Need help- How did you choose your goal weight?

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  • KirstenRLD
    KirstenRLD Posts: 54
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    I picked a GW in the healthy range for my height, and one I feel like I'd be able to maintain easily.
  • DeterminedFee201426
    DeterminedFee201426 Posts: 859 Member
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    i choose my goal weight by my imagination i just think of how my body would be if i were to wei the goal weight and go for it
    current weight 122 goal 112 pounds i have a big imagination :laugh:
  • 143tobe
    143tobe Posts: 620 Member
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    I think your goal of 175 pounds is right on. It is the thinnest you can remember yourself being, and you have a photo to back it up. For you, that is a very realistic, and reachable goal. To set it any lower might not register as truly reachable to you, possibly setting yourself up for failure. I am 5'4" and I set my goal at 143. That is actually barely in the acceptable range if I remember, but it was the lowest I can remember myself being without having to work out every day. I am now halfway to my goal, and my plan is that when I do reach it, my aim is to maintain that weight while building muscle. Then 6 months down that road I will probably make it a goal to lose another 10, but honestly, if I were to be able to maintain 143 for the rest of my life I would be happy as a clam.
  • PinkNinjaLaura
    PinkNinjaLaura Posts: 3,202 Member
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    I hired a trainer last year and when he asked me my goal weight I said 150. That's still a lot for my height (I'm 5'2") but I was starting at 230 and I didn't want to sound unrealistic. I didn't actually expect to get there, but I was thinking it would be nice to at least get out of the 200s. When I got to 175 I realized I could get lower than 150. At that point, like a lot of other people who have posted here, my goal weight became whatever number was on the scale when I was happy with my body.

    I've been running & strength training for over a year so I'm in a smaller size now than I was on the way up at the same weight (I'm in a size 8 now vs a size 12 at this weight when I wasn't working out). I was 110 pounds when I graduated from high school, but now I think the lowest I could go is 130. That might even be pushing it so right now I tentatively have 135 in mind, but again I'll have to see where I end up. I'm in a size 8 now and would like to be in a comfortable 6. I think 136 is where I move into the "normal" range for BMI.
  • SuperJo1972
    SuperJo1972 Posts: 113 Member
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    I am using my weight aged 18-19 (10 & 1/2 to 11 stone) as my goal as I remember being healthy and feeling relatively content with my size back then. But this is in conjunction with my GP's advice. She recommended that I see how I feel at 11 stone and not go lower than 10 stone.

    But I have found that my goals are all changing as I get closer to my target. I would still like to end up in this range, but I am aiming to increase my muscle mass and decrease mt body fat, so that I may weigh more in the end, but will be shapelier and fitter.

    I would recommend a chat with your healthcare provider when deciding your goal.
  • cassie4animals
    cassie4animals Posts: 23 Member
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    I chose the goal weight that my doctor recommended. He actually recommended a range, and I selected the middle of the range.
  • keobooks
    keobooks Posts: 92 Member
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    Oh one more thing -- there's nothing set in stone with a goal weight. You may get 10 or 20 pounds away from your goal and say "This is fine right where it is!" I had a friend IRL who did that. She was going to go to 110, but when she got to 130, she decided that was too scrawny looking and went back to 135 and stayed there. 110 was fine when she was in high school, but not for a woman with 2 kids in her opinion. I've never heard anyone say she failed at her goal because she never made it to 110. She looks great now and can keep that weight stable -- so who cares?
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,089 Member
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    As other people have said, I picked a goal weight that I remembered feeling good at. Somewhere along the way, I decided I would focus more on a body fat percentage as a goal. Then, I realized that was just another number to obsess over. So now, my weight goal is to be able to look in the mirror, and say, yeah, that's it.

    Exactly what I was trying to say! :-)
  • EllaIsNotEnchanted
    EllaIsNotEnchanted Posts: 226 Member
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    I go for my goal look. Not weight. Muscles. ;)
  • sadrithmora
    sadrithmora Posts: 121
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    I am using my weight aged 18-19 (10 & 1/2 to 11 stone) as my goal as I remember being healthy and feeling relatively content with my size back then.

    This as well, used to be 114 lb. But I don't think there's any problem with re-evaluating your goal once you reach it either. Just don't go for anything unrealistic (too low weight or too fast loss).
  • karmac0matic
    karmac0matic Posts: 285
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    I switched from choosing a goal weight to choosing a goal "feeling". The moment I knew I felt strong, healthy, and in control of my body (and tighter than I had!) I knew I was in a good place.

    Once you get that "WOW I feel amazing!" That's when you should know that you're in a great place and you could keep going for a bit but you don't have to, just continue to be smart in your choices and maintain.

