5'8 Goals?

I'm 5'9" and I'm aiming for about 130lbs. I'm 168 (ish) at the moment and still feel quite large, I've got a very slim frame. When I was about 17/18 (10 years ago) I weighed 8 stone (so about 112lbs) and didn't look ridiculously skinny - obviously my shape has changed since then and I would probably look silly being that weight now so I figured aim for 130 and see what happens :-))

I started at 258 (5'7"), now 200ish. Right now my goal is the top of my healthy BMI, or 158. Once I arrive there I'll re-evaluate. I've been overweight most of my adult life, I'm not sure what my personal ideal weight is. I do believe going beneath the BMI charts is, in general, not healthy. Hope you find what works for you.

hm, that does sound pretty small for 5'8".. i'm 5'8" & my ultimate goal is 160. i have a lot until i get there so who knows if once i'm there i wont want more. its whatever you feel good at just make sure you are in a healthy spot! maybe meet with your family doctor & get their opinion? couldn't hurt!

I'm 5'8" as well. I float around 150. My goal was never to be "thin", it is to be fit and athletic. I feel I have achieved that and I'm happy with my weight. I work as hard as I can in the gym and am conscientious in the kitchen. If I lose a few more pounds, so be it. If I don't, I'm OK with that too.

It's really personal preference on how you want to look as long as you feel happy and healthy.

I think it all depends on how much time and effort (choices) you can put into the maintenance. About ten years ago (in my 30's) I went from 180 to 136lbs. It ended up being too thin for me, and after a job change I was distracted and didn't have the time to stay on the gym and cardio schedule, along with staying within the number of calories I was eating, etc. It's amazing how we all have the best of intentions, but then life gets in the way, and we put on the weight over time. It doesn't take too much of a life change to stand in your way of getting some me-time for quality exercise and convince you that two glasses of wine per night is a good thing.

This time, I've got a goal of a healthy weight that I can maintain with a "healthy life-style and eating habits." I started at 209 after some long awaited surgery. Once I was cleared to exercise again, I got motivated to eat better and give up drinking the wine every day. My goal is 165 and maintain. I've been a dedicated strength & toning gym-baby for the past two years, so I'm now adding back in the cardio.

My advice -- do what you feel is healthy and maintable for your lifestyle. Don't be too hard on yourself if you stray from that -- if your young, you'll have plenty of opportunties to try it again, with a better strategy. I'm 45, and this is my 2nd "lifestyle change," I'm not going to try to go so low that it's un-manageable.

Just wondering what any other ladies goals are at 5'8? I'm currently 133 as of this morning but am still not happy and am aiming down towards 120-125 but I don't know if that would be too small for me. I started at 220+. Just curious as to where you all are/aiming!

instead of trying to lose more weight, try eating maintenance and start lifting heavy weights. most likely it is body composition, not measurements that you have an issue with. If after a few months you think you need to lose more, set your goal to lose 0.5lbs/week and stick with that while lifting weights and you should be able to reach your goal in a slow controlled manner.

I think while you were losing weight you probably lost a lot of muscle, this happens due to a few reasons: not enough protein, too large of a deficit given how much you had to lose, not doing any or enough strength training. If you are in a caloric deficit and do not push yourself with strength training (does not need to be weights) you will lose muscle along with fat. If you get enough protein, lift heavy weights and have a modest caloric deficit, of the weight you lose most will be fat, which means at your goal weight you will have a lower BF%.

Being 5'8" it seems like everyone I know is under 5'6" and it's hard to determine what a healthy guide is for taller girls! My goal is 135-140 for my body type (I am at 194 right now eek!) But I am like you and started at a higher weight (220). I would say since your BMI is right at the healthy range, maybe try toning instead to firm up rather than "lose weight". It all really depends on your body type, my whole family has wide hips that I know I am not going to be able to escape from, BUT I am going to do my best to slim down and tone up. Good luck to you!

180. We'll see how I look once I get there. At 210 now and 2 sizes away from my original goal dress size. :-)

Being 5'8" it seems like everyone I know is under 5'6" and it's hard to determine what a healthy guide is for taller girls! My goal is 135-140 for my body type (I am at 194 right now eek!) But I am like you and started at a higher weight (220). I would say since your BMI is right at the healthy range, maybe try toning instead to firm up rather than "lose weight". It all really depends on your body type, my whole family has wide hips that I know I am not going to be able to escape from, BUT I am going to do my best to slim down and tone up. Good luck to you!

A quick rule of thumb for "ideal" weight is to take 100 lbs at 5' and add 5lbs for every inch. so at 5'8 that would be 140lbs (100+5*8), this is for medium frame, if you are large frame or carry a lot of muscle, add 10% to 154 (140*1.1) if you are small frame take away 10% to 126 (140*.9).

I am 5'7.5" and I can't go less than 147 or I look too thin. I am a woman's 6 in slacks and some 8's and 10 jeans (US size) right now and at 156.6lbs. I have put on more muscle mass than I had before this last baby, so I am not sure I will even get back down to 147lbs. Shooting for 150lbs with more lean muscle mass.

Oh, regarding the thicker legs, have you tried jogging? Sometimes certain cardio exercises can build where we woman with thicker bottom halfs would prefer not...step class and the stair master are not our friends. I learned that a few years ago when my legs were just thick even though I was working out hard and eating right. I was doing 3 or so step classes a week and the step machine. I stopped that and started jogging and ended up in size 4 pants, my legs leaned right out....

i've been all over the 'healthy' BMI spectrum



I have a small frame, but I am a college athlete, so I like to think I have more muscle mass than average, but perhaps not.

My goal is 145 - 150. I have a medium frame and also tend towards muscular when I strength train, so I'm not sure I could get much lower, but we'll see when I get closer. I'm currently 167 and haven't been in the 150s for about 10 years so I've forgotten what it is like. I'm lucky in how I carry my weight as I'm already able to fit into size 8 (US) pants and M shirts at 167.

That sounds low in my opinion but if you're small-boned then I guess it might work. I'm aiming for 150.

Well done! What an achievement.
H xx