Determining your goal weight?

sbrownallison

How did YOU decide where to put your goal weight? When I was on Weight Watchers, I set mine for the top weight in my height range because I did not know if anything less was even achievable for me. Now, years later, my current weight loss journey, which has included WW, MFP, the YMCA, and Fitbit, has put me well below my WW goal. I'm tempted to use the number on that scale one sees featured in print advertisements for scales, which is "126.5". This number must have been run through the medical community, various focus groups, a Don Draper-esque ad agency, etc., so maybe it's the right one for me and backed by all the science that can be bought. What do you think?

ragenhay1

I was 160 ish when I got married and felt like I could have lost 10 or so pounds so I'm shooting for 140 to 150. Hoping to hit closet to 140 but I'm also going to work on building some muscle and strength so I'm not too fixated on the number. Anywhere in a healthy range is good for me. According to bmi it could be anywhere between 135 and 159 for my height so that's a lot of wiggle room.

starwhisperer6

I set it on the weight I was 7 years ago when I was in much better shape... Now I'm two pounds away from that and I dropped it 10 more because this has been so comfortable and I know I can do it.

bfanny

My "ideal" is somewhere in the middle of the BMI chart but for some reason (self-sabotaje) haven't been able to get there, but still it is my goal...one day

bwogilvie

I began with a weight at the top range of normal for my height, just to have a target. As I approached that weight (170 lb.), it was obvious that I would still be kind of flabby, so I revised down to 160, and then, some time later, to 150. By that point, though, my goals had shifted from being focused primarily on weight to emphasizing fitness (mainly endurance, but also strength) and body composition.

Weight is a useful metric to use, because it's easily measured, but it's coarse. It's normal to revise your goal weight as your body changes. I'm in decent shape at 148 for a 47-year-old, but if I decide to put more emphasis on strength training, I might go up a few pounds, and if I decide to get into marathons, I might take off another 5.

Yi5hedr3

Don't set a goal WEIGHT! Set a goal Fat Percentage of bodyweight.

distinctlybeautiful

I used to have this magic number. 125. No idea how I came to that conclusion, but I thought all my wildest dreams would come true once I hit it. I got down to 135 at one point and was so pleased.

Now I know the number is the least of my problems! As I sit now at around 145-150 pounds, I'm smaller than I was back when I weighed 135 pounds!

This is probably an unpopular opinion, but my advice would be not to set a weight goal. Just stay in a deficit until you get to a place where you're happy, healthy, and comfortable. Maybe you could try a different kind of goal, like a dress size you want to fit into or something like that.

sbrownallison

Thanks for input! I like the idea of evolving one's goals as weight loss is achieved. The idea of health and fitness should be paramount as one proceeds along this journey...

crb426

When I first thought of losing weight I just wanted my pants to fit again. Mentioned losing weight to my husband and he got really excited and said I should aim to lose 30 pounds. It sounded INSANE to me since I was just looking to button my pants. I pointed out that I really wouldn't fit in my clothes then, and he said he would buy me a new wardrobe. Done! So he set my goal, and I ended up meeting it. Then decided I could lose a few more.

It doesn't really matter how you get there, but I think having a number in mind does help. And now I'm fascinated by this 126.5! I am thinking 125 is my goal, but this 126.5 is way more fun.

AnvilHead

IMO, body composition (i.e., body fat percentage) will have a lot to do with setting your goal weight. For a woman, 140 pounds at 20% bodyfat is going to look a lot different (and fit a lot differently in clothes!) than 125 pounds at 35% bodyfat. I can't claim to speak for women but from a guy's perspective, most of us would be much happier at 190 lbs. (or whatever weight) and 15% BF vs. 170 lbs. (or whatever weight -20 lbs.) and 30% BF.

Check out Staci, your new powerlifting hero and look at the pics about halfway down the page under the heading "Staci now". She's 11 pounds heavier in the picture on the right (142 lbs. vs. 131 lbs.), but much leaner and tighter. I don't know much about women's clothes sizing, but I'm willing to bet she went down a couple sizes even at a higher weight.

MKEgal

I started with the top weight that put me in a healthy BMI range, then took off 10 lb, which still leaves me in the
top 1/3 of the healthy weight range.
As I've lost weight, I think I'd go as much as 15 lb below that (25 lb below the top of the range), but no more.
That's still above the middle of the healthy weight range.
And if I get to my 10-under weight & like how I feel, I'll switch from weight loss to weightlifting, to look awesome
& be strong.



I did a blog post about setting goals, including weight, calories & macros.
From the part about setting a goal weight...
.

Talk with your doctor to be sure you're being realistic and that losing weight is a good idea for you.
If you're heavy, losing even 5% of your starting weight can improve your health & lower your risk of diseases associated with being overweight.

