Weight loss - Quantity or Quality? What's your aim?

xxmzangel

Right now I'm going for quantity, I still have 100 lbs to lose to a healthy BMI, but I'm not going to let that or the scale define my happiness though. I mean they certainly don't hurt, but I tend enjoy it a lot more when clothes start getting loose. :bigsmile:

shorty35565

Quality! Who wants to lose muscle even if it means the scale drops? I'd rather lose fat!

almc170

I've successfully lost weight through the calorie-slashing route (several times, in fact), but I've never been able to maintain it.

This time I decided to try a different approach by eating at a much smaller deficit. It's taken me 6 months to lose 18 pounds, and I'm perfectly happy with that. I'm in my normal weight range now. I'd still like to lose a little more body fat, but I'm equally focused on improving overall fitness and making sustainable changes.

jadedone

Truthfully, I don't really care about the scale number. Right now I am striving for "onderland" and after that it is all good! I have a goal size in mind, that may or may not be possible. My goal weight is a guesstimate of what I think I would weigh at that size based on my history of weights and sizes.

Most importantly, I want to lose body fat in the annoying areas and I'll keep on going until I look the way I want. If it turns out my goal size is a farce, I'll be OK with that. I am really shooting for a lower body fat percentage. I have "bulky" arms and thighs, and they are only going to get so small (although I hope my arms get smaller, if they don't it is going to make shopping for jackets very difficult. So far I have lost about half an inch from my arms. They are firmer but not any smaller)

angelina2585

Quality. I'm not bothered about the speed just want to lose fat in a healthy, sustainable way. I've lost 17lbs since starting MFP in February and between April 2011 & August 2011 I lost 7 or 8 lbs just cutting down on portion sizes/cutting out fatty snacks & doing 30 Day Shred. Came back from a holiday and didn't carry on until this MFP lark

So in effect it's taken me 14 months to lose 24lbs. I'm happy with that. I've not 'suffered' by being ridiculously hungry like I was when I was counting WeightWatchers points which led to big binges.

My health is so much better. I hardly get an IBS attack now or a headache - both of which I was suffering from 5 to 6 days a week. I'm able to incorporate high fat foods like nuts, avocados and olive oil because I'm eating just under TDEE and I'm convinced that has helped my nails to become stronger, they used to constantly flake and chip. My skin is better - I've stopped having eczema patches on my eyelids which were incredibly sore and red - I can now wear eye-shadow yay!

I have a friend who didn't want to start calorie counting with me because it 'wouldn't work for her'. She's a special, one-off snowflake who can only lose weight on a very low calorie allowance and she decided to do the Lighterlife diet (shakes for about 500 cals a day - TOTAL) at the same time I started this journey. She lost about 18lbs in 3 weeks, had gall bladder problems, stopped the 'diet' and put the weight back on. The frustrating thing to me is that if she'd started counting calories she would have been in a better place by now - the time still passes whether you start or not. Oh and now she's thinking of Lighterlife-ing again. I tell you the only thing that's permanently lighter is her wallet but the decision has to be hers.

Tat2dDom624

I want to feel and look good, but also get out of the "200 lb range" that i have been occupying for years now. I'm just sick and tired of people referring to me as "the big guy". That's why i'm on this site, and following a strict diet and exercise regiment.

hothodgie

My aim is quality. I'd like to see if I could get to a normal BMI, but honestly, I'd just love to be a size 6 again regardless of what the scale says. I don't want to be skinny, just more fit. I set my goal weight at 144 for BMI, but I think I'm going to be really happy at 160.

Last year, I lost 20 lbs over 2 months with just doing atkins and exercising 2 or 3 times a week. I gained back 18 during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. This time around, I am eating healthier, keeping my calories within goal, eating what I want occasionally and exercising 6 days a week. I have lost 14 pounds as of today, starting in January, and I am in a smaller size than I was last year with my 20 lb loss. I have been very happy this year losing weight where I wasn't last year. Most definately quality!

taziarj

Quantity.. Then quality. Meaning, I want to lose a good deal of weight first. And then I will focus more on toning. Let's just put it this way.. I need to lose over 50#, so for me, quantity IS quality.

Agree, started out with over 100lbs to lose. So quantity is the focus to start with and then move on to quality. That isn't to say I am not working on the quality part some, just not as focused on it in the beginning.

jadedone

both. I understand what you are saying; yes losing fat while retaining lean body mass is best. If one is careful, we can do both... Maintaining muscle requires strong protein and proper resistance training. That being said, losing at a rate above 2 lbs per week is going to usually include losing some muscle mass in the process. I lost faster at first (then again, I was over 100 lbs above my goal at that time. In the interest of what you are saying here, I actually have a goal weight within the overweight range (because my lean body mass is calculated at the upper end of my IBW/BMI<25 range to low overweight range... My weight loss has slowed since I have been approaching my goal weight and I am ok with that as long as I am seeing progress... Still have lost about 7 lbs this month. So my short answer I suppose is BOTH.. with emphasis on quality.

