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Tools for determining a realistic goal weight?

Karlaki
Karlaki Posts: 74
edited October 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
How do you determine what is a realistic goal weight. I used a healthy BMI, but that is sometimes not the most accurate depending on muscle mass, etc. At the moment I've chosen a weight in the healthy BMI range and will adjust later when I get closer.

Does anyone have any other recommendations?

Replies

  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
    Body fat %. Even if you just take measurements and use a rough estimate from an online calculator, it will be more accurate than BMI. BMI doesn't take into account your current body composition. It's intended for large population groups, for statistical purposes, not necessarily a good indicator for individual people. So figure out your current body fat percentage. This will allow you to get your lean body mass. From there you can pick a goal for body fat, and that should give you a pretty goal weight to shoot for.

    For an example, I'm a 5'7, 210 pound man. According to BMI I should weigh between 121-159 pounds. I'm currently at 21% body fat. To get down to a reasonable body fat percentage of 15%, I'd weigh 190 pounds. In order to get to a healthy BMI, I'd have to lose roughly 20 pounds of lean body mass, in addition to dropping to 0% body fat.
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