New here! Realistic goals?

ivylaurenolsen
ivylaurenolsen Posts: 56 Member
edited November 18 in Introduce Yourself
I am 5'5 and weigh 144, which is the most I've ever weighed. I workout 6x a week (most is cardio but some weights too). I would really like to get down to 125. Is this realistic?

Replies

  • KyleeNicolle
    KyleeNicolle Posts: 43 Member
    edited May 2015
    I think it's very realistic! I don't think I would try to lose it too quickly (no shakes, crash diets, etc.), but if you eat healthy and everything in moderation, factor in reasonable portions and keep up your workouts you'll do great! I found that I lose weight and inches quickly if I do weights along with cardio. By weights I mean a small amount of lbs but A LOT of reps. Doing different workouts and switching it up often helps too.

    Feel free to add me as a friend!!! =)
  • lonerockz
    lonerockz Posts: 100 Member
    125 is at the lower range of healthy Body Mass Index for someone that is 5'5". 144 is more in the upper range of healthy. Have you had your body fat % checked? If you have a higher muscle mass and bone density (you lift so its very possible), you could be very unhealthy at 125, or need to lose muscle, not fat. Are you looking to be skinny or fit?

  • ivylaurenolsen
    ivylaurenolsen Posts: 56 Member
    lonerockz wrote: »
    125 is at the lower range of healthy Body Mass Index for someone that is 5'5". 144 is more in the upper range of healthy. Have you had your body fat % checked? If you have a higher muscle mass and bone density (you lift so its very possible), you could be very unhealthy at 125, or need to lose muscle, not fat. Are you looking to be skinny or fit?

    Of course I want to be fit but if I'm being honest, I would like to be skinny. I feel like I have a lot of muscle, is it bad that I almost feel like I want to loose some muscle?
    Also, how do you get your body fat % checked?
  • futuremanda
    futuremanda Posts: 816 Member
    ivylaurenolsen wrote: »
    lonerockz wrote: »
    125 is at the lower range of healthy Body Mass Index for someone that is 5'5". 144 is more in the upper range of healthy. Have you had your body fat % checked? If you have a higher muscle mass and bone density (you lift so its very possible), you could be very unhealthy at 125, or need to lose muscle, not fat. Are you looking to be skinny or fit?

    Of course I want to be fit but if I'm being honest, I would like to be skinny. I feel like I have a lot of muscle, is it bad that I almost feel like I want to loose some muscle?
    Also, how do you get your body fat % checked?

    Muscle is pretty dense and is fairly key to looking lean, rather than being small but still very squishy, or sick looking. So yeah, don't aim to lose muscle. (Also, your heart is a muscle...) <-- Keep lifting, get plenty of protein, and don't overdo your deficit. A few more months in the process is totally worth looking better in the end.

    125 is perfectly fine for 5 foot 5 and really not THAT low. I'm 5 foot 4.5 and I think my healthy bottoms out below about 114 or so (by charts, and my own experience). (When I was 114, though, I was not strength training.)

    It IS important to know that height really isn't the only variable for comparing. At 125 with a fair amount of muscle, you might be leaner (smaller) than someone else of your height who weighs 115. And frame size and body shape will change things a bit too -- if you have a larger frame than I do, you'll look leaner than I do, all else being equal.

    At any rate, 125 is doable, so you can see how you feel when you get there. You can also play around on http://www.mybodygallery.com/ to see just how different people can look, even at the same height and weight, because... shape, muscle, frame size, etc.

    And leaving these here:

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    owbn31zacjm0.jpg
  • lonerockz
    lonerockz Posts: 100 Member
    There are $50-60 scales that tell you your body fat %, there are also ways to measure it with pinch tests. If you have a reasonable health plan you can get it done as part of a physical. What I was really trying to say is that don't focus too much on that number, focus on how you feel and look.

    You say you do a lot of Cardio. Is it the same routine/exercise? If so change it up! Your body is getting efficient at that exercise. Throw it a curve ball and it will work harder.

    Losing muscle mass is going to be hard without gaining fat. Basically have to exercise less, and eat less, without making your body going to starvation mode. As Futuremanda points out, you might look better at a more "buff" weight.
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