so confused: goal weight vs maintenance 5'1 female

beachcalsix · July 2014

Ok So I'm really confused here. I'm not sure what my goal weight should be. I'm 5'1 and have seen other women stop at 120+ lbs but have also seen 5'1 women get down to 110 or 100 lbs.

A little background, I started way up there around 200 lbs in the beginning. My profile picture is around 190 ish pounds. I've lost over 60 lbs and am currently 133. I've noticed the past couple weeks it's been a lot harder to get the weight off.

Instead of 2 lb losses I'm getting only 1 lb per week. I know I should probably calculate my deficit more and am doing that this week but I can't help but feel my body is cueing me in that I'm getting close.

The thing is, I see other women my height getting way low, like 100 lbs or 105, 110. I was shooting for 110 but now I'm not so sure....I have excess skin on my stomach that I know won't budge either.

I've tried calculating my body fat but I got 3 different percentages from 3 different websites with the same measurements. One website my body fat was 26, another 24, and the last was up to 32!!

I'm so confused because at 32 I'd still have a lot of fat to lose but at 24, not so much or it would be unhealthy. My bmi is practically healthy already, I'm just on the cusp of bmi 25. I know I have atleast 5 lbs-7 lbs of belly fat that if I got rid of would put me around 125.

I just don't want to start maintenance at the wrong moment I guess. I want to get my bodyfat down to a healthy level to match my healthy bmi and be in my goal range....but I don't know what that goal range should be!!

Any help is appreciated because I feel like my loss will stall soon even with all the exercise I'm getting and clean eating. I don't want to hit a brick wall and get frustrated.

Thanks everyone

BinaryPulsar · July 2014

Different people have different goal weights. It's very hard to advise on this. And there is generally a lot of misinformation. And these threads can turn into body shaming, and mind shaming based on body type, and assumptions about what a person does or does not eat, and health shaming, false assumptions about strength, and life expectancy comes up. And then people think other people are presenting a harmful body image just because the person is smaller. It's really a personal preference. And body type and frame size plays a part. You can base it on your own personal history, if you think that would help. Sorry this isn't very helpful.

editorgrrl · July 2014

The less you have to lose, the more slowly it comes off. That's just the way the human body works. Set your goal to .5 lb. per week, and be patient. The smaller deficit will also help you transition to maintenance.

Read the Sexypants post: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

sun_fish · July 2014

Congratulations on your weight loss! I am also 5'1, and I think for our height weight ranges from 100-140 is considered normal. For me, I am looking more in the mirror, and deciding my goal weight based on how I look and feel, rather than a number I pulled from an online calculator.

Regarding the body fat estimates, it is very difficult to get an accurate number unless you get a dexa scan. Read this link for more info on other methods: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/830595-body-fat-estimation-methods

As you get closer to your goal weight, your losses usually slow down. Your best bet would be to do some resistance training if you aren't already to preserve as much muscle as possible.

Best of luck to you, and again, congratulations!

ge105 · July 2014

Everyone is different, even at similar heights. My mom never weighed more than 85lbs her whole adult life at 5ft tall. At my lowest I've weighed 110lbs. I'm ~113 in my pic (and also 5ft). If I lost 30lbs I'd probably die but my mom looked perfectly well at that weight. Moral of the story; go by what feels/looks good for you. Also, check out the sexy-pants link. I've only been doing what it says for a week and I've already noticed improvement.

britain21 · July 2014

How many calories are you eating everyday? And how much do you workout? I'm 5"1 also and weigh 128 now but my loss has stopped and I don't know why:/

sun_fish · July 2014

How many calories are you eating everyday? And how much do you workout? I'm 5"1 also and weigh 128 now but my loss has stopped and I don't know why:/

I'm not sure who you are asking, but generally, this comes down to underestimating calories and/or overestimation exercise calories.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think

flumi_f · July 2014

I'm 5'' 1 1/2' and at 125lbs wanting to get to 118-119. I can't imagine myself looking good at 110, as I have a naturally muscular build, so I think 118 will be OK for me.

