BMI a realistic weight goal?
Bekarington
Posts: 85 Member
I'm 31 year old woman who weighs 324lbs (23 stone) and is a UK size 24.
If I look at BMI it suggests I should be around 126lbs (around 9 stone), I know I have a hell of a lot of weight to loose, but I'm not sure getting that small wouldn't look good on me.
For me I'd like to get down to size 12-14 at best, maybe even just 16-18.
I just dont know where I should be aiming!? Help!
If I look at BMI it suggests I should be around 126lbs (around 9 stone), I know I have a hell of a lot of weight to loose, but I'm not sure getting that small wouldn't look good on me.
For me I'd like to get down to size 12-14 at best, maybe even just 16-18.
I just dont know where I should be aiming!? Help!
0
Replies
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The BMI gives a range, so you can aim for the top of the healthy range rather than the middle, if you'd rather. It also doesn't account for differences in muscle mass, so some people are healthy and have low body fat when they are still above the BMI range. Most people reasonably accept that BMI is limited in its application to individual people (it was designed to look at populations rather than individuals, I understand)
One reason that it may seem so unreasonable might be because of how far it feels. Remember, though, you don't have to "eat the whole elephant at once." Start with smaller goals that you can for sure get your head around. Aim for that size 18 to start with. Once you get there, you can decide if you are satisfied or if you want to go for a smaller size. It's up to you.
:flowerforyou: 0 -
I know it seems overwhelming right now to think about a healthy BMI . I found it easier to remember when I last felt great ,and try for that weight . I remember weighing 150 and doing all the things I loved doing and being small enough to feel sexy and pretty , So that's where I'm aiming first . I'm halfway there right now and I make little goals every 20 lbs or so just not to be looking at the big picture all the time because If I was always thinking about the 120lbs I needed to lose I would have been very disappointed right now because that would take forever . I'm very excited about changing my BMI by 10 points ... In fact that's a great small victory , moving your BMI one point at a time .... and when you get smaller and smaller then you start to know more about what you want . Keep it small and obtainable ...
I wish you lots of success!0 -
Losing weight can be scary! Any change to your body, even a good change, is going to be stressful because you're used to how you look now and comfortable with it. Maybe try setting a smaller goal -- once you lose 100 lbs or so you can reevaluate how small you finally want to be. Just take it one step at a time 0
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I was 245(ish) lbs when I first started, and thought I would NEVER get down near the healthy BMI. I've been losing weight for the past 2-3 years (sometimes VERY SLOW) but I can proudly say that I am now less than 1lb away from the healthy range. and have gone from a 18 (well really a 20 or more, but I squeezed myself into an 18 as I refused to believe I was any bigger) to a 14 going into a 12
I set myself small goals, but always kept my eye on the big picture. Sometimes it seemed an impossible goal, but if you want it enough, and persevere you WILL get to either healthy BMI or slightly above (depending on your body composition, so I am lead to believe)
You said you dont know where you should be aiming... How about a healthier, fitter version of you!
Good luck with your goals!Marty McFly: If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything0 -
BMI is a terrible system that no one should pay attention to.0
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You don't say how tall you are, but bmi is generally a good rough guide.
However I would aim for a dress size or bodyfat % over a number on the scales anyway.0 -
BMI is an okay general guideline for the average person. Unless you weight train a lot and have a low body fat percentage, the BMI healthy range is very realistic. Set smaller goals at first and if you want to healthy, as you get smaller you will see that yes you will look good without being overweight. We have a messed up perception now of healthy because so many people are overweight and it is turning into the new normal. Don't fall into that trap. You can do it!0
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As others have said, your BMI weight goal might seem really far away. For me, being at a healthy BMI was my ultimate goal, but I set little mini goals of 5-10 pounds before I got there. I too didn't think my BMI would look "good" on me (and to be honest, once I was about 10 pounds away from it, I was happy with my weight), but I continued my healthy lifestyle. I think that's key....think in terms of health. If you're eating healthy, being active, etc., then you'll get to whatever weight your body thinks it needs to be at (whether that's your BMI or 20 pounds heavier).0
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I have my current goal set at the midpoint in my healthy weight range according to the BMI for my height. I have no idea whether this is a good goal or not but I wanted to give myself something to shoot for. Right now I'm focusing on the journey and not the destination. I may be happy at a number higher or lower than that goal. I don't know at this point. I just want to get to a point where I feel comfortable, healthy and happy. I have no idea what number will ultimately correspond to that.
