Graduation Goal

JayBeeNine7

I will be graduating from college in May 2019 (yay!). I am super excited for this, but not super thrilled about my appearance presently. I’d love to be comfortable in whatever outfit I will be wearing for photos and at graduation.

I’m looking for people to keep me motivated and on track. At the moment, my goal is to lose 20 pounds by May 1. This seems super doable, except I tend to get off track with my food and fitness goals when I am super busy with school and work. Feel free to post suggestions about how to stay motivated/on track and you can also add me. I’ll help you stay on track with your goals also!

kimny72

JayBeeNine7 wrote: »

I will be graduating from college in May 2019 (yay!). I am super excited for this, but not super thrilled about my appearance presently. I’d love to be comfortable in whatever outfit I will be wearing for photos and at graduation.

I’m looking for people to keep me motivated and on track. At the moment, my goal is to lose 20 pounds by May 1. This seems super doable, except I tend to get off track with my food and fitness goals when I am super busy with school and work. Feel free to post suggestions about how to stay motivated/on track and you can also add me. I’ll help you stay on track with your goals also!

Assuming your goal weight is appropriate, that sounds like a realistic goal.

Check out the Most Helpful Posts threads at the top of each forum. Good luck!

v2finallyfit

I’m here with you. I’ve gained 65lbs over the past 4.5 years and I’m ready to work it off. Let’s hold one another accountable.

Fflpnari

HI!!!!!! I graduate this summer and am trying to lose 25lbs by that time.

lorrpb

Congrats! You have the motivation, your graduation! Now you just need to establish a plan and some useful habits. The sticky posts already mentioned will help with that.

apullum

You're going to be equally comfortable in a cap and gown no matter your weight...those gowns are one size and you can't see anyone's shape under them

20 pounds by May 1 might be realistic depending on your current stats. Keep in mind two things:
1) Weight loss is not linear, and you won't consistently lose the same amount of weight every week. Most people shed a lot of water weight when they start trying to lose, and then lose more slowly after that.
2) You're looking at an average rate of over a pound per week lost. This may or may not be reasonable for you depending on your stats. If you're pretty close to your optimal BMI range, that pace of weight loss is likely too fast for you.

For both of those reasons, I generally discourage putting a deadline on your weight loss. You're graduating! You earned a degree; you have that accomplishment regardless of what you weigh. Your graduation is a celebration of your academic achievements, which are equally impressive regardless of whether or not you weigh 20 pounds less on May 1 than you do today. What happens if you lose 10 or 15 pounds by May 1? Will that make your graduation less special? I hope it won't. So I would recommend setting MFP to a reasonable pace of weight loss--whatever that pace is for your stats--and being patient for whatever amount of time it takes. You may or may not lose 20 pounds by May 1, but you will still have plenty to celebrate.

JayBeeNine7

apullum wrote: »

You're going to be equally comfortable in a cap and gown no matter your weight...those gowns are one size and you can't see anyone's shape under them

20 pounds by May 1 might be realistic depending on your current stats. Keep in mind two things:
1) Weight loss is not linear, and you won't consistently lose the same amount of weight every week. Most people shed a lot of water weight when they start trying to lose, and then lose more slowly after that.
2) You're looking at an average rate of over a pound per week lost. This may or may not be reasonable for you depending on your stats. If you're pretty close to your optimal BMI range, that pace of weight loss is likely too fast for you.

For both of those reasons, I generally discourage putting a deadline on your weight loss. You're graduating! You earned a degree; you have that accomplishment regardless of what you weigh. Your graduation is a celebration of your academic achievements, which are equally impressive regardless of whether or not you weigh 20 pounds less on May 1 than you do today. What happens if you lose 10 or 15 pounds by May 1? Will that make your graduation less special? I hope it won't. So I would recommend setting MFP to a reasonable pace of weight loss--whatever that pace is for your stats--and being patient for whatever amount of time it takes. You may or may not lose 20 pounds by May 1, but you will still have plenty to celebrate.

Thank you so much! I appreciate the time you put into your response and will definitely take everything you said into consideration. I do have a lot to celebrate, but having a little bit more to celebrate wouldn’t hurt 😉

madisonalbert81401

hey there girl! i’m also graduating (but from high school) and also have the goal of loosing 20lbs! 🙌🏻❤️ we got this!