How do you choose a goal weight?

Kathi7501
Kathi7501 Posts: 62 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
So here's the deal: I'm 52, 5'10" and currently weigh 220. I have lost weight before (from an all-time high of 274) and stopped when I hit 170. I was unable to maintain that and settled more into a comfortable 180-190 area. (I followed a meal-replacement plan and never went through a formal maintenance program, so it's no surprise I couldn't maintain it.) Fortunately, I'm working with both a personal trainer and a nutritionist this time around so I won't be left on the curb to fend for myself whenever I reach a good weight.

Originally I thought I'd like to get back to 190, since that's attainable and I felt good there. However, that's still not a good BMI at 27.3 - still overweight.

Ideally, I should be between 130-170 to hit a BMI between 18.5 and 24.9, but I haven't weighed 150 or less since I was 17. If I aimed for the middle - 150 - I'd need to lose 70 pounds. Is this realistic?

Fortunately, I have no personal health problems other than typical age-related aches and pains. I don't take medication for anything but there are some familial issues with various cancers and diabetes. Not quite sedentary, but not super active either, just averaging 3-5 days a week of 30 minutes of cardio and adding some body weight resistance exercises.

So what do you think? Is it just the number that's scaring me and I should go for 150? Go until my body seems to be happy and stop? Not worry about a final goal yet and just see what happens?

Thanks!
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Replies

  • liftingbro
    liftingbro Posts: 2,029 Member
    I wouldn't even set a goal weight. I would set a goal that isn't likely to be your final goal.

    Let's say you are 5'6 and 200 lbs, for a women you probably should be around 140lbs or so.

    However, you may or may not have an average frame by time you're done. If you lift and eat properly you may reach a point where you like the way you look at a higher weight due to increase muscle and bone density. Now, maybe you might also need to be lower than 135 as well if you have little muscle mass.

    In this case I would suggest starting with a goal of 30-40 lbs and reset your goal when you get down that far. You'll have a better idea at that point how much more you'll need to lose.
  • koslowkj
    koslowkj Posts: 188 Member
    I chose the middle of a healthy BMI range. That being said, it's lighter than I've been since I was 18 (I'm 27 now) and I plan on reassessing once I get to the top of a healthy BMI.
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  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,522 Member
    I really sweated about this as well when I last lost a pile of weight. I've decided that there is no correct answer! I agree with @sijomial that shooting for something intermediate and achievable at first is a good strategy. Then hang out there and see how you feel.

    (Maintenance is just as hard as losing and must be mastered for long-term weight control.)
  • jeagogo
    jeagogo Posts: 179 Member
    I set my goal based on the weight I was able to best maintain in the past, which is at the high end of what is "healthy" for my height if you look at a BMI chart (155 lbs at 5'8"). However if you measure based on body composition (fat, lean tissue, bone mineral content) I'm quite healthy even at my current 160 lbs.
    In the long run, you would likely be healthier maintaining a weight on the higher side (maybe even a bit higher than the "healthy" BMI range) than if you were to try to lose too much weight and regain because it was impossible to maintain.
  • liftingbro
    liftingbro Posts: 2,029 Member
    kenyonhaff wrote: »
    I picked a 20 lb goal at first because that seemed as reasonable as any at the time.

    I reached it - yea!

    Than I realized that according to the BMI chart I was still obese.

    So I picked a mid-range normal BMI goal.

    I know BMI is not a perfect meter. But I figure it's a decent indicator of what is a sensible weight.

    Best way to start out is pick more than one goal.

    Generally picking a smaller first goal so you have something that can be achieved within a relatively short time (1-3 months) is best. Then pick a long term goal after that.
  • MySlimGoals
    MySlimGoals Posts: 754 Member
    I chose a goal weight that was roughly in the middle of my optimum BMI but was a number I liked. No idea what I will look like when I reach that as I have never been that weight that I remember. I remember being 5kg heavier as a teenager and being unhappy with my weight. So I'll see if I like it, if not I can always reassess when I get there. I'm still a loooooong way off getting there though so don't have to worry yet.
  • MonaLisainCT
    MonaLisainCT Posts: 41 Member
    Somewhen near the beginning of my journey from '217 lbs to Healthy', I came across this:
    Body frame size can be determined by measuring your wrist with a tape measure and comparing it to your height. Place the tape around your wrist in the same area you wear a watch -- above the ball joint of your ulna -- to determine the circumference of your wrist in inches.

    Once you know your wrist size, compare it to your height to determine body frame size. For women 5 foot, 2 inches to 5 foot, 5 inches tall, a wrist size of 6 inches or less is considered small-framed, 6 to 6.25 inches is medium-framed, and 6.25 inches or greater is large-framed. For women taller than 5 foot, 5 inches, less than 6.25 inches is considered small-framed, 6.25 to 6.5 inches medium-framed, and greater than 6.5 inches large framed.

    For men, a wrist size measuring 5.5 to 6.4 inches is considered small-framed, 6.5 to 7.5 is a medium frame, and greater than 7.5 inches is a large frame size.

    Once you know your body frame size, you can use it to determine your ideal body weight. The HAMWI method is a simple calculation that you can use to estimate your weight and adjust based on your body frame size. The equations calculate the IBW for medium-framed people; then you add or subtract 10 percent for small or large frames.