    Anyway, that's just my two cents. Sometimes numbers are scary, whereas feelings are not.

    Best of luck to you!!

    Edit: I also was thinking: Your body has developed into an adult's body over time, so trying to set your goal to how you looked in middle school isn't realistic because you'll have already put weight in womanly spots for yourself (like, I never had hips even through high school and now I do, so if I wanted to be my weight in high school I would look a hell of a lot thinner than I did at that weight in high school because I have the extra womanly stuff)
  • SymphonynSonata
    SymphonynSonata Posts: 533 Member
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    I've never really picked a GW. It was just trial and error for me. I've been 100 pounds, 200 pounds, and everything in between. Based on my body structure, health, happiness and overall 'feeling', I've decided that for me, 106 pounds is best; but it's not really 106, more like 108 - 106 allows me to eat a little more on some days, a little less on other days and kind of balance between the two. When I was at my heaviest I wanted to be 120, when I got to 120 (because I'm so tiny framed) I decided I'd just keep going until I was happy with my body but still felt good. Just pick a good number for you and when you get there reevaluate. You may be surprised to find you want to be heavier, and that's super pleasant! :)
  • BigVeggieDream
    BigVeggieDream Posts: 1,101 Member
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    I thought back to what I was when I was 20, then added on 20 pounds. I also looked at several charts giving a healthy weight/BMI for my age and height. When I get to my goal weight I will reavaluate and set a new goal, knowing that I'm older now and my 20 y/o weight may be unachieveable.
  • leantool
    leantool Posts: 365 Member
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    Mid point of healthy BMI.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    Like others have said, I wouldn't worry too much about it--you can always change it as you get closer.

    My goal weight (120, I'm 5'3) was chosen because it was the weight I was at when I was my fittest as an adult (in my early 30s, so not THAT long ago) and seems achieveable. Also, it conveniently is 100 down from where I started, so seemed a nice round goal. But I know it was a hard weight for me to maintain back then, and I'd always seem to more naturally be at 125-30, where I felt fine, so I might decide not to go to 120. Also I'm much more interested in my overall body fat percentage than I was back in the day, and in strength training, so I plan to reevaluate as I get closer, depending on how I look and feel, and could end up higher or lower, we'll see.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,876 Member
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    I used a calculator to estimate what my weight would be at a certain BF% with the idea that I would hopefully lose very little muscle mass along the way. It worked out pretty well. I ended up at a slightly higher scale weight than I thought I would at my goal BF%.

    Just having a goal weight is really not the best approach...scale weight is made up of too many things besides fat to be the only measure and only goal.
  • Eleonora91
    Eleonora91 Posts: 688 Member
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    I'm 22, 5'5, started off at around 180 (almost BMI 30), my first goal was 150 (BMI 25) which would put me out of the overweight range. I have been down to 140 and I'd honestly like to go a little lower, even if I wouldn't mind being at this weight forever. It doesn't bother me but I know I can improve, even though weight is not that important now. I'm focusing on my figure, resistance etc. I'm not setting a real "goal" weight anymore since I'll always be changing my mind. Whatever makes me feel alright about myself will be my goal. Reaching 132 would be my "dream" but I mostly care about improving my shape at the moment - it would be useless to me reaching that number if I don't like my shape yet.
  • VCopple
    VCopple Posts: 56 Member
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    I thought about all of the weights I have been throughout the course of my life, and the fact that now I have a baby and will be 30 in a few months. I realized that I will never be down to where I was in high school (135) because my metabolism is slowing down and I am not playing sports every day for 3 hours a day. I decided to look at a weight I have been before and felt confident at. Currently I am 173, and would like to be 145 or 155. I think 20 pounds is attainable, and I have stopped looking at the BMI chart because it does not factor in your activity level, your body type/composition and muscle mass.

    I just met with a registered dietitian, and on my health insurance I get 5 visits per calendar year, so I am trying her recommendations for my weight loss. My overall goal is to make the lifestyle change and stick with it so that I can teach the healthy habits to my son. The added benefit of my skinny clothes fitting again will just be a wonderful feeling.
  • Sassymama66_75HARD
    Sassymama66_75HARD Posts: 91 Member
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    Had a fitness assessment at my gym and the fitness manager did a body fat analysis. We chose my first goal from that. We will look at it again at that point.
  • Tiff050709
    Tiff050709 Posts: 497 Member
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    I'm 5'9 and my (tentative) goal weight is 150. That puts me at a healthy BMI. I don't know if I will get that low. Especially considering I would like to have a bit of muscle definition. I know in high school I weighed around 160. I was in sports, swimming and soccer. Maybe when I get to that weight I will be happy but right now I'm just going for 150 and see what happens.

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