Reasons for weight loss

NateTheRower
NateTheRower Posts: 4 Member
edited November 18 in Health and Weight Loss
As a (now former) rowing crewman for NCState's club rowing team, I hang out with a lot of relatively fit people. When I joined the crew I would not have been considered to be one of them. During the two years I spent on the crew I gradually slimmed down and built up - all without counting calories or trying to diet at all. Nowadays I would be considered among the athletic population and yet since discovering dieting this last year and how quickly I can manipulate my body I find that I desire to be leaner and leaner. Currently at around 14% body fat, most people would agree I am a very (functionally) fit person but my recent self-education in the dieting world has driven me to want to slim myself down towards the 10% golden standard. However, I have struggled to find, within myself, what my motivation for this journey is, or what reasons I have for trying to accomplish this - and my lack of motivation makes restricting calories difficult from time to time. What are your thoughts on why someone would want to cut down to 10% body fat?

Replies

  • Enjcg5
    Enjcg5 Posts: 389 Member
    edited May 2017
    Vanity for me. Followed by general health. (Are my reasons for weight loss). I can't and don't desire to get down to low body fat but people who do may do it for the same reason I just want to lose 15lbs. They are just a lot more competitive/motivated than I am. And maybe define "beauty" differently than I. For example, I am a DDcup and have an ample backside which IMO helps add to my personal "attractiveness" factor. I don't care to be under 135lbs.
  • Geocitiesuser
    Geocitiesuser Posts: 1,429 Member
    edited May 2017
    I just want to be loved. :) I'm convinced if I can get to single digit body fat and maintain it for a while, I will be that much closer to finding human companionship. Sanity has left me many years ago.

    I've never heard 10% as the golden standard though. Isn't that difficult to maintain? I've always heard 14-16% for general ab definition, and single digits for competitions.

    Edit, just to expand, there's nothing wrong with you wanting to hit 10% bodyfat "just because you can". I'm all about pushing yourself and chasing crazy goals. There doesn't need to be a reason. It could just be that you want to see how far you can push yourself. I post this quote a lot, but I'll post it to you here because I think it's relevant:

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  • bbell1985
    bbell1985 Posts: 4,571 Member
    This is a great topic.

    Knowing your why, no matter what it is, is important for adhering to a diet. Some people are trying to lose weight so that they can be able to play with their children or be around for their grandchildren. This is HUGE and will be inherently more motivating that wanting to "lose 5 pounds"' to look better in a bikini.

    That said, I am trying to get lean. Losing weight when I was fat was easy. Once I was fit...not so much.

    But this time it is working because I have admitted that I don't NEED to lose weight, I want to. Instead of it being something I need to do, I've made it a challenge that I want to fulfill.
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,486 Member
    bbell1985 wrote: »
    This is a great topic.

    Knowing your why, no matter what it is, is important for adhering to a diet. Some people are trying to lose weight so that they can be able to play with their children or be around for their grandchildren. This is HUGE and will be inherently more motivating that wanting to "lose 5 pounds"' to look better in a bbikini.

    That said, I am trying to get lean. Losing weight when I was fat was easy. Once I was fit...not so much.

    But this time it is working because I have admitted that I don't NEED to lose weight, I want to. Instead of it being something I need to do, I've made it a challenge that I want to fulfill.

    You got me there @bbell1985. I did it for the grandson and the bikini B)

    There is nothing like having no limitations when out in the woods with a 7 yr old. Shoulder ride, yes, climbing trees, yes, crawling through the undergrowth, yes.
    Handstands and cartwheels- still in training but hearing 'come on nana, you can do it' keeps me trying.

    There is also nothing like going on a cruise and being comfortable in a sleek dress for dinner, or a bikini for going swimming, snorkelling, to the mud baths, or just lazing on the beach.

    I have never had any health problems so that wasn't an impetus for me to lose weight but at my insurance physical a couple of months ago it was satisfying to hear I still had no health concerns.

    Cheers, h.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    edited May 2017
    This content has been removed.
  • VintageFeline
    VintageFeline Posts: 6,771 Member
    I think when we get down to a healthy and aesthetically pleasing in a general way some of us start to think beyond that, like you have. And for me, though I'm not there yet I know where I want to be and it's pure vanity. I don't need to be 20% BF as a female to be healthy, particularly as I'm physically pretty fit. So after that is it anything but vanity? And when I say vanity, I mean it not only physical look in the mirror vanity but as above, the humblebrag, the sense of self satisfied accomplishment of achieving something relatively few do etc etc.

