How much weight can I ACTUALLY lose? HELP!

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  • susannamarie
    susannamarie Posts: 2,148 Member
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    What everyone else said -- when you get to 170, get your hubby to take some pics of you, take a good look at yourself in the mirror -- and decide whether to keep losing or to sit pretty.
  • Laura8603
    Laura8603 Posts: 590 Member
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    I say leave it at 170 and when you get there, you can reevaluate. I'm 5'7" and weigh 135. I think about losing 5 more, but I actually like how I feel at this weight. Hang in there!!
  • OSU_Sarah
    OSU_Sarah Posts: 107 Member
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    Hi. I'm 5'6. I started out at 172 in 2009. I ended up getting down to 118, which was WAY too skinny! My metabolism was in high gear. I am since up to 130 and am trying to get back to about 122-125 which I think was a good weight for me. So hope that helps. I'm 130 now and now that I look bad, I just got my belly bulge back and am trying to get rid of it!
  • susannamarie
    susannamarie Posts: 2,148 Member
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    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/brewster26.htm

    ^ go here and take all the measurements and do all the little calculations to find out what your lean mass weight is and how much of your weight is fat. Then see how much of that You could lose before getting down to about 30% body fat. Then work on getting to 25%. THEN decide how many pounds you want to lose or if you just want to get down to a certain about of body fat % alone.

    Its a way that not nearly enough people use to figure out what they would be happy with - pound-wise AND 'how much my muscles show"-wise.

    I think this calculator may have been misprogrammed. It gave me a figure of 160 lbs lean, when other calculators tend to give 140-150 lbs. When I did the calculations manually, using the same numbers and the formula they posted directly above the calculator, I got 150 lbs.

    I do agree that you should use body fat % to determine a goal weight -- I just think this calculator is off.
  • MikeInAZ
    MikeInAZ Posts: 483 Member
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    At 5'6" and 170, your BMI would be 27, that is on the high end of "Over Weight". You won't look sickly, I'd say you might still look a little pudgy. (no offense). 150lbs puts you right at 24.2 which is the HIGH end of "Normal". In fact when you get down to that weight range, you may find yourself wanting to tone up and put on some muscle. 130lbs puts you at 21 and is right in the middle of "normal".

    What you should concentrate on is BMI, Body Fat %, Muscle % and don't worry so much on weight. But 130-140 is a good range for your height and age. Get a body composition scale. I have an Omron, I got from costco.com for about $65. It's fairly accurate, I compared it to a dunk tank body fat test and it was only off by 1%.

    When you get down to 170, do a simple blood work up. Check your cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar (fasting). Make sure your levels are normal. My guess is, most Doctors will recommend more weight loss to get those levels in better check.

    Good luck, it's not easy loosing all that weight, but you'll be happy when you do!

    - Mike
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
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    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/brewster26.htm

    ^ go here and take all the measurements and do all the little calculations to find out what your lean mass weight is and how much of your weight is fat. Then see how much of that You could lose before getting down to about 30% body fat. Then work on getting to 25%. THEN decide how many pounds you want to lose or if you just want to get down to a certain about of body fat % alone.

    Its a way that not nearly enough people use to figure out what they would be happy with - pound-wise AND 'how much my muscles show"-wise.

    I think this calculator may have been misprogrammed. It gave me a figure of 160 lbs lean, when other calculators tend to give 140-150 lbs. When I did the calculations manually, using the same numbers and the formula they posted directly above the calculator, I got 150 lbs.

    I do agree that you should use body fat % to determine a goal weight -- I just think this calculator is off.

    that's because its two different calculators and the difference is explained in the text part.
  • natalie412
    natalie412 Posts: 1,039 Member
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    I am 5'5.5" and just hit my goal of 135.

    2wobt4l.jpg
  • fittiephd
    fittiephd Posts: 608 Member
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    I'm 5'8" and 130 and I'm just building muscle now that I'm at goal. I don't think that 130 is too low for you seeing how you are 2 inches shorter than me. Although it may take some getting used to that you will look a lot different!

    I think the best way to decide what your goal weight should be is to aim for around the "normal/healthy" BMI category. For 5'6" that is between 115 and 155 lbs. Anything over 155 is considered "overweight". I think the best goal is to be healthy :)
  • spikefoot
    spikefoot Posts: 419
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    I find that "outsiders" always seem to be more advocates for less weight loss.

    You can always reevaluate as you approach your goals.

    I am of the belief that we can weigh a lot less than we accept.

    The amount of muscle plays a big role too.
  • jamyrbz
    jamyrbz Posts: 2 Member
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    I'm 5'8" and I feel amazing at 155. I have a "normal weight" based on BMI at 164. Your "normal weight" BMI is 155. I would set that as my goal and then go from there.

    170 won't be scrawny on you, by any means.
  • jynxxxed
    jynxxxed Posts: 1,010 Member
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    170 is even overweight for my height, 5'10". Just set a goal and see how you feel when you get there.
  • klynn81
    klynn81 Posts: 178 Member
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    Sometimes I think it's easy to sit and obsess over what the "right" "goal" weight should be. Just start working to lose the weight, melt the inches, build the muscles and see how you look and feel along the way.
  • kristin1493
    kristin1493 Posts: 41 Member
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    At 5'6" and 170 you will still be considered overweight by BMI standards (for however much that is worth). I am 5'5.5" and 139 lbs. I still have some pudge.
  • erinw1011
    erinw1011 Posts: 86 Member
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    I am just shy of 5'7" and currently 170 pounds. I am just starting to look somewhat healthy. My goal weight is about 140. I was 125-130 in high school and looking back I was scrawny.
  • Kybelle132
    Kybelle132 Posts: 71 Member
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    Hi! After I had my babies I was about 200 lbs (5'3) I am currently 157 and am far from scrawny...I am aiming for 135-140...
  • lbesaw
    lbesaw Posts: 267 Member
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    Wow--you've done great! How long did it take you to lose?
  • perfect10isha
    perfect10isha Posts: 200 Member
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    I'm 5'6" and currently weigh between 138-140 lbs. My heaviest weight non-pregnant was 165. I definately don't look sickly but I"m also not skin and bones, I have a fair amount of muscle. However, I'm not real defined because I still have a decent amount of body fat so I'm firm (not jiggly). My stomach is still a work in progress from pregnancy. Originally I had planned to aim for 130-135 but once I hit 140 lbs I slowed down the losing because I was starting to lose my curves. Definately set a goal weight that takes into mind your bmi and lean muscle mass, but give yourself the flexibility to change your goals as you get closer. I'm now more concerned with decreasing my body fat, so I use my lean muscle mass to determine where I should be weight wise to decrease my bf by a few percentages.

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