Ideal weight?

Peeriegemgem
Peeriegemgem Posts: 23
in Health and Weight Loss
How do people know or decide their ideal weight?

I say this because at 5ft 6, at my thinnest I was 110lbs. A few years later, I lead a much healthier existence, but nearer 122lbs. I run, I do workouts and eat cleaner food, and am probably more toned, but in my head I still struggle with the fact I am not at the weight I was. Its the acceptance of this, or making serious work to get down again?

Replies

  • Whitezombiegirl
    Whitezombiegirl Posts: 1,042 Member
    Hi

    I go by the amount of loose 'flab' I have, or subcutaneous fat to be more polite. i know at 7st 7 and below I don't jiggle so much. I don't mind if my wieght goes up, as long as its made of firm mucsle mass and not flab. I think 7 st 5 ish or there abouts is a good weight for me, as i'm very short.
  • sarahmatters
    sarahmatters Posts: 44
    I go by BMI. I want to be somewhere in the low-middle of the healthy BMI range. I'm aiming for 21.9. As long as you feel healthy and have a healthy BMI then I don't think it's attainable to try to be the lowest weight you ever were. As you say you are healthier now so it probably wasn't that good for you to be so slim. I've struggled with this too but you have to set yourself targets that are reasonable and acheiveable otherwise you are setting yourself up to never be happy with yourself and what's the point in that!
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    i dont go by weight, i go by size and how i feel in myself. i have been maintaining for a while now, and my weight has increased as my size has got smaller....

    i dont think you should choose a number and stick to it, but see how you feel when you stand in front of the mirror in your pants - thats what counts, not a random number!! plus, IMO 110 at 5ft6 is VERY light.
  • bazfitness
    bazfitness Posts: 275 Member
    tbh besides people with eating disorders I reckon most people's idea of ideal weight is heavier than what their ideal weight actually is. When you see so many clearly overweight people when you are in a 'healthy range' it can be tempting to think well I'm alright now.

    I'm back to the sort of weight I was 2 decades ago and before I started this whole health and fitness thing I would have thought that was more than good enough. The truth of the matter is I still have unnecessary fat to shred. From an aesthetics point of view I don't actually want to look thinner than i am now but from a health point of view some more fat gone would be very good and if I can replace that with muscle at some point so I don't look thin all the better!
  • mogletdeluxe
    mogletdeluxe Posts: 623 Member
    Bump. I've not been a healthy weight since I was a tot, and now I've gone a little bit past my goal I'm struggling to work out what I should be aiming for. My BMI is 24 so on the high end of normal, and I still have some leftovers on my belly. I am, however, quite muscular.

    Any tips welcome; sorry for the hijack! x
  • keepgoing71
    keepgoing71 Posts: 2
    Hi i have this problem too. I would like to be 10 stones, but struggle at 10 stone 7 lb, i have now decided that people dont judge you on your weight but how you look!

    When at 10 stone 7lb i looked awful, drawn and haggered, now having put half stone on people say i look a lot better and healthier.

    But yet i feel flabby and not very comfortable in my clothes. So have decided to excercise and tone up not forgetting that muscle weighs more than fat, concentrate on inch loss rather than weight loss and watch my diet.

    If i try and stay within my calorie goals and eat helathy having the odd treat now and again i should be able to maintain my goals. But need to excercise and eat correctly to achieve this,

    Good Luck to you all, i am still trying to get to my mark but if it takes 6 months a year as long as it comes off slowly and i take good care of myself and my health i can not see why we cannot reach our goals.
  • Lumett
    Lumett Posts: 29 Member
    I'm a Male just over 5' 7 so for me I'm aiming for around 64Kg (10stone 2lb) but i'm cutting atm, had a fair amount of body fat to lose as I want to be at like 9% BF
  • helkitty72
    helkitty72 Posts: 3 Member
    I don't find weight the best thing to go on (although i do wish the scales said less!) as to be healthy and look good you need to have lean muscle mass and that means you likely will weigh more than if you did no exercise but dieted hard. I'm 5ft 6 too and weigh around 140lbs, but I guess I am built a lot bigger than the OP. Work out with weights and you will look better at whatever size/weight you are.
  • finchase
    finchase Posts: 174
    I go by BMI. I want to be somewhere in the low-middle of the healthy BMI range. I'm aiming for 21.9. As long as you feel healthy and have a healthy BMI then I don't think it's attainable to try to be the lowest weight you ever were. As you say you are healthier now so it probably wasn't that good for you to be so slim. I've struggled with this too but you have to set yourself targets that are reasonable and acheiveable otherwise you are setting yourself up to never be happy with yourself and what's the point in that!

    I agree with this post. I am 5'4, and I am aiming for 130, which is right in the middle of the range for my height and frame size (large). That may not be where I end up, however. It's going to depend on where I look and feel best, but first I want to attain a healthy BMI. I'm about 5 lbs away from that goal.

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