How did you come up with you're GOAL weight?

24

Replies

  • faithstephenson
    faithstephenson Posts: 280 Member
    I chose my goal weight because it was half my starting weight. At 301, it had been since high school that I was any where near 150 pounds. I knew it was not even in the 'healthy' range of BMI, but I had no idea what I would look or feel like there. So I decided I would go for 150, then reevaluate. I'm already starting to reevaluate, but the thing I've found is that I am in such better shape at 200 now, than I ever was at 150 in high school. I'm wearing a 14 now, when the last time I wore this size, I was probably 30-40 pounds lighter. So, I'm just going to have to keep evaluating, and trust the opinions of the people who love me.
  • Randomcheese
    Randomcheese Posts: 15 Member
    I chose my goal wt based on what I weighed before I stopped smoking 10 years ago. For several years I told myself it was better to be heavier than to be smoking but at some point that argument breaks down. For me it was +55 lbs.

    I'm down 40 lbs from my heaviest in Jan 2010 and 16 lbs in the last three months since I started using MFP. My current goal is to get to 200 by the end of the year (-14 more lbs). So far it's working well enough that I've been considering adjusting my goal to be more in line with the recommended wt for my ht. But I'm thinking that I need to accomplish my first goal before I start moving the finish line.
  • runfrommygenes
    runfrommygenes Posts: 83
    I figured out by taking my current BF% and choosing a BF% I wanted to be (20%)...

    Weight isn't all the same...
    The BMI is a line of BS that isn't good for most of the population! Very muscular people are considered obese even though they have NO weight to lose...

    So, figuring out your Body Fat % now, and how much of you is fat..... 44 lbs of me is fat... (27% body fat at 164 lbs)
    I want to be 20% BF... SO I need to lose 11 lbs of FAT on me to hit that...!
    GOAL 153 lbs... putting me just under the HEALTHY BMI for a 5'6" woman...
    BUT at an athletic body fat %.... Go figure!

    If I lost 20 lbs of FAT, I would weight, 144 (which lots of woman at 5'6" look great at...) HOWEVER, that would put me at 12% body fat... and very low for a woman!!!

    IT REALLY ALL DEPENDS ON HOW MUCH MUSCLE YOU CARRY AND HOW MUCH BODY FAT YOU HAVE AND WANT TO HAVE!!!

    You can find a great calculation here....
    http://www.livestrong.com/article/500156-how-to-figure-out-how-much-percentage-of-body-fat-to-lose/
  • kristinL16
    kristinL16 Posts: 401 Member
    I'm 5'1". I have my current goal set at 120. The lowest I have weighed since having kids is 122 so I thought that was a good place ot start. When I was in college I was most comfortable at 105-110 but am not sure if that is realistic for me now or not. I will re-evaluate when I get to my original goal.
  • littlewitch1973
    littlewitch1973 Posts: 139
    I honestly do not have a set "goal weight". I am working towards feeling comfortable in clothes, and once my body finds the size it likes, that is where my weight loss will stall. I am working towards a range of 150-180. Could I lose more? Sure... would it be healthy for me? Not sure. I will be using body fat and clothing fit as more of a guide. If I weigh 160, but wear a size 8, and have lean muscle and low body fat, I will be happy. If I weigh 160, wear a size 12, and have a muffin top, I will likely not be too happy. To me, too much emphasis is put on numbers on a scale, versus what your body feels best at. I want to be strong and healthy - able to run away from Zombies during a zombie apocolypse (just kidding!!) and be able to move furniture by myself if I need to.