Being 100% honest, I am not even remotely concerned about being in the "healthy" BMI range. I've don all of the online calculators, and using the law of averages, my lean body mass is about in the middle of the healthy range of BMI, if I got to the botom of healthy, I'd have around 10-12% body fat which barely covers the essential fat women need. I would need to lose 10% of my lean body mass for the top end of "healthy" BMI to be a healthy amount of body fat (around 20%, which is very lean).

So I'll stick with staying in the overweight range. As they say, different weights look different on different people, and I am one of those that weighs more than I look.

llkilgore

both. I understand what you are saying; yes losing fat while retaining lean body mass is best. If one is careful, we can do both... Maintaining muscle requires strong protein and proper resistance training. That being said, losing at a rate above 2 lbs per week is going to usually include losing some muscle mass in the process. I lost faster at first (then again, I was over 100 lbs above my goal at that time. In the interest of what you are saying here, I actually have a goal weight within the overweight range (because my lean body mass is calculated at the upper end of my IBW/BMI<25 range to low overweight range... My weight loss has slowed since I have been approaching my goal weight and I am ok with that as long as I am seeing progress... Still have lost about 7 lbs this month. So my short answer I suppose is BOTH.. with emphasis on quality.

Being 100% honest, I am not even remotely concerned about being in the "healthy" BMI range. I've don all of the online calculators, and using the law of averages, my lean body mass is about in the middle of the healthy range of BMI, if I got to the botom of healthy, I'd have around 10-12% body fat which barely covers the essential fat women need. I would need to lose 10% of my lean body mass for the top end of "healthy" BMI to be a healthy amount of body fat (around 20%, which is very lean).

So I'll stick with staying in the overweight range. As they say, different weights look different on different people, and I am one of those that weighs more than I look.

Are you allowing for losses in the non-skeletal muscle portion of your lean body mass? Your lean body mass is everything in your body that isn't fat, including at least one thing that I'm willing to bet that you WANT to lose: the excess skin.

MaraDiaz

Right now I'm more about quantity because this extremely slow loss has caused my motivation to really start slipping. I know that getting into higher gear and really pushing for faster loss will keep me on track better. I'm afraid if I stay at a slow pace I'm going to give up and gain it all back.

Just started Atkins, and some would say that's about quality as well as quantity, and I do hope it has some health benefits for me, but the main thing is, I've read Atkins dieters tend to lose faster than regular calorie counters. I really hope that's true, because it wouldn't me take long to undo the hard work of these last 7 months. I could probably gain all 44 pounds pack in less than 2 months. Actually, I know I could. And that is unacceptable.

delonda1

combo of both..... while i want to be strong and fit I need a lower scale number ridding my body of fat and only keeping on muscle

bisky

Excellent question. I am here for the long long run. It took me over a year to loose 30 lbs. That included moving from east coast to west coast and husband being deployed for 9 months after we moved. I just recently started lifting weights with a trainer on base and am trying to follow Eat to Live. I play tennis 5 times a week and walk my dogs. If I wanted to loose weight faster I could cut my calories more but then I feel weak at my sports ....so I will plod along with two pounds a month. I also think when people lose a lot of weight quickly their skin gets all saggy. It does not have time to adjust to the fat loss. I think it is interesting on the biggest loser they cover up the contestents bodies with more clothes as they lose weight. In the beginning the women are in sports bras and the men take their shirts off. They don't want us seeing all the saggy skin due to the rapid weight loss.

jadedone

both. I understand what you are saying; yes losing fat while retaining lean body mass is best. If one is careful, we can do both... Maintaining muscle requires strong protein and proper resistance training. That being said, losing at a rate above 2 lbs per week is going to usually include losing some muscle mass in the process. I lost faster at first (then again, I was over 100 lbs above my goal at that time. In the interest of what you are saying here, I actually have a goal weight within the overweight range (because my lean body mass is calculated at the upper end of my IBW/BMI<25 range to low overweight range... My weight loss has slowed since I have been approaching my goal weight and I am ok with that as long as I am seeing progress... Still have lost about 7 lbs this month. So my short answer I suppose is BOTH.. with emphasis on quality.