Method #1 - The easiest way is to look at a BMI chart. http://www.shapeup.org/bmi/bmi6.pdf.
You want to be in the green range. As an initial goal, go for the highest weight in the green range for your height.
Find your height along the left side, move right along that line to the right end of the green range, then look to the top of that column to find your goal weight.
If you have lots of muscle, more than the average person, your healthy weight will be a bit higher.

Method #2 - Here's a calculator which takes into account your age & activity level.
You will need to play with the weight you put in to get the BMI in a healthy range (under 25).
https://www.bcm.edu/research/centers/childrens-nutrition-research-center/caloriesneed.cfm

Method #3 - This calculator will tell you not only your BMI, but how many servings of various foods to eat to maintain that weight.
If you enter your healthy goal weight from method #1, this will help you plan your food intake.
https://www.bcm.edu/cnrc-apps/healthyeatingcalculator/eatingCal.html

MKEgal

And along the way, I had other goals:
blood pressure in a healthy range
waist below 34"
able to walk fairly briskly for at least 30 minutes

Hit all of them.

pichu318

My weight goal is anything from 50-60kg. If you don't read in kg that's about 20lbs of space in between. When I was in my teenage years I wanted to be 120lbs...no matter what my body looked like. When I was starting adulthood at age 18 I started wanting to fit a size 2 dress size....no matter what my body looked like. Now I just want to do either one OR lose weight/tone muscle until I decide that any thinner would look gross.

TL;DR: I want to be between 50-60kg and I will know what weight when I hit one past goal or decide I could hate my body with any more change.

KathyApplebaum

I assumed my lean body mass would stay the same (although I'm working on increasing it), and calculated the weight that would put me at 22% BF. When I get there (12 more pounds), I'll reevaluate and see where I want to be (somewhere in the 15-22% bf range).

BurnWithBarn2015

I had to put a number in here when i started. So i did. I am under that now.

But my desired weight was ...feel good healthy and fitter.

At this moment i am under the goal weight i had to put in a year ago, and feel marvelous. So that was my goal and i will stick to that one

Chezzie84

Personally I set my goal weight to a small loss at a time, 10-14lb and move it on when I reach it. I don't know where my ultimate goal is yet so doing it this way makes it easier and less daunting.

Sued0nim

I set it to maximum BMI which was 165lbs (5'8)

And them I dropped another 5-7lbs finding maintenance

But I stopped because I was happy with how my body looked in general, I didn't want to risk losing any more boobs and my focus is on how I look in the mirror and not what I weigh

rainbow198

I have been chubby or overweight most of my adult life so I had no idea what my goal weight should be. I just worked hard to lose weight/fat, tracked my losses and eventually I focused on a measurement range/an ideal dress size.

For my goals (body composition) that was a better fit, plus I worked other things like improving my fitness level, losing inches and bringing my blood pressure numbers down.

I ended up loving my body near the top of the healthy range of my BMI. I have a lot of muscle mass and a hourglass figure so I'm okay with that and very thankful I did not get caught up with scale weight.

Phrick

When I joined MFP and had to put down a number I picked 140 out of thin air. My weight on my wedding day was 136 - but I was only 19 then, and I was 35 and 254 pounds when I really got serious about weight loss. Didn't know if it was achievable, and I moved my goal up and back down again several times, but ultimately the lowest I've hit was 138. I maintain within a 5 pound range of that now and it is pretty fantastic.

oolou

I picked a number that sounded good for my height and is in the healthy BMI range - 126 pounds for a 5'4" woman. If I find that I reach 140 pounds and am happy with the way I look and feel, I'll stop there. As I've been overweight for all of my adult life (the weight piled on when I was 14), I have no idea how I will look and feel at 126 so it may be the wrong goal for me.

Plumpletoes

My first goal weight is at the top of the range for a healthy weight for my height according to bmi. So for me being 5'4" would be 146 pounds. I really just want to know that I am in a healthy area. Once I each that I will reevaluate where I am and create new weight and fitness goals.

Llamapants86

I've set a few goals. At first I was convinced that I was a bmi outlier, so just into overweight would be perfect. Then I was still jiggly so I went to the top of healthy. Still jiggly. Now I'm aiming for mid range of the normal (well after my maintenance break over the holidays). It's not something that I've ever had set in stone.

NealNH

I used one of the online BMI calculators to set my goal at 160 which is about mid-range normal for me (male 5' 10").
I have a long way (60lbs) to go yet so I am content for now to leave it at that but my plan is that once I get say within 20 pounds of the goal I will get my body composition checked out either in a BodPod or with a Dexa scan and adjust to whatever seems right based on the results.