Are my goals okay... fist time I have ever done this!

sandspresley9873

I have been on here for about a month now and exercise when I can but am doing "I think" well at following my daily calorie intake. Just curious if my goals are realistic or not. I hear 1-2 pounds a month is okay. Please any feedback is accepted. I really want to do this this time, I have failed drastically for to many years.

Highest Weight: 230 lbs - June 2009 ( always bouncing back and forth between 230 and 212 )
MFP Start Weight: 220lbs - May 2, 2011
CW: 205.4 lbs***15.6 Lost since starting MFP***
GW: 140 lbs

***** 6 POUNDS PER MONTH****
Goal #1: 198 lbs by end of June
Goal #2: 186 lbs by end of Aug
Goal #3: 174 lbs by end of Oct -- No Longer Obese
Goal #4: 162 lbs by end of Dec
Goal #5: 150 lbs by end of Feb 2012
Goal #6: 138 lbs by end of April 2012 - Finally a healthy weight

:flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:

MrsM1ggins

I think your goals are fine. You've done the right thing - set realistic goals which get you where you want while allowing you to settle into your lifestyle change that will allow you to maintain your final weight when you get there.

Good luck! You're doing great so far.

chevy88grl

I never set "date" goals because if I didn't achieve them - I felt like I failed. So, instead of saying "I will lose 10lbs by such and such date" I would concentrate more on eating well, working out and losing SOMETHING each month. Once I hit a goal - I would have a reward for myself (NEVER food related). Whether it be new clothes, new shoes, haircut, etc. In my experience, I just found that I felt like a failure with date goals. I know they work for other people. Do what works for you.

katm427

Your goals seem fine. Don't get discouraged if you start plateauing at all as you go down, though. That happens to everyone. Some people lose 1-2 a month, some lose 1-2 a week. Also, remember that muscle weighs more than fat, so look at measurements, too.

kimberg75

That looks good to me...I think you meant to say 1-2 lbs. a week. Just stick with doing what you are doing and you will get there. You are off to a great start!! This site is so amazing....it's so awesome to think all you have to do is watch your calories, exercise some and the weight just falls off! I love it!
Kim

SmashleeWpg

Those sound like great, healthy, realistic goals! You're going to do a great job

MamaNae

I am new also, but I think 6lbs a month sounds pretty reasonable. 1-1.5lbs a WEEK is considered ideal I think.

You're doing great so far, keep up the great work!!

registers

For fitness goals, I also don't agree setting a date. For example, if i say "my goal is to run 5miles by the x/x/x(date)" your body will go at the pace it wants, not at the pace you tell it to.

I also think a good thing is to seet weekly goals, such as "i am going to eat x amount of calories this week" and "i will exercise x many days a week" This what YOU DO have control over, you have NO CONTROL over how much weight you lose, or how fast it comes off.

thomaslh83

Your mini-goals seem reasonable. I just want to advise you that your weight loss will slow up when you get closer to your target goal. Typically, when your Body Mass Index is high, the body rids itself of a lot of excess weight much more quickly than someone who has a lower BMI. Also, be sure that you take body measurements, for that will be a better indication along with your weight scale reading if you are losing body fat. There are times when taking a scale reading when you might put on a couple of extra pounds. This usually happens when your body is retaining water or building up lean muscle. Just keep that in mind in the future if you run into that incident. Women tend to retain a lot of water during their menstrual cycle, too. As long as you stick with your calorie goals, drink plenty of water and exercise, then you should be fine!

Congrats on your current weight loss to date! You're doing a great job!

guayaquil

Sandspresley987

Welcome and congrats on how well you have done so far.

There are a bunch of articles on this site that explains the philosophy, but in short;

Slow and steady weight loss is much better than starve and binge dieting. Ideally you should set an obtainable and realistic goal with your calorie intake. BTW - ANY WEIGHT LOSS IS ALWAYS GREAT!!!

It takes a calorie deficit of about 3500 Kcalories to lose one pound - so if you are eating 500 calories a day less than you need to maintain your current weight then you should lose 1 pound that week. in reality that doesn't always come true, since temporary conditions like water weight gain and the like can throw off short term results. Long term, though if you are consistently eating 500 calories less than you need to keep the weight on you should lose around 4 pounds each month.

The maximum healthy weight loss is about 2 pounds a week. if you lose more than that you generally start losing muscle mass instead of fat and this can lead to a variety of health problems.

So your weight loss goal is very good so far - you are shooting for 6 pounds a month, a daily calorie deficit of around 750 calories which is doable. The one thing to watch is make sure you keep your minimum calories high enough. if you don't eat enough your body can go into "starvation mode' where it thinks bad times are ahead so it decreases body metabolism and maximizes turning what you do eat into fat.

Using MYP I have lost a little over 45 pounds since December - averaging about 8 pounds a month. You can do it too!

Good luck!

sandspresley9873

thanks for the support

sandspresley9873

thanks for the support

sandspresley9873

That looks good to me...I think you meant to say 1-2 lbs. a week. Just stick with doing what you are doing and you will get there. You are off to a great start!! This site is so amazing....it's so awesome to think all you have to do is watch your calories, exercise some and the weight just falls off! I love it!
Kim

have added you as a friend hope we can help one another out

biznurse

I never set "date" goals because if I didn't achieve them - I felt like I failed. So, instead of saying "I will lose 10lbs by such and such date" I would concentrate more on eating well, working out and losing SOMETHING each month. Once I hit a goal - I would have a reward for myself (NEVER food related). Whether it be new clothes, new shoes, haircut, etc. In my experience, I just found that I felt like a failure with date goals. I know they work for other people. Do what works for you.

I'M THE SAME WAY. I WANT TO SET MYSELF UP FOR SUCCESSES AND NOT FOCUS ON FAILURES..... ANY LOSS IS A GOOD LOSS!!!

kklindsey

I never ever set dates with weight goals and don't really set weight goals. When I started I weighed 300lbs. I lost 10lbs a month, every month for the first seven months. I lost 160lbs total in 3 YEARS so it took me 7 months to lose 70lbs and then it took me nearly 2 1/2 YEARS to lose the other 90. The heavier you are the faster you will lose, after that it goes slower and sometimes you don't lose at all for a long time. I also really recommend weight lifting. When I got all done I actually weigh After lifting weights for a while I weighed in at 145 but still a size 4 and could eat 1600 calories daily with occasional days of 1800-2000. I have a best friend who is an inch shorter than me and when we both weigh 140 I am a size 4 and she is an 8. I lift weights 3-5 days a week and she does it sporadically. That leads me to believe that the weightlifting keeps me smaller at a heavier weight and allows me to eat more.