I don't know, how your build is or what exercise you have done, but you may want to do some strength training or cardio/strength circuits with small dumbbells and body weight exercises. You will lose inches with that even if your scale doesn't move much.

Oh...have you recalculated your TDEE with weightloss? It goes down as you weigh less (assuming same exercise burns)

beachcalsix · July 2014

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm trying to go with the flow and just see how my body looks and how I feel but there's that part of me that wants to be as light as possible because I'm short.

Sun_fish: I follow the 80/20 rule but always stay within my range. I have 1200-1500 calorie range. 80% weekdays I stick to 1200 and on weekends allow 1500. It works really well and I always lose/never maintain. It's slowing down though so I'm trying to figure out if I'm close to goal or if I should try to switch something up and keep losing. Sun_fish I think it's just our bodies getting close to goal and telling us to slow down.
I exercise 6 out of 7 days per week out of habit not because I force it. I just like exercise now. I've started strength training so maybe that's contributing to the slow down? I can't be gaining muscle because I'm not eating more calories than normal.
Maybe I should just slowly input more calories? But wouldn't that cause my body to go to maintenance mode??

beachcalsix · July 2014

Flumi_f: Yea sometimes I feel like 110 would be too low and I'd feel weak and bony. I'm already pretty thin but I definitely want to get to 125. I have some belly fat left to burn off too. Do you strength train a lot? I do a lot of cardio and 2 days strength training, should I switch it?

sun_fish · July 2014

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm trying to go with the flow and just see how my body looks and how I feel but there's that part of me that wants to be as light as possible because I'm short.

Sun_fish: I follow the 80/20 rule but always stay within my range. I have 1200-1500 calorie range. 80% weekdays I stick to 1200 and on weekends allow 1500. It works really well and I always lose/never maintain. It's slowing down though so I'm trying to figure out if I'm close to goal or if I should try to switch something up and keep losing. Sun_fish I think it's just our bodies getting close to goal and telling us to slow down.
I exercise 6 out of 7 days per week out of habit not because I force it. I just like exercise now. I've started strength training so maybe that's contributing to the slow down? I can't be gaining muscle because I'm not eating more calories than normal.
Maybe I should just slowly input more calories? But wouldn't that cause my body to go to maintenance mode??

If you are logging accurately, and not losing, raising calories is not the answer. When my weight loss stalled, I got very serious about my logging accuracy (see the link I posted for someone else above). Once I started weighing most of my food, and measuring what I couldn't, I started losing again.

By 80/20, do you mean 80% food that meets your nutritional needs, and 20% whatever you like?

Edited to add: A new exercise program can often cause water retention, and making you think you have not lost, or gained weight.

2nd edit: sorry, I had it in my head your weight loss had stalled, and I realize you said you slowed from 2 lb losses to 1 lb per week. I would say just keep doing what you are doing, 1 pound a week is good, in fact you could even slow things down a bit more.

NatalieWinning · July 2014

I am 5'2" and have never ever fit into the weight range for my height even when I was a skinny teen. There is a great new tool "The Body Gallery" and you can go to that website and see all kinds of ranges of sizes and weights for women of your height. Which is real and the right way to think about it. Instead of trying to hit a number on a chart made for every woman on earth to try to aim at. That's not realistic! I put in my original weight, my current weight, and then what I at I imagined a goal weight would be (or 2). Then I also compared those ideas with facts and numbers from ALL the calculators from http://www.fat2fittools.com/tools/
which is a lot of charts to help you find a goal not just on one standard. It's still an estimate, and you can still use your own feelings, image in the mirror and how you feel in your clothes as a judge all along the way.
The last 10 or few pounds are the very very hardest and slowest because they are vanity pounds and your body likes to have a padding of normal fat. I went to the top of my chart for body fat, age, weight on a couple charts. I have a thicker natural waist, so was also high on that. I have good muscle volume, so weight more than many my height as well. I felt and looked good so stayed there! It put me at size 4-6 pants and Small tops. I'm older and it's even harder to get those last pounds. I'm also more muscular than most people my age!
So don't try to hit a random average number. Do some research at what you feel like, look like, and how others of your size are on that body gallery site. Pick a range that seems good. When you get there, re-assess. I once hit 115 by not eating enough during a stressful time, and not exercising. It was a bony unhealthy look. Not cool. I know from that, and my research about ME that I'm good at 133-135. I'm 55 years old and it was still true for me at 35, and at 18.

