Normal Weight for a Man

Even in the fitness world, there is really no such thing as “normal.” Among active men, weight varies just as much as height, ethnicity, eye color, favorite foods and taste in music. However, health agencies around the world have conducted studies that paint a picture of average male weight in America and other countries. Keep in mind that as the U.S. struggles with an obesity problem, the average weight is not always the ideal.

Averages

In 2012, the United States' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the average weight of an adult male 20 years of age or older was 195.5 pounds, with a an average height of 69.3 inches and waist circumference of 39.7 inches. The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found that average weight of an adult American, regardless of gender, was 180.62 pounds, a figure that closely agrees with the CDC data, which put the average American female's weight at 166.2 pounds.

International Stats and U.S. Trends

Compared to body weights from around the world, the average American male weighs in on the heavy side. The London School of Hygiene's study puts the average international adult body mass at 136.7 pounds, as of 2012. Also in 2012, CNN, the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation projected that every state in America may have adult obesity rates higher than 44 percent by 2030, with 39 states clocking in at an obesity rate above 50 percent.

Ideals

For a 5-foot, 9-inch tall man, the ideal body weight is 152 pounds, according to HealthStatus.com's Ideal Weight Calculator, which bases its data on algorithms collected by Emory University's Healthier People project. This weight is 43.5 pounds less than the CDC's average figure, though there is some flex room here -- HealthStatus recommends a weight range between 135 and 168 pounds at that height. Of course, the ideal varies according to height. For instance, the same source lists the ideal weight of a 5-foot, 5-inch tall male at 134 pounds, or 170 pounds for a 6-foot, 1-inch man.

BMI Averages

The CDC also offers healthy averages for body mass index, an indicator of overall body fat content, for both men and women. For an average American adult age 20 or over, the CDC reports that a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 is a “normal,” healthy BMI. A BMI of less than 18.5 qualifies as “underweight,” 25.0 to 29.9 as “overweight” and 30.0 or above as “obese.” According to the CDC's Adult BMI Calculator, the average 5-foot, 9-inch, 195.5-pound adult male has a BMI of 28.9.