    For women, start at 100 pounds and add 5 pounds for every inch above 5 feet. For men, start with 106 pounds and add 6 pounds for every inch above 5 feet.

    For example, the IBW for a 6-foot tall, medium-framed man is 106 + (12 x 6) = 178 pounds. The IBW for a small-framed man is 10 percent less than 178, or 160 pounds, and the IBW for a large-framed man is 10 percent great than 178, or 196 pounds. So, for healthy men who are 6 feet tall, the IBW range is 160 to 196 pounds, depending on their body frame sizes.


    I'm 54 years old and 5'6", and my wrist measures 7 inches above the ball joint of my ulna. Since the increments between frame-sizes for women seem to be 1/4 inch, I decided to operate under the assumption that I have an XL frame-size (borderline XXL!) and so should use the HAMWI method but add 20% to calculate my 'Initial IBW' - 156 lbs.
    100 lbs + (5 x 6") = 130 | 130 x .2 = 26 | 130 + 26 = 156

    I'm only 9 lbs away from there now, and I'm reasonably certain that I'll take back that extra 10% (13 lbs - so 143 will be my next IBW#) when I get there, but it was a much-less-scary figure to shoot for, back when I was still 200+.

    Personally, I think body-fat-percentage is a better gauge of these things (the target of which at my age would be 26.3%), but I don't have access to a skin-fold caliper.
  • Adc7225
    Adc7225 Posts: 1,318 Member
    I had an honest talk with my doctor . . . looking at my body and where I carry my weight and she felt that I should be around 170. No Way . . . I went from 244 to 156 and I looked ill. I felt I actually looked my best around 165 or so and now at 178 I wish for the day I can be 165 or 16_ anything. BMI is what it is . . . I don't want to be censored ;) Given we are all different I don't believe there can be a based weight for people not taking into account a lot of things and once you do all that you will have weight area for that specific person. If you felt your best at 190, work towards that, there is more to life than what you weigh, there is a lot to be said for a quality of life and if at 190 you are living your best life then that is the correct weight for you!
  • AlexandraFindsHerself1971
    AlexandraFindsHerself1971 Posts: 3,106 Member
    I really have two goal weights, myself. I'm a tall, very curvaceous and large-framed woman. I have my family's build, and even when we're 16 and playing sports all year we still have CURVES. So I sort of have to allow for that, and my goal weight is 180. Now, I know at 5'7" that still is technically overweight, and I really want to get a tummy tuck done. I carry my weight evenly over my body, but it's clear I have a lot of sagging skin on my front and I know a have a muscle separation underneath, it's two inches apart and you can feel it easily. That won't fix via weight loss. But to get that all repaired, I need to be down far enough that I don't read so much as fat as I do as thick and curved, and I need to maintain at that point for six months. I'm not worried about maintaining. With the help of this website, it's no problem. I have no idea what that maintenance point will be, sitting up here at 296. At 180, I may be able to be clearer about that, but I won't know til then whether it's around 180 or closer to the 150 that I've seen posted. (I don't plan to go below 150. I like being strong and big that way.)
  • Jennikitten
    Jennikitten Posts: 142 Member
    Set the goal to where it feels good for you then you can always look at it again when you get there and change it
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  • mim619
    mim619 Posts: 33 Member
    I am 5'10" also and have not been less than 158 since I was a freshman in highschool... Currently at 172-176 depending on the day and I'm the size I was 6 years ago at 158. Muscle mass is a complicating factor. I originally thought 160 would be my goal but honestly I feel pretty good where I am.
  • hipari
    hipari Posts: 1,367 Member
    I chose the highest weight I felt like I’d be happy with: 79.9kg. The upper limit of my normal weight BMI would be something around 75kg, so still 10lbs lower, but I don’t care. I have a lot of muscle mass, a lot of curves, and I’m quite tall, so I’ll re-evaluate the situation once my weight starts with the 7.
  • threewins
    threewins Posts: 1,455 Member
    I chose my goal weight when I was there. I didn't know how much I wanted to lose, I just kept losing until my "reference jeans" fit.
  • misscagal
    misscagal Posts: 194 Member
    Sorry if I missed this on the read through, but if you are settling weight based on BMI, you should also factor age in. It does matter and you don’t want to pick a BMI that’s suitable for a 22 yo versus a 52 yo.
  • Anya_000
    Anya_000 Posts: 725 Member
    Great advice from everyone.

    For me, I need little goals, so I've been setting them in 5 lb increments. Then the goal is achievable, and not so far off and seemingly insurmountable. After reaching the goal, I reevaluate, and pick the next goal and so on. I'm a 59 yo woman, and there's no way I'll get back to my 122lbs, so I'm seeing how I look and feel as I reach each mini goal.
  • BuffaloChixSalad
    BuffaloChixSalad Posts: 98 Member
    That's the one thing I don't like about numbers. I go for how I feel. How my clothes fit and what the mirror reflects back at me. Muscles outweigh fat. As long as you're comfortable, nothing else matters
  • Kathi7501
    Kathi7501 Posts: 62 Member
    You guys are all so awesome. I figured I'd get a good range of rational advice and no one disappointed. I'll definitely set a short goal -- I'm thinking 209 to start, since that'll be a 25-pound loss. Then maybe I'll try another 25 and see how that feels at 184. And I'm going to definitely look into the body frame calculation to get a better idea of where I land.

    Thank you everyone!

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