how did you decide on your goal weight?

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zebasschick
zebasschick Posts: 909 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
i have an unusual goal weight for my height. at 5' 4", i'm shooting for 140, which is pretty heavy for my height. but my main goals are to build muscle and get my blood sugar down to normal all the time (type 2, been hovering between 96 and 119 fasting recently). i used to be quite muscular for a woman, and even though i'm over 60 and working back from several injuries, so i'm the weakest i've ever been, i'd like to build strength and muscle, which you can't do well eating at a deficit.

how about your? how did you decide on your goal weight?

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Replies

  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,287 Member
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    We are sort of in the same boat.. only i'm tall. I have gotten weaker.. which is alarming. During COVID i exited all my routine exercise...and i did gain some weight, but nothing unusual..as have gained and lost 20 pounds many times in my life. . . But, the being weaker is more alarming.
    Therefore.. I'm starting with the goal of getting stronger. Of course i'm watching my eating too...but my main focus is on regaining my strength and agility. I'll worry more about the goal weight later. It could be overwhelming and counterproductive to hit both hard at once.
  • zebasschick
    zebasschick Posts: 909 Member
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    elisa123gal wrote: »
    We are sort of in the same boat.. only i'm tall. I have gotten weaker.. which is alarming. During COVID i exited all my routine exercise...and i did gain some weight, but nothing unusual..as have gained and lost 20 pounds many times in my life. . . But, the being weaker is more alarming.
    Therefore.. I'm starting with the goal of getting stronger. Of course i'm watching my eating too...but my main focus is on regaining my strength and agility. I'll worry more about the goal weight later. It could be overwhelming and counterproductive to hit both hard at once.

    are you upping your protein? mine's quite high for my size, but i am seeing strength and muscle gains.

    yeah, i also have to work on agility, as well.

  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,118 Member
    edited July 2023
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    Hm, I didn't decide precisely 🙂 certainly not from the start.

    I'm 5ft 5. I had a first goal: high end of normal BMI, 68kg (150lbs). Reached that goal and still too much fat. Went down to 65kg, still too much fat. Got as low as 60.5kg (133.5lbs) which was where I starting hesitating between recomp and just a few more lbs.

    I've lost focus a bit the past months, and perhaps my body was fighting me a bit with hunger, and have gone back up to 137. Definitely too soft around the edges, and my new clothes are a bit tight now, so I'm aiming for 60kg (132lbs) or thereabouts, very slowly. Sizewise I should be fine then, and it's just up to me to do some recomp to firm up.
    It's a weight that's pretty close to what I weighed as a young adult too, as it happens.

    So basically my criteria are visual and practical (clothing size).
  • JaysFan82
    JaysFan82 Posts: 851 Member
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    I spoke to my Doctor. She wanted me at 225 so 225 it was. I'm actually at 217 right now.
  • csplatt
    csplatt Posts: 1,013 Member
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    I base the final weight on the mirror. Right now for example I am a normal size but because my body makeup has shifted over the last few years (less muscle, more fat), a few pairs of pants still don’t fit so I am going to keep cutting a bit before returning to maintenance.
  • csplatt
    csplatt Posts: 1,013 Member
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    I base the final weight on the mirror. Right now for example I am a normal size but because my body makeup has shifted over the last few years (less muscle, more fat), a few pairs of pants still don’t fit so I am going to keep cutting a bit before returning to maintenance.
  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,340 Member
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    I wanted to lose a stone or so of fat but I actually said to the PT in my first meeting I wasn’t worried about weight as long as I lost the fat (had lost muscle and gained fat over two years of injury and cancer surgery). I lost the 14 pounds (5’3.5 and got to 114) and probably 15% body fat. I have chunky legs so for the first time ever they looked slimmer. But I completely lost my boobs and my face looked a bit gaunt. My PT got me to up my calories so I could build muscle. So now I’m c 122 pounds with quite a lot of muscle and probably c20-23% fat, aesthetically I’d like to be a little leaner but this is a good weight for my sport (which I discovered whilst losing the fat). Plus, at 49, I don’t want to wreck my hormones and I tend to lose half a stone or so when I get ill so this gives me a buffer. Always that balance between health and appearance - or as a Joan Rivers said - after 40 you can choose your face or your butt - you can’t have both 🤣
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,900 Member
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    My goal weight is the weight I used to be in 2004 when I was a full time yoga teacher and working out regularly. I liked the way I looked. It happens to be a 25 BMI, but I have a large frame and long torso and carried it well.

    I was a BMI of 24 after 6 weeks of under-eating and over-exercising in boot camp at age 18. At age 56, I don't have that aesthetic as a goal.
  • gremloBBPT
    gremloBBPT Posts: 51 Member
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    I only have a loose goal in mind. I’ve been in the weight range I prefer for most of my life with a few exceptions when I’ve gained and lost. I’m looking to get back to my preferred range, but I’m also aiming for a bit higher than that once was. I think I’d like to stop about 10 pounds higher than that. At that point, I want to work on doing a recomp. My blood work is all good right now, but not as good as it had been before I gained weight during Covid. :( So, as long as my blood work is looking great again at that high end of my normal range, I’ll probably stop then and switch gears to a recomp.

