women are more prone to stress fractures if they are underweight. If you're 5'11" and 125 pounds, your bone density is likely taking a hit.
- Menstrual Cycle: If your weight drops so low that your period becomes irregular or stops, you have moved past "healthy" into "danger zone," regardless of what the BMI says.
Actionable Steps for Navigating Your Weight
Don't just aim for a number. Aim for a state of being. If you're trying to find your personal "sweet spot," here is how to actually do it without losing your mind.
1. Prioritize Strength Training
Because you have long limbs, you have a lot of potential for "functional mass." Strength training doesn't just make you look toned; it protects your joints and builds the bone density you desperately need. Aim for three days a week of lifting things that feel heavy to you. Don't worry about the scale going up; if your waist stays the same or shrinks while the weight goes up, you're winning.
2. Adjust Your Protein Intake
You have more muscle tissue to maintain than a shorter person. Most nutritional guidelines are too low. Try to get at least 0.8 grams of protein per pound of your target weight. If you want to be a fit 165, aim for roughly 130 grams of protein a day. It sounds like a lot. It is. But it keeps you satiated and protects your metabolism.
3. Get a DEXA Scan
If you’re really curious or worried about where you stand, skip the bathroom scale and get a DEXA scan. It’s the gold standard for measuring body composition and bone density. It will tell you exactly how many pounds of bone, muscle, and fat you’re carrying. For a tall woman, this data is incredibly empowering because it usually proves that you aren't "fat"—you're just "more human."
4. Watch Your Posture
Tall women often "hunch" to fit into mirrors or talk to shorter friends. This creates a "pooch" in the stomach area that looks like weight gain but is actually just a spinal misalignment. Working on your posterior chain (back and glutes) can change how your weight sits on your frame more than losing five pounds ever could.
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Finding a healthy weight for 5'11 female is a personal project. It’s a balance between how you feel, how you move, and what your blood work says. If your energy is high, your cycles are regular, and you can move through the world with strength, you’re probably exactly where you need to be. Ignore the 120-pound "goal weights" you see on TikTok. They weren't written for someone with your stature. Own your height, feed your body, and focus on being strong rather than just being "less."