Being 100% honest, I am not even remotely concerned about being in the "healthy" BMI range. I've don all of the online calculators, and using the law of averages, my lean body mass is about in the middle of the healthy range of BMI, if I got to the botom of healthy, I'd have around 10-12% body fat which barely covers the essential fat women need. I would need to lose 10% of my lean body mass for the top end of "healthy" BMI to be a healthy amount of body fat (around 20%, which is very lean).

So I'll stick with staying in the overweight range. As they say, different weights look different on different people, and I am one of those that weighs more than I look.

Are you allowing for losses in the non-skeletal muscle portion of your lean body mass? Your lean body mass is everything in your body that isn't fat, including at least one thing that I'm willing to bet that you WANT to lose: the excess skin.

I am ignoring BMI as a measure of my health. I have no desire to lose any lean body mass, and being a "healthy" BMI would require that, which is why I am ignoring it.

SPNLuver83

Quality.

PurrfumeGIrl

I'm here for a little bit of both.

Due to some wonderful life changes, I gained 14lbs in the past year and a half. Now it's time to get back on track. This is the first time (other than my pregnancy 20+yrs ago) where I have gained weight.

My SO says I look great and loves the new curves I have but I'm feeling insecure about them/me. ( I vainly miss the ability to just pull something from my closet and put it on and walk out the door). So I'm compromising with losing a couple of inches in the waist and hips. So whatever that weight will be, is where I will end up. In the end, I hope to be fit, trim with a bit of curve and still be able to wear most of my old clothes.

Along the way, we're improving our eating habits (while they were good) now they're great! We prepare our meals from scratch (no processed foods). We indulge sparingly and don't deny ourselves foods but everything in moderation and we're quite active. I'd say we mirror the Mediterranean lifestyle.

llkilgore

both. I understand what you are saying; yes losing fat while retaining lean body mass is best. If one is careful, we can do both... Maintaining muscle requires strong protein and proper resistance training. That being said, losing at a rate above 2 lbs per week is going to usually include losing some muscle mass in the process. I lost faster at first (then again, I was over 100 lbs above my goal at that time. In the interest of what you are saying here, I actually have a goal weight within the overweight range (because my lean body mass is calculated at the upper end of my IBW/BMI<25 range to low overweight range... My weight loss has slowed since I have been approaching my goal weight and I am ok with that as long as I am seeing progress... Still have lost about 7 lbs this month. So my short answer I suppose is BOTH.. with emphasis on quality.

Being 100% honest, I am not even remotely concerned about being in the "healthy" BMI range. I've don all of the online calculators, and using the law of averages, my lean body mass is about in the middle of the healthy range of BMI, if I got to the botom of healthy, I'd have around 10-12% body fat which barely covers the essential fat women need. I would need to lose 10% of my lean body mass for the top end of "healthy" BMI to be a healthy amount of body fat (around 20%, which is very lean).

So I'll stick with staying in the overweight range. As they say, different weights look different on different people, and I am one of those that weighs more than I look.

Are you allowing for losses in the non-skeletal muscle portion of your lean body mass? Your lean body mass is everything in your body that isn't fat, including at least one thing that I'm willing to bet that you WANT to lose: the excess skin.

I am ignoring BMI as a measure of my health. I have no desire to lose any lean body mass, and being a "healthy" BMI would require that, which is why I am ignoring it.

The skeletal muscle mass of the average adult female is around 36% - a fraction of her lean body mass. Do you really want to keep the extra skin, blood, connective tissue, and other tissues your body would never have needed were it not for the need to support the excess fat? I agree that BMI is a fairly useless measure of health, though, and your optimal weight may well be in the "overweight" range. You'll know when you get there.

I didn't pay much attention to any number coughed up by a calculator on the internet, I just did what I could to preserve what muscles I had and ate at an increasing smaller calorie deficit until I lost the obvious flab. There is nothing on the net that can speak on the subject with the authority of a firm belly that no longer bounces as I run.

Hezzietiger1

Both. That's why I bust my *kitten* at the gym 4 days a week. I can lose 1 1/2 - 2 lbs a week and it be quality weight loss, aka fat loss. That's what I'm doing

Erisad

Um...I probably wouldn't mind if I was "skinny-fat" because at least I'd be skinny, which means I'd look a lot better than I do now.

DesignGuy

Quality. When I started I was something like 310-ish. I wanted the loss fast as I was the highest in my life and shocked. Dropped 50 pounds and now at 259 I'm fine with even 4 lbs a month if it means I'm not losing muscle.

I was far more concerned with making a lifestyle change that would stick. The rest will happen in time.