Deciding on a "maintenance weight"

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  • walking2running
    walking2running Posts: 140 Member
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    My lowest weight *ever* was 140 pds at 5'4". I think it looked quite right for me, but it was hard to maintain. The lower you go, the lower your TDEE. I am basing my optimal weight on the mid-point for a normal BMI, which should be somewhere in the 130's. That is my goal for now, but I know that whatever weight I decide needs to be sustainable for the long term.
  • iowalinda
    iowalinda Posts: 354 Member
    edited July 2018
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    DomesticKat wrote: »
    I'm moving into a size 4 with a 28 inch waist and 34 inch hips (I don't really have much of a waist to speak of, I think this is a short person thing).

    Not a short person thing - it has to do with your body type. I am not short, but built the same as you :) I remember when I was a young woman, boy's or men's jeans fit me better than the hourglass style women's jeans. If I bought women's jeans to fit my waist, they were too baggy in the hip area. And conversely, if they fit my hips, they were too tight in the waist.
  • DomesticKat
    DomesticKat Posts: 565 Member
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    iowalinda wrote: »
    DomesticKat wrote: »
    I'm moving into a size 4 with a 28 inch waist and 34 inch hips (I don't really have much of a waist to speak of, I think this is a short person thing).

    Not a short person thing - it has to do with your body type. I am not short, but built the same as you :) I remember when I was a young woman, boy's or men's jeans fit me better than the hourglass style women's jeans. If I bought women's jeans to fit my waist, they were too baggy in the hip area. And conversely, if they fit my hips, they were too tight in the waist.

    Yes this is my problem! My waist and hips sort of blend together. Things that fit in the waist are really baggy in the hips and thighs. I think this was my biggest surprise during weight loss. I have not maintained the shape I was at a much higher weight and I'm not really a curvy person at all!
  • SummerSkier
    SummerSkier Posts: 4,904 Member
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    the answer is that you don't have to ever decide. LOL. I set my first goal to something that I knew I could succeed at. Then after that, my next one was to maintain it for a year. It doesn't have to be weight or BMI or some # somewhere, but it does have to be something you are comfortable with. I realized that I was at goal when I woke up on 2018 New Year's Day and for the first time since I was maybe 15, I wasn't secretly or openly or anything wanting to "lose" weight. So take your time OP. You are still losing. Be flexible and be happy and live your life fully!
  • batorkin
    batorkin Posts: 281 Member
    edited July 2018
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    During my weight loss (90 pounds so far), I constantly fought with myself over my target goal weight. I can say now that it's pointless to worry about this.

    I thought i'd need to get to 180. Boy was I wrong. I readjusted to 170, and even that was wrong. 165 will definitely be enough. Nope. I'm now 160 and still feel like I need to lose another 5. It just doesn't come off where you want it too. My gut is slowly shrinking, and I am finally seeing results where I want too but I had to lose way more than I thought.

    It's impossible to set an accurate target weight. It's going to depend greatly on your muscle mass and overall body comp. You just need to take it day by day and go by what you see in the mirror - not the scale.
  • lindslaw18
    lindslaw18 Posts: 4 Member
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    I'm not always a fan of BMI since you can be in the overweight category and look too thin. I'm still in the obese category after losing 56 lbs. I'm 5'3' and my overall goal is 145 which still puts me in the overweight category for BMI. I'd love to be at 125-130 but I don't know how I'll feel after hitting 145. If I were you I'd get to your goal of 135 then take it from there. As I've been losing my weight I've made 5 lb goals so I really feel like I'm getting somewhere.
  • sugarfree123
    sugarfree123 Posts: 82 Member
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    The number on the scale means absolutely nothing or every 5 foot 4 inch person would look exactly the same at x amount of weight. A person can look fat at 140 lbs or that same person can look fit at 140 lbs. Most of the time, its a lack of muscle that is the issue. Work on adding muscle and strength and you will see wonderful results in the mirror, the scale knows nothing except gravity. I don't understand why we pick these silly numbers as goals to make ourselves less when we can be so much more.
  • oocdc2
    oocdc2 Posts: 1,361 Member
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    rainbow198 wrote: »
    I never had a goal weight. I just kept going until I liked what I saw in clothes.

    Then it took a couple years of maintenance to tighten up my body composition and to really reach my happy place.

    ^This. My body weight fluctuates depending on how hard I'm training at any given time, but as long as I'm loyal to TDEE and eating back 75% exercise calories, I'm a size 8 no matter what I'm doing, and I'm fine with it.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,306 Member
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    This is one of the most reasonable threads I've ever read. I like how many of you put the hard work in, then just maintain for a while or stop before you burn out on dieting. I've been telling my husband the same thing. He has a lot of weight to lose. I tell him to just chip away at it.. just get smaller.. maintain for a while, then lose another few pounds..then maintain again.
    It works..he's slowly but surely shrinking...it is so hard to diet perfectly for over a year..it can be depressing for someone who ..frankly.. loves their food.
  • lizzy_satellite
    lizzy_satellite Posts: 112 Member
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    I'm almost 5'3" and a couple of years ago I was bouncing between 129 and 132 down from a high of 200-ish. That put me in a UK8 , which looked and felt right to me (I never really had a goal in mind). I'm currently at 145 and on my way slowly back down, but it's anyone's guess whether what felt right a couple of years ago will feel right this time. Concentrating on the next 10lbs then playing it by ear.

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