Average weight for women 5 8: Why the standard charts are usually wrong

You’re 5'8". You're tall. In most rooms, you’re looking over the heads of half the people there, which is a vibe, honestly. But being a "tall" woman comes with a weird set of baggage, specifically when you step on a scale. You see a number like 160 or 170 and panic because your shorter friends are hovering around 130.

Stop.

The average weight for women 5 8 isn't a single point on a map. It’s a wide, messy range influenced by things like bone density, muscle mass, and even where your ancestors came from. If you’ve spent years chasing a "goal weight" based on a chart from a 1950s insurance pamphlet, you've been chasing a ghost.

Let's get real about what the numbers actually mean.

The BMI trap and what the data really says

Most doctors still lean on the Body Mass Index (BMI). It’s easy. It’s fast. It’s also incredibly flawed because it was invented by a mathematician, not a physician, and he specifically said it shouldn't be used to judge individual health.

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According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the "normal" BMI range for a woman who is 5'8" falls between 125 and 158 pounds.

That is a 33-pound gap.

Think about that. You could lose or gain the weight of a medium-sized dog and still be "normal." And yet, if you hit 159, a computer program somewhere flags you as "overweight." It doesn't care if you've been deadlifting 200 pounds or if you have a frame that's naturally broad.

Statistics from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics actually show that the measured average weight for adult women in the U.S. is closer to 170 pounds. There is a massive disconnect between the "ideal" clinical number and the "actual" average of the population. Most women 5'8" are walking around weighing significantly more than the 140-pound "ideal" we see in catalogs.

Frame size is the variable nobody talks about

Have you ever tried to put on a friend's bracelet and realized your wrist bones are just... wider? That's frame size. It’s a real anatomical thing.

If you have a "large frame," your skeleton itself weighs more. Your organs are scaled to match. A woman with a large frame who is 5'8" might feel and look emaciated at 135 pounds, whereas a small-framed woman of the same height might feel perfectly healthy there.

How do you check? Wrap your thumb and middle finger around your opposite wrist.

• If they overlap: Small frame.
• If they just touch: Medium frame.
• If there's a gap: Large frame.

Basically, if you have a large frame, you can add about 10% to those standard weight charts and still be in a metabolic "sweet spot." It’s biology, not a lack of willpower.

Muscle vs. Fat: The density debate

Muscle is dense. It’s heavy. It’s also metabolically active, meaning it burns calories while you're just sitting there watching Netflix.

I’ve seen women who weigh 175 pounds at 5'8" look "leaner" than women who weigh 150 pounds because the 175-pounder has a high percentage of lean muscle mass. This is why the average weight for women 5 8 is such a deceptive metric. If you are active—if you hike, swim, or lift—your scale weight is going to be higher. That's a good thing.

When you focus on the number, you ignore the composition. A 5'8" athlete might have a BMI of 26 (technically "overweight") but have a body fat percentage of 18%, which is elite. The scale is a blunt instrument. It can't tell the difference between a gallon of water, a pound of muscle, or a cheesecake.

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The role of age and hormones

We have to talk about the 40s and 50s. Perimenopause and menopause change where your body stores fat. Estrogen drops, and suddenly the weight shifts to the midsection. This is often called "visceral fat," and it's more of a health indicator than your total weight.

As we age, a slightly higher weight—being on the upper end of that 158-pound limit—can actually be protective. It provides a reserve if you get sick and can help maintain bone density, which is a huge deal for tall women who are at a higher risk for osteoporosis.

Why "Average" is a moving target

The word "average" is a bit of a trap. If you take ten women who are all 5'8", one might be a distance runner with a willow-thin build, another might be a powerlifter with thick legs and broad shoulders, and another might be a mother of three whose body has naturally settled into a curvier shape.

All of them could be healthy.

Real-world health is better measured by:

1. Waist-to-hip ratio: Where do you carry the weight?
2. Blood markers: How’s your cholesterol and blood sugar?
3. Energy levels: Can you climb a flight of stairs without gasping?
4. Sleep quality: Are you actually resting?

If those four things are good, the number on the scale is mostly trivia.

The psychological toll of the "140" myth

For decades, fashion icons and "heroin chic" aesthetics pushed the idea that a tall woman should still be very light. This created a generation of 5'8" women who felt "huge" because they couldn't fit into a size 4.

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Let's be clear: 5'8" is tall for a woman. You have a longer spine, longer femur bones, and more skin surface area than someone who is 5'2". You should weigh more. Comparing yourself to a shorter person's weight is like comparing a SUV’s fuel tank to a sedan’s. They aren't built for the same capacity.

Practical ways to find your personal healthy range

Instead of staring at a chart, look at your own history. Most of us have a "set point"—a weight our body naturally returns to when we are eating normally and moving regularly.

If you find that your body "wants" to be at 165 pounds, and you have to starve yourself to get to 150, then 165 is likely your healthy weight. Pushing below that set point often triggers a metabolic slowdown. Your body thinks it's in a famine. It holds onto every calorie. It makes you miserable and tired. It’s not worth it.

Actionable steps for the 5'8" woman

If you’re trying to figure out where you stand, ditch the standard scale for a month. Seriously. Put it in the garage. Try these instead:

• Measure your waist-to-height ratio. Your waist circumference should be less than half your height. For a 5'8" woman (68 inches), your waist should ideally be under 34 inches. This is a much better predictor of heart health than total weight.
• Get a DEXA scan if you’re curious. If you really want the data, a DEXA scan will tell you exactly how much of your weight is bone, muscle, and fat. It’s the gold standard and will usually prove that you aren't "fat," you're just "built."
• Focus on functional strength. Can you carry your own groceries? Can you do a push-up? For tall women, maintaining back and core strength is vital to prevent the back pain that often comes with a longer torso.
• Ignore the "size" on the label. Sizing is fake. A size 10 in one brand is a size 6 in another. Shop for how the fabric drapes over your frame, not the number on the tag.
• Track your protein. Tall bodies need more protein to maintain that long-levered muscle. Aim for a gram per pound of your target weight.

The average weight for women 5 8 is a starting point for a conversation, not the end of it. Your body is a complex biological machine, not a math equation. Treat it like one.