NatalieWinning · July 2014

I've been at this website for 3 + years. One thing I know is that my body has regular stalls, then if I keep going it will drop again in trends. If I under eat or don't eat back my exercise calories I stall, too. If I have a period of extra exercise I don't lose, but that doesn't matter I'm getting stronger, then eventually it's all good. Don't try fads or gimmics, just keep eating enough, eating according to the plan, eating quality food and enough water. It's a lifestyle for a lifetime or you haven't really improved yourself. It will stick that way, even if you have a down period because of good habits you gained.

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm trying to go with the flow and just see how my body looks and how I feel but there's that part of me that wants to be as light as possible because I'm short.

Sun_fish: I follow the 80/20 rule but always stay within my range. I have 1200-1500 calorie range. 80% weekdays I stick to 1200 and on weekends allow 1500. It works really well and I always lose/never maintain. It's slowing down though so I'm trying to figure out if I'm close to goal or if I should try to switch something up and keep losing. Sun_fish I think it's just our bodies getting close to goal and telling us to slow down.
I exercise 6 out of 7 days per week out of habit not because I force it. I just like exercise now. I've started strength training so maybe that's contributing to the slow down? I can't be gaining muscle because I'm not eating more calories than normal.
Maybe I should just slowly input more calories? But wouldn't that cause my body to go to maintenance mode??

If you are logging accurately, and not losing, raising calories is not the answer. When my weight loss stalled, I got very serious about my logging accuracy (see the link I posted for someone else above). Once I started weighing most of my food, and measuring what I couldn't, I started losing again.

By 80/20, do you mean 80% food that meets your nutritional needs, and 20% whatever you like?

Edited to add: A new exercise program can often cause water retention, and making you think you have not lost, or gained weight.

2nd edit: sorry, I had it in my head your weight loss had stalled, and I realize you said you slowed from 2 lb losses to 1 lb per week. I would say just keep doing what you are doing, 1 pound a week is good, in fact you could even slow things down a bit more.

RunningOnWontons · July 2014

I'm 5'1". The lowest weight I maintained as an adult was 105. I am eventually going to be in your shoes, deciding just how low is right for me this time around. On my frame, anything over 120-ish is a bit more than I need to be carrying around, but I've set that as my goal for now. It's been a long while since I saw anything close to that, and who knows but my body composition may have changed for the better once I'm there again! It's true that the more muscular you are the heavier the weight you'll probably be, within what's considered the "healthy range" for our height.

Having said all that, my main goal is not weight loss per se, but rather to once again be an efficient distance runner. For that goal, I will need to be at a pretty low weight, meaning probably the low 100s. But we shall see. I wonder what your specific fitness goals are, because I think that's ultimately what will guide your ideal weight. I don't mean to go to extreme examples here, but the ideal body weight/frame of an endurance runner is going to be a lot different from that of a weight-lifter, or rock climber, or.... Hopefully that's food for thought.

And, btw, congrats on the awesome weight loss success!

I seriously hope to be looking at the same amount of weight loss myself in the not-too-distant future!

meadow_sage · July 2014

According to the BMI charts, a normal wealthy weight for a woman that is 5'1 is between 100 lbs and 127 lbs. Anything under is considered underweight and anything over is considered overweight. Since your muscle mass and bone mass are factors it depends. If you are muscular and do a lot exercise, especially lifting, I would aim for the higher end. If not, aim lower. Honestly, I think if you are in the frame, I wouldn't be too worried about the exact number.

