How to find out what a good "goal weight" is?

kimmy659

I'm really not sure what my goal weight should be? Is there something you guys follow that tells you how much you should weigh, or just go by what you want to look like?

dancingdeer

It does depend on your bone structure and also, what looks good on you. But, a general rule is 100 pounds for 5 feet, and then add 5 pounds for each inch over that. So, if you were 5' 7" a good goal would be 135. This is only a guide though. Have you calculated your BMI? That can be a good starting point for a range of weights for your height. You didn't mention how tall you are and what your current weight is.... :smooched:

jamiesadler

you can just go by how you look or you can use a goal weight calculator online. There are tons.

http://www.halls.md/ideal-weight/body.htm

OceansForever

I picked a weight that I think should be my goal weight by adding 10 lbs to what I looked 14 years ago.

I may stop before I get there or go further depending on how I look. My body has changed since then, so I am not sure if it is going to be the perfect weight for me.

I'll reevaluate by how I feel and look

AZKristi

I'm not really sure either. I've said 150, but a lot of it really depends on what my body composition is at when I reach 150. Ultimately, I want my body fat percentage to be right around 20%. That would probably require me to go lower than 150, but once I'm at that point I plan to re-evaluate.

PoochPottery

I am sure you will get many others but here is one I use:

http://www.cordianet.com/calculator.htm

vabrewer33

A mix between a good BMI and from a past weight that I felt healthy at....

aippolito1

I go by body fat percentage. I'd like to be at the top of the athlete range (14-20%) and I used a website that apparently doesn't exist anymore :grumble: to figure out that 20% for me (according to my body stats - waist to hip ratio, how much I work out, whether I've had a kid or not, etc.) is about 140 lbs.

Search body fat percentages for women.

bv202

Here's an easy to read BMI chart - stay at 25 or below for your height to be considered "healthy": http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/bmi_tbl.pdf

For my height (5' 8") I am supposed to be 164 at the most, but I'd be happy even at 175-180. I set 180 as my goal on MFP but considering dropping it to 175.

kimmy659

Well I am 5'7" and originally I had my goal set to just be in the 140s... (but starting out at 175lbs I figured that was such an unrealistic goal!). Recently I changed my goal to be between 135-140, so I`m thinking that is about right for my height and medium bone structure.... I`m currently 152lbs and well on my way to reaching goal,which is to lose 35-40lbs by my birthday coming up in May and I have no doubt I will be able to meet that!

My current BMI is 23.7, which is great compared to the 27.4 it was 9 weeks ago!

CMmrsfloyd

At first I used the BMI guidelines and picked a weight right in the middle of the healthy range for my height. (click on 'tools' then click on 'BMI' at the top of the site, it'll show you where you are now and it'll show you the weight range that is generally considered healthy for your height). I'm 5'4" and I believe the range for that height was anywhere between 107-147, I chose a goal of 125 since that was comfortably in the middle of the range. Then I got within 5 lbs of that goal and decided to revise it down to 120 for my final goal. After that I want to be more focused on decreasing my bodyfat rather than trying to keep losing weight (feeling like you have to keep losing weight is a dangerous frame of mind to get stuck in, for me anyway, judging from my highschool experiences) so by that time I will have joined a gym to start working more on strength training for continued progress, rather than just continuously trying to weigh less.

karisma81

I"m going with percent body fat. It's hard to estimate this accurately yourself but I know mine is high (probably close to 30%) and I'd like to get down to 20%.

I'm using this formula

Lean Body Mass (LBM) = Current Weight – (Current Weight x Current Body Fat Percentage)
Ideal Weight = Lean Body Mass/(1- Desired Body Fat Percentage)

So for me, LBM = 110 lbs - (110 lbs x 0.3) = 77
Ideal Weight = 77 / (1 - 0.2) = 98 lbs

But if I gain some weight in muscle, it will end up at more than 98 lbs.

PoochPottery

Also keep in mind that the closer you are to your goal weight the harder it is go get off those last 5 pounds. You will need to adjust your calorie level to lose 1/2 pound per week.

Zangpakto

100 pounds, on a muscular male frame? Sure... Oh and yes I am 5 foot... Shortie I am... Yes sire!!

So, at 23yo, racing in cycling and running and aiming to do a run from athens to sparta (spartathon) as my eventual goal in 3 years I think.

Think about it, running at pace to finish you'd be burning an average of say 900 calories an hour... * 36.. that is 32,400 calories during the race (1 day and a half ).. in contrast a person who overeats at 4k calories a day only has 28,000 calories a WEEK!

Is 100 pounds fine for me? Maybe, who knows, only time will tell, and if I die while trying to achieve my idea of perfection, then so be it, at least I lived how I wanted and not how others wanted me to live...

sophjakesmom

I set my first goal as a healthy BMI. For me, at 5'6", that is 154. When I get there, I may reassess, but that was 80 lbs from my start point, so I was happy with that as the first goal.

I have seen anything from 130-154 as recommended, but I think that will be very much determined by my own body and how I feel and how much effort I want to exert to maintain. I don't want to create a sitaution where I yo-yo becuase I have selected a weight that is too low for my body/committment level.

Good luck!

mathen2

If you are going according to Body Fat %, here are the stats that The BodPod measurements use( As accurate as you can get)

For women,
Risky (Low Body fat)=<15%;
Ultra Lean =15-18%;
Lean = 18.1-22%;
Moderately Lean = 22.1-30%;
Excess Fat = 30.1-40%;
Risky( High Body fat) =>40%.

For Men,
Risky (Low Body fat) = <5%;
Ultra Lean = 5-8%;
Lean = 8.1-12%;
Moderately Lean = 12.1-20%;
Excess Fat = 20.1-30%;
Risky( High Body fat) =>30%.

You defintely want to have some body fat% for the normal function of your organs, hormones etc.. So if you decide you want 20% body fat;
then if your CW=150 lbs; Fat=20 % aka 30 lbs and your Lean Body Mass would be 80% aka 120 lbs.


Sometimes setting a goal weight isnt important because you can either tip the LBM or the Fat scale down to affect your overall weight. But the more fat you have, the lesser calories you burn at rest and an increase in health issues. You want to make sure your increase your LMB, no matter what your goal weight is set to be. Just dont pick one that appeals to you, but pick one that you can attain and maintain at that points for years.
Hope this helps
( This is my opinion from what I have learnt in the last couple of months of trying to be healthy for the long haul).