    I know from losing weight in the past that it takes me time to really see my new body in the mirror. So I’m going to mostly go by the scale and how my clothes fit and probably “force” a recomp before my eyes say it’s time.
  • Rockmama1111
    Rockmama1111 Posts: 262 Member
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    I wanted to lose 20 pounds first and then reevaluate when I reached that goal. Now that I’m in my 50s, I think my face looks better (ahem—less wrinkly) if I’m at the higher end of my healthy range. I’m working on the next 10 pounds and I think that will be as low as I want to go. That should get me back into the jeans I already own.
  • JBanx256
    JBanx256 Posts: 1,473 Member
    edited July 2023
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    5'4" here and maintaining around 150 (+/- 3-ish lbs). It's a place that I'm lean to the point of being happy with the aesthetics but have high enough calorie intake (3300-3700 depending on where I am in training cycle) that I can enjoy plenty of good food (and beer!) and have good energy & strength levels etc. Basically, it's all-around comfortable for me so I'm happy sticking to it until I get a wild hair to do something different.
  • Rockymountainflyer
    Rockymountainflyer Posts: 26 Member
    edited July 2023
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    I am 5' 4" as well and 56 years old. My first goal was 148, then 144 so my BMI would not be overweight. Then I figured my body (skin lol) looked fine, so I would go for my "pre pregnancy" weight (26 years ago lol) of 137. I just achieved that and plan to stay here for a while and then maybe lose some more. My doctor says the "healthiest" BMI is 22, so I may lose 4-5 more pounds. Or not lol.

    I also agree with someone above. I liked my face better at 148 but my body better at 137.🤣
  • pony4us
    pony4us Posts: 124 Member
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    I just want to say I feel so good about my personal goal. After seeing so many youngin's with goals at 21-22 BMI I felt so bad even though I knew that for my age at mid 70s I was in the "sweet spot of 25-27 BMI" This is not to say that in any way for those that have already maintained at that level should gain weight, but truth be told I was feeling like a slacker.
    I was always very muscularand active at about this weight. At 60 I was running 5Ks and training a couple of horses (and doing barn work) in addition to full time teaching. Had a bit of cancer and eye surgeries set backs but now all blood work and dexa are off the charts super. Anyway thanks to others for making me feel better.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,526 Member
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    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/304029/a-quick-way-to-figure-out-your-ideal-weight/p1

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 35+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 9,081 Member
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    I stand 5'9". Graduated high school a scrawny 150, completed military training an athletic 170. Fast forward a decade, I'm now a soft 220 with arthritic knees gasping going up a single flight of stairs.

    When I decided to lose weight, I reached back in time and figured I liked the way I was at 170, so that was my target using lots of cardio. Actually made it, too, but realized cardio no longer "did it" for me, so I took up weightlifting. Between water retention, suddenly stopping cardio and not lowering my food intake, my weight crept back up above 200, though now it was far more muscular than before.

    Through trial and error, I've learned I like the image in the mirror more as my weight goes up, while my knees prefer my weight going down. I thus have found a natural compromise range around 190.
  • zebasschick
    zebasschick Posts: 909 Member
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    ninerbuff wrote: »
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/304029/a-quick-way-to-figure-out-your-ideal-weight/p1

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 35+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png

    ideal weight varies. a lot of women my height prefer to be 110 to 120 pounds for esthetic reasons.

    i was my happiest when i was lifting heavy at the gym in my 40s. doing 600 pound leg presses, 450 pound calf presses, 180 pound ab crunches and 120 pound lat pulldowns didn't lend itself to lean vs fat calculations. i know at 66 and after years off for injuries, i'm not likely to get that back, but i'd rather aim in that general direction.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,526 Member
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    zebasschick wrote: »
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/304029/a-quick-way-to-figure-out-your-ideal-weight/p1

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 35+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png

    ideal weight varies. a lot of women my height prefer to be 110 to 120 pounds for esthetic reasons.

    i was my happiest when i was lifting heavy at the gym in my 40s. doing 600 pound leg presses, 450 pound calf presses, 180 pound ab crunches and 120 pound lat pulldowns didn't lend itself to lean vs fat calculations. i know at 66 and after years off for injuries, i'm not likely to get that back, but i'd rather aim in that general direction.
    Doesn't matter. Unless one is willing to lose lean body mass (muscle), then determining what body fat % you want to be based on current lean mass will give you an accurate number of what you'll weigh at that body fat %. Height, frame, shape, etc. don't matter in this formula because it's just determining ideal weight at desired body fat %.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 35+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png

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