Ok So I'm really confused here. I'm not sure what my goal weight should be. I'm 5'1 and have seen other women stop at 120+ lbs but have also seen 5'1 women get down to 110 or 100 lbs.

A little background, I started way up there around 200 lbs in the beginning. My profile picture is around 190 ish pounds. I've lost over 60 lbs and am currently 133. I've noticed the past couple weeks it's been a lot harder to get the weight off.

Instead of 2 lb losses I'm getting only 1 lb per week. I know I should probably calculate my deficit more and am doing that this week but I can't help but feel my body is cueing me in that I'm getting close.

The thing is, I see other women my height getting way low, like 100 lbs or 105, 110. I was shooting for 110 but now I'm not so sure....I have excess skin on my stomach that I know won't budge either.

I've tried calculating my body fat but I got 3 different percentages from 3 different websites with the same measurements. One website my body fat was 26, another 24, and the last was up to 32!!

I'm so confused because at 32 I'd still have a lot of fat to lose but at 24, not so much or it would be unhealthy. My bmi is practically healthy already, I'm just on the cusp of bmi 25. I know I have atleast 5 lbs-7 lbs of belly fat that if I got rid of would put me around 125.

I just don't want to start maintenance at the wrong moment I guess. I want to get my bodyfat down to a healthy level to match my healthy bmi and be in my goal range....but I don't know what that goal range should be!!

Any help is appreciated because I feel like my loss will stall soon even with all the exercise I'm getting and clean eating. I don't want to hit a brick wall and get frustrated.

Thanks everyone

aedreana · July 2014

It all depends on the figure type you want to have; whether you want to look model-thin, petite, slender, curvaceous, medium-size-- first decide exactly what figure type you want, and then keep in mind that is what you are aiming for. Then as you near your ideal weight, you will know that you are approaching it, and then can fine-tune it exactly.

meadow_sage · July 2014

Personally, I wouldn't go below 1200 on a regular basis. I think your calorie goals are perfect....slower loss is not bad. Just stick to what you are doing and exercise. You are living a healthy lifestyle and that's what really matters.

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm trying to go with the flow and just see how my body looks and how I feel but there's that part of me that wants to be as light as possible because I'm short.

Sun_fish: I follow the 80/20 rule but always stay within my range. I have 1200-1500 calorie range. 80% weekdays I stick to 1200 and on weekends allow 1500. It works really well and I always lose/never maintain. It's slowing down though so I'm trying to figure out if I'm close to goal or if I should try to switch something up and keep losing. Sun_fish I think it's just our bodies getting close to goal and telling us to slow down.
I exercise 6 out of 7 days per week out of habit not because I force it. I just like exercise now. I've started strength training so maybe that's contributing to the slow down? I can't be gaining muscle because I'm not eating more calories than normal.
Maybe I should just slowly input more calories? But wouldn't that cause my body to go to maintenance mode??

orlandogirl97 · July 2014

I'm 5'1 also and I'm a bit heavier than you....I want to get down to about 120 or maybe a bit higher. I'm not too worried about my scale number, I want to be strong and healthy! I think I would be too thin under 115 and I think I would have a hard time maintaining.

phyllisgehrke · July 2014

What I did for my goal weight was talk to my doctor what I should be.
I also looked on the internet for my height what pounds I should be
I have lost 65 pounds and I am 5ft 6 inches tall and I now weigh 134 pounds, for my height I am stopping there.
Also check on your body mass index, what it is, if it is in the healthy range.
Good Luck.

BinaryPulsar · July 2014

Yes, for me I base it on my personal weight history, talking to my doctor, also the bmi chart can go a couple pounds lower for someone that is petite and very small framed, frame size (shoulder, waist, and rib cage measurements), family genetics, making sure I don't have excess fat for my personal preference.