    Good topic though.
  • kieranar
    kieranar Posts: 57 Member
    Ex serviceman - I want to be a lean mean ex fighting machine
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,486 Member
    Never thought of the humble brag, especially for me, but yes I think it is there.
    I do get a quiet satisfaction in knowing I am leaner, stronger, and fitter, than a lot of my contemporaries.
    Ooh, an eye opening revelation!

    Cheers, h.
  • amyteacake
    amyteacake Posts: 768 Member
    My main reason is because I was sick of feeling depressed and put off by my own body. I hated the way I looked and would refrain from wearing certain outfits because I didn't like the way I looked in them. I had been bullied for my weight for years and I was just sick of it. I wanted to feel good about myself for once. Its taking me a while but I'm slowly getting there.
  • inertiastrength
    inertiastrength Posts: 2,343 Member
    My main reason was aesthetics when I first began, then strength was my main focus as I was a couple years into lifting, now I'm focused more on healthier foods (my poptart and pizza days are fewer and farther between) I can't tell you what will motivate you, but I can promise you it will always change lol
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
    At this point I have 2 main reasons for getting leaner...just to see if I can & because I don't want to carry around any additional weight on a trail ultra marathon.
  • WeepingAngel81
    WeepingAngel81 Posts: 2,232 Member
    Vanity for me. Not gonna lie. I want to feel good in my own skin. For me, that isn't as much about losing the weight, as it is about building the confidence with where I am at each stage of weight loss. I know I will always find fault with my body. I don't like my back fat, I don't like my arms, when I was thinner, I still hated my stomach. I lost sight of the fact I was losing to be a more healthy person. I want to slim down, which is why I am here, but I also want to be happy with who I am in the process. I set mini goals, such as jogging an extra mile, or lifting more than I did last time, ect. When I meet my goals, it seems that no matter my size, I feel really good about myself.
  • stealthq
    stealthq Posts: 4,298 Member
    edited May 2017
    For me, it's partly aesthetics - I want to look better in the clothes I like to wear. I have a mental image of where I 'ought' to be for that to happen. I have no idea what %BF that'll be, though. Something lower than what I am now. I'll know it when I see it.

    It's also partly performance. I like to run. I want to run faster. Part of running faster is getting as light as I can with as little strength and LBM sacrifice as I can manage. The other part is putting in the cardio work.

    Either reason would be enough to possibly make me want to be 10% or lower if I were male simply because I know 10% is doable and a good athletic %BF for men in general. Personally, I would not make the goal the %BF. I'd make the goal performance or aesthetic based and whatever %BF gets you there is where you should stop.

    Maybe where you are now is sufficient?
  • Feed_the_Bears
    Feed_the_Bears Posts: 275 Member
    After gaining 100 lbs while I shifted focus to mental health, I actually have more self love than ever. But I'm tired of being tired, breathless, falling behind, and well, high blood pressure now. So I'm happy to be getting back into some of the good behaviours I used to have, but with self love on my side this time, so I can live well and enjoy life.
  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
    When I started this it was to get back into fighting shape - 204 lbs was the last weight recorded on my service records. Pretty much still the same goal - to get back to my personal best and make that better.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    I felt better when I was a full time yoga teacher and would like to get back to that weight, which also happens to be a higher weight from when I was in the military, so my fighting weight as well.
  • Sunshine_And_Sand
    Sunshine_And_Sand Posts: 1,320 Member
    There's nothing wrong with wanting to lose weight just to look better or just to see if you can. Just decide if it's you that wants that 10% BF.
  • planetcadillac
    planetcadillac Posts: 137 Member
    I am single and ready to mingle. That covers a lot of reasons...
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    I did it for health. My dad was diagnosed with diabetes at 42. When I was 32 I decided I didn't want to develop it, especially as early or even earlier.
  • planetcadillac
    planetcadillac Posts: 137 Member
    malibu927 wrote: »
    I did it for health. My dad was diagnosed with diabetes at 42. When I was 32 I decided I didn't want to develop it, especially as early or even earlier.

    I was diagnosed with diabetes at 23 after a stint in the Marines. They thought I had mono or something until the tests came back. I was discharged and began a life of strict monitoring. Even though my weight drifted up about 20-25lbs over my ideal the last few years, I have managed to keep my sugar intake extremely low.
  • kjwiggins868
    kjwiggins868 Posts: 4 Member
    edited May 2017
    I don't care how I will look. I just want to be healthier and lose enough weight to be able to conceive. I have two children already, but doctors want to refer me to a specialist and I refuse to go that route unless absolutely necessary. Right now I am unable to and my hormones are everywhere.
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