Cornell Cat Health

Average Female Height And Weight: Find Out How You Measure Up?

In today's shallow, body-obsessed world, we hear things like: Marilyn Monroe was a size 12, or that a size 0 is way too big for Posh Spice, or that fitness models are a size 8.

The media is out of control.

How many times did we cringe when the media hounded Renee Zellweger for gaining weight for her role as Bridget Jones (she looked perfectly normal to us). The sad truth is that many women have no idea what the average female height and weight is anymore.

So, once and for all, let's get our facts straight, shall we?

Mathematically speaking, the exact average of all the women in America compiled from data and statistics, is:

Height: 63.8" (a little more than 5'3?)
Weight: 163 lbs
Waist: 36.5"

If you were to convert that into today's clothing sizes it's a mess. With a height of 5'3", you'd be shopping in the Misses Petite section and the largest size runs two inches smaller around the waist than the average! You'd have to go to between a size 18 and a size 20 in the regular Misses department.

Not to mention that sizes differ from label to label - and that sizes have gradually shifted up over the years. What used to be a size 12 is now a size 6; a dress from 20 years ago is two inches smaller around the waist than it is now.

No wonder women are confused!

But, what does "average" mean? According to some weight charts, a woman who is 5'3" should be 133 pounds. So, "average weight" doesn't mean "ideal weight." It's a fact of life of American life today.

The truth is that while the median ideal weight is 133 pounds, the ideal weight can be anywhere from 110 to 145 pounds, and that's a pretty wide gap!

Does the "average" woman then need to drop 15 pounds from her burdened frame? Thirty pounds? Over fifty pounds? Honestly, it just depends on the individual.

A woman might be 5'3" and 163 pounds, and look extremely overweight. She might look like she could stand to lose a pound or two, however 50 pounds might seem like a reach. The same holds true for someone at the other end of the spectrum - at 110 pounds, she might look completely average to you and I, or she might look like she could use a sandwich, with extra mayo.

What is least talked about and most important is how you feel about yourself. If you're obese, that tends to complicate your health, and it can be psychologically crippling. For those women who are average female height and weight, it's about what you see when you look in the mirror.

If you like what you see - if you think you are the cat's meow - then "you go girl"! Stay the way you are, and just make sure you are healthy, happy, and fit.

But if you actively avoid mirrors and shred any picture with you in it because you feel like a fat cow, then make a promise to yourself to do what needs to be done to be happy.