I'm on the small end, and I lift heavy weights and eat in the range of 2000 calories a day. I definitely recommend weight lifting and strength training.

margannmks · July 2014

Congratulations on your weightloss, its true the last 5-10lbs are difficult to lose. As far as scale number you can see two same height same weight woman look dramatically different due to muscle vs fat composition. Just like many others have said on this site if your not already strength training you will just be a smaller version of your heavier self. You can tranform your body without losing anymore weight by picking up the weights. Ive actually seen pics on her of woman who have gained 4-5 lbs but are sizes smaller. I also agree dont go under 1200-1400 it will be too hard to maintain and make sure your getting adequate protein.Btw im 5"2 and 126-128. I wear a size 4.

flumi_f · July 2014

Beachcalix - I vary my training alot, because I get bored doing the same thing all week.

I horseback ride, run (lots of uphill running), bike and swim alot at the moment, because it's summer. I love being outside and can integrate my workouts by running / biking to/from work.

I worked on strength machines for about two years because of some back problems, then started integrating circuit DVDs at home (30 day shred, Fitness blender, etc). I then started with push ups, planks, small dumbbells (2kg) and other body weight training. Nothing extrem, but the regularity of a 10-15min routine almost daily really gave me better results than 2 years at the gym twice a week for 60-90min. I haven't been doing much of it lately, but will definitely start up again, when I can't go outside as much.

You can integrate those short routines into your stretching / strengthening after your cardio...I should do that again too ;-) Core training actually helps me with all my other sports, because I have more control / stability in my middle. It could help you tighten up your tummy.

Most say, you can't build muscle on a deficit. My eating plan only gives me a big deficit 2 days a week and I eat normally 5 days a week. I definitely had some muscle build up. Also strength training leads to a higher cal burn after the workout. And sometimes, just mixing things up can keep your body guessing ;-)

KateK8LoseW8 · July 2014

For BMI purposes, your healthy weight range is 105 to 132 lb. Personally I suggest that people shoot for at least the upper-middle of this range so there's wiggle room for regain, so about 120-125 lb. If you want to get down to 110 though, that's totally up to you. Find a weight where you are comfortable with how your body looks (you can always improve it after fat loss with strength training), and that you find sustainable. While I can technically get down to 112 lb, I find 122-124 lb more sustainable as far as calories go, so I stay there. Maintaining a lower weight means eating fewer calories, so keep that in mind!

beachcalsix · July 2014

Wow thanks for all the responses! I went to that website http://www.fat2fittools.com/tools/ and calculated everything. Without knowing my exact bodyfat percentage for sure it's a little iffy to get a goal weight but I put the higher percentage and the lower percentage I got the other day and got a weight range to shoot for for maintenance
117-120 is what it gave me, so that's what I'm going to go for

If I still look overweight when I get there I'll probably try to calculate my bodyfat somehow and see if I need to lose more or not.
this is just all confusing because I've never been this low in my life and not sure where to stop haha.
the 80/20 is 80% low end calories weekdays and 20% higher end. Not whatever I want but I allow myself to hit 1500 calories on the 2 day weekend. I'm weighing myself again tomorrow so hoping atleast for another 1 lb down but if not I'll live with it

thanks again, you all made me feel a lot better!

NatalieWinning · July 2014

Good on you working at this so well! A range that is reasonable is all you can do until you see for yourself and you are different than anyone else. I believe that. Also keep in mind that your brain does not really keep up with your new body image right away, necessarily, It took me a while to get used to the new me in my mind. People that know you might think you lost too much because they know and love you at a certain size in their mind as well. Not this new you. It might take everyone a year to get used to the new size.
That said, I'd like to add that my 13 yr old daughter who has yet to become a full blown teen size, let alone woman size, is 5'3" and 113. She's got those tiny long legs and has more to gain even for her little frame. She swims on a swim team and is quite fit and narrow. I say this because this girl is going to be like me, where I know the 120's will be a low, and the 130's might even be a good slim weight. That isn't on any chart anywhere.