Don't get too obsessed with numbers. And if you're doing this in a healthy manner then the weight will come off slowly so you get a chance to adjust. Right now a size 10 seems like such a shock but when you're at a size 12 it won't be that big of a jump.0 -
When I started out, I was about a 27 BMI, so not very overweight but enough to warp the image of how I saw myself. I didn't think I was that big, but I knew I wanted to change. I thought I'd be lucky to get down to a 24.5 BMI. Today I'm a 20.5 BMI. Once I got started and knew how great I felt, I knew I had the power to get to where I wanted to be (even if I thought it was a pie in the sky dream). I went from 190 to 145 (45 pounds, almost 7 BMI points). I'm not to thin, I'm healthy and I feel really great. I gained a few back after I hit my low and I'm on the way back down now at 148. I knew when I was approaching 160 again I need to change a few things and I knew WHAT I had to change. If I'm in that position again, I know I have the tools to get the job done.
My advice is to take it 10lbs at a time (or even a stone at a time). When you lose 1 stone, treat yourself to a manicure, 2 stone lost, buy new workout clothes and so on. Give yourself a bonus for each stone you lose. Before you know it you'll be a healthy weight and you'll have had great experiences along the way!0 -
This is a really interesting topic. And one that I'm honestly not 100% sure on.
When I started my diet and exercise program back in mid January I was a size 20, sometimes a 22 and I weighed in at 261 pounds. Everyone told me that I didn't look that heavy but I didn't feel good about myself. Besides, my sister's wedding was coming up and I didn't fit into the bridesmaid dress. It was very depressing.
I am 5'4 1/2" (yes that half inch is important to me as it's all that's keeping me taller than my 12 year old daughter!) and my BMI range is 120-145 if I remember correctly. Personally I never thought I could weigh that little and not look completely anorexic and look like a walking skeleton. Who wants to look like that?!?! Yuck! I love my muscles, I love having curves. In fact I'm a little upset that "the girls" had to shrink along with the rest of me!
Fast forward 10 months. I currently weigh 163 and have lost 98 pounds. I have at least another 10 pounds to go in order to get the flat stomach I really really want so maybe, just maybe, the high end of the BMI chart could happen. It's not my goal by any means. My goal is not a number, it's a vision. Maybe it sounds vain to say I want to look good naked, but that is my honest goal. It's been teens of years since I was happy with my body and I love the feeling I have now. I am a better role model to my kid and maybe she won't have to struggle with the weight issues that I had. I currently wear a size 8 in pants (tops are a 12 or they don't button tho) and am smaller than I've ever been in my adult life. I had to adjust my goal on MFP to a smaller number and may need to do it again.
Take it one step at a time, one day at a time. Make goals that push your limits and be ready to set new ones that challenge you even more when you achieve the first ones. Don't worry about your final goal just yet. Keep going and celebrate all the small victories along your journey. And for goodness sake, even though you probably don't want to, take a "before" pic and progress pics every 10 pounds or so. It is so amazing and motivating to look back on and I really don't have a true before pic at my heaviest weight. I really wish I did!
Good luck! Believe you can do this and you can! :flowerforyou:0 -
You should aim for whatever your comfort level is.
I started out at over 300lbs myself. Have gone from size 26 to a size 8.
I am still nowhere near my BMI and probably never will be. I do not care because I I know it is because BMI does not take into account the muscle mass most very athletic people have.
Just make sure your goal is something that you want and are comfortable with and go for it. Do not worry about BMI0 -
You don't say how tall you are, but bmi is generally a good rough guide.
However I would aim for a dress size or bodyfat % over a number on the scales anyway.
I'm 5'5"0 -
BMI is an okay general guideline for the average person. Unless you weight train a lot and have a low body fat percentage, the BMI healthy range is very realistic. Set smaller goals at first and if you want to healthy, as you get smaller you will see that yes you will look good without being overweight. We have a messed up perception now of healthy because so many people are overweight and it is turning into the new normal. Don't fall into that trap. You can do it!
^^this.
Just keep losing - reassess periodically. Stop when you are happy/healthy.0 -
What height are you?
I'm 5'2, currently managing to stay under 135 pounds, which puts my bmi under 25. I'd like to get to 130 pounds, but at this point I'm not too worried about bmi.0 -
You don't say how tall you are, but bmi is generally a good rough guide.
However I would aim for a dress size or bodyfat % over a number on the scales anyway.
I'm 5'5"
Anything up to about 10 and a half stone is a normal bmi if you're 5ft5, not sure where you got 9 stone from?0 -
Lots of good answers in this thread. BMI ranges are wide and provide an easy framework for evaluation. 35, 30, and 25 are generally pretty solid objective steps. Muscular women, and/or people who are comfortable with being "fluffy", can be fine in the slightly above 25 range. Very muscular men can be low fat and above 30, but that isn't applicable to women.
I don't know about the UK, but US clothing sizes are ridiculously variable. Actual tape measurements are better gauges than fitting into a randomly-sized "size X" article of clothing.0 -
You should aim for whatever your comfort level is.
I started out at over 300lbs myself. Have gone from size 26 to a size 8.
