Attack Of the 50 Foot Dancer

When I was in Amsterdam, I had to get a physical. This is nothing new or exciting, except that a few things have changed. In the past, when they asked if I was on any medications, I would say no. Now, I give them a list. Fortunately, I went off the anticonvulsants a long time ago. That one would raise a few eyebrows.

The part of the physical I actually looked forward to was when they checked my weight and height. I have been trying to gain weight for a while and their scale is probably more accurate than what I have at home. My bathroom scale might be broken. I can eat like Falstaff and it still reads the same thing. One factor is that I exercise a lot. Strenuous exercise is not conducive to weight gain. Even so, I make brownies, cupcakes and cookies all the time. They have to have some effect.

The big surprise of this physical was my height. I have been 5'7 since high school. That translates to roughly 170cm. When I was in the hospital in Beijing, they said I was 178cm, which is 5'10. It seems unlikely that I got 3 inches taller in China, so I just assumed they were mistaken. Then my Hong Kong hospital said I was 178cm. Maybe something was getting lost in translation. But no matter what kind of calculator you use, 178cm is 5'10.

My roommate and best friend has been 5'9 since high school. We can wear the same clothes, but anyone can see that she is taller. Does that mean she also got taller in China? None of this makes sense. Then again, she is from Canada. Maybe they use Canadian inches.

Generally speaking, it makes no difference if I'm 5'7 or 5'10, or something in between. As long as my shoes fit. The issue here is about weight. I am currently 115 pounds. I know that breaks a cardinal rule about women revealing their weight, but I consider this temporary and hope to gain more. When I get where I want to be, I can keep that a secret.

That is too low no matter how tall I am. If we use American measurements and I'm 5'7, then my BMI is 18.0, which is underweight. If I'm 5'10, then my BMI is 16.5, which is severely underweight. If we use metric measurements and I'm 170cm, then my BMI is 17.9, which is underweight. If I'm 178cm, then my BMI is 16.4, which is severely underweight.

None of this made any difference as far as my work physical was concerned. They are more concerned with anyone being overweight. But it makes a difference to me and my career. I have been trying to gain weight for the past year. I thought I was making progress, but if I'm suddenly taller, that just means I have farther to go. A lot of women would love to be underweight, and I will never get any sympathy when I say that I eat and eat and never gain anything. But for me, I think it would be easier if I were trying to lose weight. I'm active enough and used to eat enough healthy food to take off a few pounds. Gaining weight is proving more difficult. Sitting on the sofa all day with a bucket of junk food might work, but it is not an option.

The bad news is that 115 is not getting any higher. The good news, for which I am always grateful, is that it is not getting any lower. My weight seems to have leveled off. Oddly enough, I might be getting taller.