    Following a healthy eating and training plan is what is more important to me, versus the number on the scale - that number tends to depress me, as I dont see the weight dropping, but do have to buy new pants because I lost so many inches I have to keep pulling my pants up!!
  • palmerig88
    palmerig88 Posts: 623 Member
    I'm 5'6" I chose 135 because I was 133 when I got married. I know I was happiest with my body at that point in my life and clothes shopping was the most fun.
  • dadeys1
    dadeys1 Posts: 40 Member
    Right or wrong, what I read was that over 25% BMI is considered "overweight". So according to that, I've been "overweight" since I was about 16 years old. I'm 5'7" so I need to get below 160lbs to be <25% BMI according to the charts on the web. I chose 155lbs just for good measure. I'm currently at 163lbs closing in on that goal. Not sure if I'll get there considering I'm now 10lbs less than I was in college but I'll keep trying.
  • mona169
    mona169 Posts: 17 Member
    I was 105 lbs before I got pregnant. also with a herniated disc and 5'2", my Ortho want me to put less pressure on my spine, so he wants me to be around 100lbs, though my realistic goal is 115 lbs.
  • bagge72
    bagge72 Posts: 1,377 Member
    I came up with mine, because the last time I felt really good about my body was 2 years ago, when I was 261lbs, so I figured 260 was good, but i'm going to have a lot more muscle this time so I figured it should be even better. If I go lower I wont mind at all, but I don't think I would go lower thank 240, I just like my size to much.
  • futuremalestripper
    futuremalestripper Posts: 467 Member
    I remember a couple of years ago I was 185 and still fat. So I just guessed that 15 more lbs would take off that last bit of fat and so my goal is 170.
  • garnet1483
    garnet1483 Posts: 249 Member
    I'm with the other posters who said they have a goal pants size. The scale number I picked because my doctor approved, and based on my history, it seems like a good place for me. But really, my goal is to be in a size 8 pants, regardless of the scale.
  • scatgash
    scatgash Posts: 101 Member
    For my GW, I picked the lowest weight I can be for my height without being underweight. (I'm 5ft 6in)
  • clariangel
    clariangel Posts: 156 Member
    I asked my doctor what I should weigh, and he gave me a very attainable and realisitic goal. about 20 pounds more to go until goal!
  • KilikiMom
    KilikiMom Posts: 237 Member
    for me its a good healthy weight to be at for my height....i have been on the underweight side and i have been on the higher end of the "healthy" weight for my height....and i do NOT want to get to the underweight again...which was 126lbs....so for me i wanted to be between 135 and 145....and 142 was 20lbs from where i was....i was 162 so i figured 20lbs was a nice even number LOL...although i may try to get to 140lbs
  • Diary_Queen
    Diary_Queen Posts: 1,314 Member
    I chose my Goal Weight based on a healthy BMI and also based on my starting weight. I recently got a dr. report with my highest recorded weight of 327 (also how much I weighed when I started on this getting healthy thing - see my profile pics for comparison). My GW is 147 lbs. Midrange in a healthy BMI.... also 180 lbs. from where I started. I will be less than 1/2 my size. Not sure what will happen after that for me. There are lingering questions of "will I want to stop there or be 140 lbs." "will I need surgery to remove skin" "will I want to add muscle and end up at 153 lbs." things like that... but I won't know until I get there.

    Just for grins and giggles, here is a random image from MyBodyGallery.com of what my height and weight might look like when I get to GW

    2.jpg
  • Kcham817
    Kcham817 Posts: 106 Member
    My goal weight is based on my Dr's recommendation and also within a healthy BMI/Bodyfat for my height and age.
  • Bumdrahp
    Bumdrahp Posts: 1,314 Member
    I'm so sorry.. the only thing I am paying attention to is the use of " YOU'RE" in the title.. don't be mad at me! PLEASE!! lol... and I came up with my goal weight just by an estimate. I'm very overweight, I need to lose at least 100. But I set a goal weight at 50 for this time around. Baby Steps.
  • CJuliaV
    CJuliaV Posts: 34 Member
    Since I just started, I did the old Weight Watchers trick of 10% of my body weight as my FIRST goal. Because getting that amount of weight off will make a huge difference. From there, I may keep doing the 10% or just go for my whole number. It's important for me to not look at that little ladybug moving toward a big number ... i need it broken down so i can have some victories along the way. :) Good luck!
  • maryduggins
    maryduggins Posts: 219 Member
    2 years ago I was 115 (I'm 5'3). I had absolutely zero muscles, and I wasn't toned, but I *was* a skinny size 2. Then I gained 40 pounds in 2 years :/

    My goal weight is 125. I have some pretty awesome (if I do say so myself :blushing: ) leg muscles from running, and I WANT them(: I WANT muscular legs(: I don't want my teeny tiny legs that I used to have ;P so I'm not aiming for the 115 that I used to be.

