How did you know what your goal weight was?

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Replies

  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
    I used one of those scales that measures body fat %, then calculated the number of lbs. of body fat I had. I then took that total amount and reduced it to 10% of body fat (based on research of what it should be) and calculated the difference to current weight and subtracted it from my current weight and rounded the result. For good measure, I then calculated the BMI of that new weight to see if it was reasonable on the BMI scale.
  • Thorbjornn
    Thorbjornn Posts: 329 Member
    BMI evaluates the level of health of someone using their height and weight. A lot of people, including me, think it's unrelevant in the long run.
    You can have to people with the same BMI, one will be healthy, the other less healthy, due to muscles mass.
    But, to start, it might be wise to aim for a goal in a healthy BMI range for your height.

    If I'm not mistaken and you spend some time here, you'll find yourself aiming for a goal BODY way more than a goal weight.

    I don't care if the scale doesn't move at all from now as long as I lose volume (on my thighs mainly)

    Epic win. :)
  • Ginoza
    Ginoza Posts: 21
    I don't know what my end goal weight is. Right now, I set it to the highest "healthy" weight on the BMI scale for my height as a temporary goal.

    I think this is probably the best idea and what I'll aim for, thanks :)
  • For a woman 5' should be 100 lbs and then you add 5 lbs for every inch over 5' Which would make someone at 5'5" around 125 lbs someone at 5'10" 150 lbs. Not an exact science but it at least will give you a ballpark. Once you start getting close you will know what a good weight is, it should be something you feel comfortable with and can maintain. For me, at 5'10" I look amazing at 180 lbs and find anything under it hard to maintain. I know a lot of people look at BMI, but I think the numbers on BMI are frustrating. Good luck with your wight loss journey and like many others have said, don't focus primarily on the number because if you start exercising you will gain weight by adding on muscle. The goal is to get healthy and be healthy in your own skin, not a number on the scale or a size.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    I picked a number 10 lb more than when I looked my best. The reason for the 10 lb more is because, when I looked my best, I was 30 years old. The intervening 28 years has changed the shape of my body so I am not going to expect that I can look like my 30 year old self again.

    When I get closer, I may re-evaluate and go up or down from that goal.
  • GCPgirl
    GCPgirl Posts: 208 Member
    When I was in college I weighed 110LBS but looking back at pics I looked too skinny for my frame. My goal was originally 125LBS but I met a trainer who told me she was 140LBS but looked 125...she said that 125 was too small for me. I started with 169LBS and I'm looking at 140 for now. It all depends on how tone I get too. But in the end I would like to be a size 6 or 8.
  • Ginoza
    Ginoza Posts: 21
    GCPgirl wrote: »
    When I was in college I weighed 110LBS but looking back at pics I looked too skinny for my frame. My goal was originally 125LBS but I met a trainer who told me she was 140LBS but looked 125...she said that 125 was too small for me. I started with 169LBS and I'm looking at 140 for now. It all depends on how tone I get too. But in the end I would like to be a size 6 or 8.

    yeah, I have a kind of body image in mind so I guess that'll just be my long term goal. My main motivation at the current time is that I really want to get a tattoo but really don't see the point unless I'm thin enough to show it off by wearing shorts haha, that's my long term goal at the moment anyway!
  • AllOutof_Bubblegum
    AllOutof_Bubblegum Posts: 3,646 Member
    Ginoza wrote: »
    Ginoza wrote: »
    I'm just really not sure what I'd want to aim to lose by summer,

    If you have a substantial amount of weight to lose, you are probably shooting yourself in the foot by hoping to lose it all by summer. The rule of thumb is, "the faster you lose, the bigger our chances of putting it back on again". Nobody wants to yo-yo.

    The ideal weight loss rate is 1-2 pounds a week. Summer is 22 weeks away, so if you have more than 44 pounds to lose, don't expect to lose it all by then, or risk setting yourself up for disappointment.

    Also keep in mind that the closer you get to your goal, the slower your weight loss will become. The last 10 pounds are always the hardest. I was still struggling with my last 5 when I got pregnant again, 2 years after I started losing weight.

    Set reasonable goals for yourself, ones that set yourself up for success.

    Honestly it's more my fitness levels I'm hoping to improve by summer, since I don't really go on a bikini style holiday, but I'd just like it to be noticeable when I go back to see the people I saw this Christmas, kind of thing. It may be unrealistic and I know that, but I think since I've never really lost weight before, any kind of progress will be good with me.

