healthy weight ?

emilylucas259

hi! i am 5”7 and currently 74kg. i wish to loose weight but i’m not sure what would be too much ? i’ve tried looking at bmi scales but i feel as though they are inaccurate for me personally, due to my muscle; on bmi calculator websites i tend to get very varied results on what would be a healthy weight range for me, what do you guys think that would be ?

kshama2001

At 5'7" and 163 pounds your BMI is 25, just one up from Healthy. You are probably aware that the range for your height is 121-153 pounds. If you think you only want to lose 10 pounds, lose the 10 pounds and reevaluate when you get there.

If you are willing to post a picture, there is a personal trainer here who is good at eyeballing body fat percentage - if you are indeed very muscular, body fat might be a better metric for you than BMI. (Please note that BF scales are notoriously inaccurate - there are a number of more accurate ways to gauge BF.)

AnnPT77

One thing I hope is clear: You don't need to know your goal weight at the start.

Yes, MFP asks for your goal weight. But that number has absolutely no effect on your calorie goal. MFP just asks for it so they can give you some "attagal!" motivational stats/messages along the route. You can just put in a wild guess for now, and it'll be fine.

The only effect your goal weight has on your weight loss is to tell you when to stop losing and go to maintenance calories. So, go ahead and make a guess. When you get close to that weight, it'll be pretty easy to tell whether your guess was solid, or you need to stop a bit before it, or maybe lose a bit more than you'd thought. Many of us revise our goal weight multiple times along the way. (I did it about 3-4 times!)

Realistically, IMO a woman typically would be very muscular to be lean at a weight above the normal BMI range. (Keep in mind that the same range applies to both men and women.) It happens for some women, but it's somewhat rare: Usually serious weight lifters, body builders, some professional athletes, long-term crossfitters, and that sort of thing. Maybe that's you, I don't know.

Just for reference, here's an article about the BMIs of female Olympic medalists, to give you an idea of what body types fall in which kinds of weight ranges, among women who are generally more muscular than the average woman:

https://www.runnersworld.com/health-injuries/a20793992/bmis-of-champions-womens-edition/

I'd advise making a guess for now, and re-evaluating when you get close. As long as you aren't one of the small number who struggle with distorted body image, that'll work fine. Another thing you could do is ask your doctor's opinion when you start getting close or are "there" in your view, to get an idea of what s/he thinks is a healthy final result in light of your health history.

Best wishes!

chris_in_cal

emilylucas259 wrote: »

i’ve tried looking at bmi scales but i feel as though they are inaccurate for me personally

Almost 100% of people here think because of their own unique X the BMI chart doesn't apply to them.

cmriverside

Just start.

Worry about the numbers later...I mean, I guess you're saying you think you have more muscles than the average person? If that's true, then surely you must spend time at a gym and can get feedback from others in the same situation. We can't guess without looking at you. If you don't want to use the BMI chart, don't. Go by how you look or by others' professional opinions.

I'm 5'7"-5'8" and 74kg would be too high for me, but I am not focused on lifting other than the little bit I do just for fitness. I'm happy at 140-145, I'm female and not trying for a specific body composition or look.

springlering62

Having a goal is good. It gives you somewhere to focus your efforts towards.

But, also be prepared to be flexible.

I am also 5’7”.

I was overweight or obese for nearly three decades. When I started, my initial goal was 200, then 180, then 160. I was overjoyed at reaching each goal and had no idea where to set my next goal.

In my fuzzy little head I thought, “well OK, it’d be great to be 125, like I was on my wedding day”.

I got within two pounds of that goal and was hammering away at it when I got a text and a photo from my trainer, whom I adored and respected. “If this continues, I’m dropping you.” I was horrified at the photo. Sat there and cried. My first thought was, “I look like a Grandaddy Longlegs.”

I talked to her and with her advice, decided to add about seven pounds. I had lost all the muscle I’d worked so hard to build. She busted me down to baby weights.

I’ve been -and still am- astonished that putting on weight didn’t mean getting fat again. As long as I was diligent with the exercise, the weight training and logging those calories, great stuff happened. I’m still wearing the clothes I wore at 127, even though I’m currently holding at 143.

If I go up even a couple, my pants fit a wee bit tightly. Here or less, they fit loosely.

I think this is “goal”. It’s a happy place to be, maintainable, and if I do go up a couple, easy to rope it in and bring it back into line.

After all I’ve been through, “goal” turned out to be simply a place of comfort and the appearance that pleases me.

“Goal” will, however, change in the future. I’ve been at this nearly five years now, and even now, my body changes, my shape shifts, and therefore goal will need to be reconsidered yet again, based on comfort and preference.

If you’re happy where you are, that’s all that matters. Goal is in you, not on some chart or app.