Wow thanks for all the responses! I went to that website http://www.fat2fittools.com/tools/ and calculated everything. Without knowing my exact bodyfat percentage for sure it's a little iffy to get a goal weight but I put the higher percentage and the lower percentage I got the other day and got a weight range to shoot for for maintenance
117-120 is what it gave me, so that's what I'm going to go for
If I still look overweight when I get there I'll probably try to calculate my bodyfat somehow and see if I need to lose more or not.
this is just all confusing because I've never been this low in my life and not sure where to stop haha.
the 80/20 is 80% low end calories weekdays and 20% higher end. Not whatever I want but I allow myself to hit 1500 calories on the 2 day weekend. I'm weighing myself again tomorrow so hoping atleast for another 1 lb down but if not I'll live with it
thanks again, you all made me feel a lot better!

rosebette · July 2014

Congratulations on your weight loss! You are doing wonderfully and you might even change your profile picture at your new weight to give yourself a boost. I'm 5'1.5" and weigh 120. I'm trying to get down to around 115, but have been stalled myself, but I'm older (55) so my BMR is pretty low. I was advised by one nutritionist that I might not even get below 120 because I do strength training so I have some muscle mass. As you can see from my profile picture, I'm somewhat muscular and curvy. I haven't seen 105 lbs. since my college days. 105 on me was pretty thin with very little muscle tone. If you want to get rid of loose belly skin, try doing some core like pilates or yoga.

beachcalsix · July 2014

Thanks for the inspiration rosebette! You look great, I'd like to get down to that weight and look like you

Finally updated my profile photo. I made that a month ago so I've lost more since that after picture.

I'm wondering if there's a manual way to calculate body fat with measurements and height. All the websites do is take your age, gender and some measurements but they don't factor in height (which I think is a major factor right?)

Anyways, thanks again everyone. I feel like I actually can see the end of this journey now!

rawstrongchick · July 2014

There is a group on here called 'Eat, Train, Progress' and the people who run the group give up their time and give feed back on body fat based on how you actually look. For people who know what they are looking at this is just as accurate as the best of anything else. Might be a place to ask, they need specific photos which they do detail on the group.

I'm also 5'1 and I like everyone else my 'happy weight' is wildly different from other people my height. It depends a lot on build I think, frame size and muscle mass etc.

Congrats on your weight loss. Slowing it down towards the end is the best way to keep achieving. They say lose no more than 1% of your body weight each week as a realistic and sustainable goal, but that does drop as you near your own personal perfect weight.

cwolfman13 · July 2014

people have different bodies and thus are going to have different goal weight even at the same height. You have to stop thinking about weight being equal to just fat...your frame has weight...someone of the same height but with a larger frame is going to weigh more...someone with a small frame is going to weigh less, etc. You also have to consider muscle mass.

Having a goal BF% is a better idea. Scale weight is pretty arbitrary. The scale is just a tool to be used to see what direction you are heading....it's not the be all and end all. Nobody ever says, "wow....you must be 115 Lbs!" do they?

jenillawafer · July 2014

I'm 5' and weigh 105 pounds. However, it's different for everyone. Just because someone else my height and age looks amazing at 100 pounds, doesn't mean I will. Build plays an important role! Don't worry about the number aspect so much. Focus on how you look and feel about yourself in the mirror.

jlynnm70 · July 2014

http://www.machinehead-software.co.uk/bike/training/body_fat/body_fat_percentage.html

This one uses height too. It won't add your hip measurement in until you chose female -

I'm a little shorter 5'0" and would be ecstatic if I got to 120 again - I'm 43 now and haven't seen the southside of 120 in years (except for a stint when I was sick and hit about 117 for maybe a month - then I started eating again! LOL)

so confused: goal weight vs maintenance 5'1 female

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