    This is a good mindset. Any progress is good progress, so many people get hung up on an arbitrary number on a scale in an unrealistic time frame. 22 weeks is MORE than enough time to see very noticeable results. What can speed up visible results for you is incorporating a strength training routine, like weight lifting. (No, you will not get bulky ;) )
  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
    I wanted to fit back into some clothes I'd kept from my early 20s. My BMI was about 23.5 then, but i didn't mind what weight I was to be honest. When I could wear the clothes again my BMI was 24.9, and I actually looked better in them at age 35 than I did at 24! That's strength training for you.

    I'm losing weight after my third baby now (I'm 37) and again just want to get back into those clothes. I'd like to keep within a healthy BMI, although I suppose if it were, say, 25.5 it wouldn't really matter.
  • Ginoza
    Ginoza Posts: 21
    This is a good mindset. Any progress is good progress, so many people get hung up on an arbitrary number on a scale in an unrealistic time frame. 22 weeks is MORE than enough time to see very noticeable results. What can speed up visible results for you is incorporating a strength training routine, like weight lifting. (No, you will not get bulky ;) )

    I've just bought a kettlebell and going to pick it up tomorrow, also got the recommended Enter the Kettlebell book, I don't really feel comfortable weight lifting at my gym, their section is really appalling, especially the barbell section, so I figured something I can do in my room will mean I actually do it, instead of putting it off like I had been doing before christmas.
  • gelar93
    gelar93 Posts: 160
    Go here http://www.calculator.net/ideal-weight-calculator.html and enter your stats to find out what you should be shooting for.
  • Back at the beginning of my weight loss journey, I picked my average high school weight as a general "goal weight" parameter. I was extremely body-confident back in high school and very comfortable in my own skin, so I figured being around that weight again would give me the same level of confidence in my body/looks I once had. Now that I have finally reached that weight, I realized it's not about the number on the scale; it's about how I look and feel, regardless of my physical measurements.

    I look and feel a million times better now than I ever did in high school. And my current body, although the same weight as it was when I was 14-15, looks vastly different: much leaner, healthier, and more evenly proportioned. I was thin in high school because I had a fast metabolism, but my poor eating habits caught up to me when I was about 18 and developed thyroid/adrenal/hormone imbalance issues. So even though I was skinny in high school, I was super unhealthy. And now that I'm healthy and nourish my body the way it deserves, there is a very noticeable difference (both internally and externally).

    Although I've reached the "goal weight" I originally set, I know my journey is still far from over. Now that I've reached the conclusion that the physical weight itself isn't nearly as important as I once thought, I've set new goals: to get to the point where I look/feel my best and love what I see in the mirror and how I feel throughout the day. The actual number on the scale is no longer of importance, as my focus is on continuing to heal, improve my health, get more fit/in shape, and tone up (as opposed to merely just "losing weight").

    My advice to you would be to set a preliminary "goal weight" based on what is a healthy range for your body/frame and to base it on the weight you were when you recall being at your healthiest/happiest/most in-shape. And once you reach that goal weight or near it, set new goals for yourself based solely on how you want to look and feel. The number will serve as a good concrete goal throughout the beginning of your journey, and then you can focus on other less solidified goals that are more open to interpretation and subjective to you/your ideal (i.e., "I want to look good naked and like what I see in the mirror" or "I want to be toned, lean, and strong"). Best of luck! xo
  • VeryKatie
    VeryKatie Posts: 5,928 Member
    You can still use BMI, if your breasts are made mostly of breast tissue instead of fat (in which case they won't shrink much as you lose weight) you can always aim for the upper range of BMI instead of middle or low.
  • Thorbjornn
    Thorbjornn Posts: 329 Member
    Ginoza wrote: »
    I've just bought a kettlebell and going to pick it up tomorrow, also got the recommended Enter the Kettlebell book, I don't really feel comfortable weight lifting at my gym, their section is really appalling, especially the barbell section, so I figured something I can do in my room will mean I actually do it, instead of putting it off like I had been doing before christmas.

    Look up Tracy Reifkind http://tracysfoodandthought.blogspot.com/ Also, and do not laugh :p the Iron Gym door bar is actually very good. https://www.google.com/search?as_q=&as_epq=Tracy+Reifkind&as_oq=&as_eq=&as_nlo=&as_nhi=&lr=&cr=&as_qdr=all&as_sitesearch=&as_occt=any&safe=images&tbs=&as_filetype=&as_rights=&gws_rd=ssl#as_qdr=all&q=iron+gym+pull+up+bar+workout+routine&revid=48767521
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    I've had a significant amount of weight to lose, starting at "morbidly obese". I've set several goals, never more than 0.5 pounds per week, though I've exceeded that sometimes with a lot of help.