I am still nowhere near my BMI and probably never will be. I do not care because I I know it is because BMI does not take into account the muscle mass most very athletic people have.
Just make sure your goal is something that you want and are comfortable with and go for it. Do not worry about BMI
I like this!!!
Some people seem to think that you MUST be in the BMI range to be healthy.
Not true.
When you are where you want to be, I'll bet you'll know!0 -
You don't say how tall you are, but bmi is generally a good rough guide.
However I would aim for a dress size or bodyfat % over a number on the scales anyway.
I'm 5'5"
Anything up to about 10 and a half stone is a normal bmi if you're 5ft5, not sure where you got 9 stone from?
+1
Look at the range, you don't have to be right in the middle of it.0 -
BMI is a terrible system that no one should pay attention to.
Not true. It may not be realistic for an athlete or for a very fit person, but it is for the regular Joe/Jane. And I think that it is wrong to discourage people for relying on BMI or to just call it a "terrible system."0 -
Start slow. i was 2 pounds when I started. I wanted to hit 150lb (overweight)
When I got there, I aimed for "healthy"
Not everyone looks good at the bottom of the scale. Stop where you feel comfortable. Don't let anyone tell you where you need to be.0 -
I just dont know where I should be aiming!? Help!
When I was losing weight, the BMI chart said I should be around 140 for my height, but you can see in my photos that I got to 171 lbs and had abs forming, was toned, was running, and felt amazing. I told myself that I would be happy with a size 12, but ended up getting to a 9 just naturally from working out and eating right. Once I got to a 9, I wanted to get to a 7/8 so bad. It's all about you. Set an easy goal like 1 pant size. Once you do it, set another goal, one more or two more....it;s funny that once you see your body changing, you almost get addicted to losing weight because you feel amazing and want to see how much farther you can push yourself If I got down to 140lbs, my bones would have started to show. I would have been happy at 165. Everyone is different. As long as you set small reachable goals, you will change your mind as you go and find a comfortable size that makes you feel good about yourself 0 -
You don't say how tall you are, but bmi is generally a good rough guide.
However I would aim for a dress size or bodyfat % over a number on the scales anyway.
I'm 5'5"
Anything up to about 10 and a half stone is a normal bmi if you're 5ft5, not sure where you got 9 stone from?
Blimey yes! I'm 5'3" and I'm heading for 9 stone 7 or 8 at the most!0 -
I use the BMI system as a guide and its just another tool for tracking my progress. When I started it said I was obese and I agreed with it. Now it shows me as overweight and I pretty much agree with that as well.
I have set my weight goal to get me just inside the healthy weight range and I will judge whether its right when I get there.
I do see a lot of arguments against it and my favourite is when someone post a picture of a huge body builder and says that the BMI scale says that he is obese.
At the end of the day use it as a tracking tool along with weight, body measurements or even body fat% and use your own judgment to make the final decision0 -
I wouldn't be surprised if you get to size 12 and make new goals. You may want even more success.0
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Nothing wrong with setting intermediate goals. I can understand not thinking 126 lbs would look good because it seems impossibly far away, but it's not. Keep plugging away.0
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When I first started, I weighed 235lbs (and I'm 5'3"). Thinking that I needed to lose around 100lbs seemed overwhelming. I kept thinking about it would be nearly impossible and how long it would take. Several kind people here suggested the idea of working towards smaller goals, and that really worked for me. Instead of thinking, "My gosh I got to lose all this weight, I started with trying to lose 10lbs, then another 10, and then 15lbs. Each time I hit a goal, I celebrated as I looked forward. This may work for you as well.
As for clothing sizes - you really need to realize that all of us are built differently. I'm big boned. At my smallest, (at which I was actually underweight) I wore size eight. I'm older now, so I'm aiming for a 10 or 12 size jeans. To some people, that would seem big, but I know it's where I'll look and feel best.
BMI is a good guide for the average person, but for now just focusing on lowering it and getting healthier.0 -
My Target weight is 150 according to my BMI. But I'm 5'8....so 180 it is.0
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I couldn't care less about my BMI. I care about my body fat percentage.0
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I've done completely the opposite to evryone else who has commented here, I'm 5'4 and my start weight was 299lbs. I've set my goal to be 115 which is about the lowest I could go and still be in the healthy range. I've set it there but I'm staying open minded about it. If I get to 175 and decide I'm happy and healthy that's fine, alternatively if I get to 115 and decide 108 is where I want to be that's ok too. For me I need to be completely focused on a far away goal to keep going, otherwise I get too pleased with my here and now results and start to let things slip. Knowing I need to lose another 150lbs ish keeps me on track. However I also know I'm sensible enough to not get bogged down in sticking to it if it isn't going to be healthy. To each their own and all that!
Feel free to add me if you want a supportive friend. I've been on since August this year and I log every day. Good luck with your journey x0
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