    I don't know what weight I'll stop at, but my lowest recalled weight was 145, after I had been on Weight Watchers for a year. I was in my thirties then.

    I'd be very happy at 165 even if it is still in the Overweight category.

    My dietitian said she'd be happy if I stayed where I am. I agree. At this weight I am light enough to be active, which I am thrilled about.

    I say all that to point out that goals can be very individualistic, and you can change your goal as you go along.

    I get nervous when someone posts "145 to lose". It will take so long for them to see progress, I worry about them.
  • Ginoza
    Ginoza Posts: 21
    Back at the beginning of my weight loss journey, I picked my average high school weight as a general "goal weight" parameter. I was extremely body-confident back in high school and very comfortable in my own skin, so I figured being around that weight again would give me the same level of confidence in my body/looks I once had. Now that I have finally reached that weight, I realized it's not about the number on the scale; it's about how I look and feel, regardless of my physical measurements.

    I look and feel a million times better now than I ever did in high school. And my current body, although the same weight as it was when I was 14-15, looks vastly different: much leaner, healthier, and more evenly proportioned. I was thin in high school because I had a fast metabolism, but my poor eating habits caught up to me when I was about 18 and developed thyroid/adrenal/hormone imbalance issues. So even though I was skinny in high school, I was super unhealthy. And now that I'm healthy and nourish my body the way it deserves, there is a very noticeable difference (both internally and externally).

    Although I've reached the "goal weight" I originally set, I know my journey is still far from over. Now that I've reached the conclusion that the physical weight itself isn't nearly as important as I once thought, I've set new goals: to get to the point where I look/feel my best and love what I see in the mirror and how I feel throughout the day. The actual number on the scale is no longer of importance, as my focus is on continuing to heal, improve my health, get more fit/in shape, and tone up (as opposed to merely just "losing weight").

    My advice to you would be to set a preliminary "goal weight" based on what is a healthy range for your body/frame and to base it on the weight you were when you recall being at your healthiest/happiest/most in-shape. And once you reach that goal weight or near it, set new goals for yourself based solely on how you want to look and feel. The number will serve as a good concrete goal throughout the beginning of your journey, and then you can focus on other less solidified goals that are more open to interpretation and subjective to you/your ideal (i.e., "I want to look good naked and like what I see in the mirror" or "I want to be toned, lean, and strong"). Best of luck! xo

    Thanks for the advice! I think this is the main thing, I just want to look good in shorts so that I can get a tattoo that I really want!
  • Ginoza
    Ginoza Posts: 21
    Thorbjornn wrote: »
    Ginoza wrote: »
    I've just bought a kettlebell and going to pick it up tomorrow, also got the recommended Enter the Kettlebell book, I don't really feel comfortable weight lifting at my gym, their section is really appalling, especially the barbell section, so I figured something I can do in my room will mean I actually do it, instead of putting it off like I had been doing before christmas.

    Look up Tracy Reifkind http://tracysfoodandthought.blogspot.com/ Also, and do not laugh :p the Iron Gym door bar is actually very good. https://www.google.com/search?as_q=&as_epq=Tracy+Reifkind&as_oq=&as_eq=&as_nlo=&as_nhi=&lr=&cr=&as_qdr=all&as_sitesearch=&as_occt=any&safe=images&tbs=&as_filetype=&as_rights=&gws_rd=ssl#as_qdr=all&q=iron+gym+pull+up+bar+workout+routine&revid=48767521

    My boyfriend actually has one of those! He says it's really good, so I'll have to invest in one when I have some spare money lying around!
  • Thorbjornn
    Thorbjornn Posts: 329 Member
    Ginoza wrote: »
    My boyfriend actually has one of those! He says it's really good, so I'll have to invest in one when I have some spare money lying around!

    Yeah, couple it with the kettlebells and you're ready to rock 'n roll. :) The Iron Gym is anywhere from $19.99 to $29.99 depending on where you get it. The kettlebells are awesome. If you learn to do swings properly (watch Tracy's videos), they are a great whole body and cardio workout. Best of luck. :)
  • Ginoza
    Ginoza Posts: 21
    Thorbjornn wrote: »

    Yeah, couple it with the kettlebells and you're ready to rock 'n roll. :) The Iron Gym is anywhere from $19.99 to $29.99 depending on where you get it. The kettlebells are awesome. If you learn to do swings properly (watch Tracy's videos), they are a great whole body and cardio workout. Best of luck. :)

    Thanks a lot! I'll definitely be watching the video :)