    Once I'm down to 125 I may end up wanting to lose another 5 pounds, but we'll see(: all I know is that I *don't* want to be 115... that's too tiny for me(:
  • chicpeach
    chicpeach Posts: 302 Member
    My goal weight is my lean body mass + 21% body fat. I chose 21% because it's in the fitness range for women, just short of athletic range. It also puts me at a weight where I was before and knew it was the right weight for me.
  • BuffyEat2Live
    BuffyEat2Live Posts: 327 Member
    My goal weight is a range (135-145) because I'm not sure exactly how I'll look and feel at 145, but I know it's a healthy weight. I did use BMI, which many people don't agree with (I'm actually one of them, but I have to use SOMETHING to help determine what's healthy!).

    BMI says that 119-154 is healthy for me. I have a medium build, so I'm going for somewhere in the middle. Also, this is based on a weight that I've been in the past (around age 22) and like the way my body looks in those pictures.

    I say that your goal weight should be whenever you start feeling healthy, happy, and strong. When you like your weight, start maintaining, no matter what your original goal was.
  • krystina_letitia9
    krystina_letitia9 Posts: 697 Member
    I'm 5'1" - and my healthy weight range is 106 to 132. I've been at 132 before (and am finally there again) and know that I'm still flabby at that weight, so I want to be less than that. However, I am a little too curvy to think that I would look healthy at 106. I picked 115 - right in the middle of that weight range. Once I get to that arbitrary number, I'll reassess. If I'm a little more than that but look/feel as if I'm where I want to be, I'll be fine with that too! :smile:
  • salgalruns
    salgalruns Posts: 83 Member
    My goal is about 140. I was this weight a few years ago and looked and felt fantastic, but couldn't maintain it. My boyfriend is awesome and has a really good sense of when enough is enough so I have my true barometer. If it tuns out that 145 looks just fine and I can fit into my clothes from before, then I'm fine with that too. I'm close.

    I'm 5'8" and am currently at 157, so I'm not that far off - I'm in a healthy range, so these are now just vanity lbs. (Cannot even believe I just typed that!) However, I have a whole closet filled with cute Ann Taylor work clothes just waiting for one more size down and I'm golden! :)
  • AdrienneKaren
    AdrienneKaren Posts: 168 Member
    I just decided to get within the high end of a healthy BMI. I got into that range and then gained a few back. I'm 5' 7". I'm 3 lbs over my "healthy BMI" and can fit pretty well into a size 10. Personally, I would like to weigh 145 which would be about 10lbs less than I am now. My Mom and some coworkers have been telling me that I'd look sick if I lost anymore weight. So, I've modified my goal to replacing my fat with muscle. I'd like to see some more definition. I wouldn't worry about the weight so much as just maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Good luck!
  • TracyGA
    TracyGA Posts: 13
    I lost 20 pounds from stress when I was going through my divorce about 2 years ago. It was a very unhealthy way to get there, but I found that I felt very comfortable in my own skin at that weight and it was within the healthy weight range for my height. So that is my goal weight but I'll get there through healthy diet and exercise this time!
  • myfitnessnmhoy
    myfitnessnmhoy Posts: 2,105 Member
    It was the top of the BMI charts for my height. When I reach it, I might try a little lower, but I was ten pounds over that when I was cycling 30+ miles a day and felt really good, so we'll see.

    I can't imagine being at my current height (6' 3") and weighing 148, though. I think that's for people with much smaller frames than mine. I think I'll be happy at 200, and I might try 190, but I'm going to wait and see how I feel at 200-ish.
  • mfpcopine
    mfpcopine Posts: 3,093 Member
    I'm 5' 2". In high school, I weighed, 90-94 (if memory serves). In college, I was as low as 88 at one point (hated the food, decided for two years not to eat meat, sugar, and very little fat). I once went as high as 112, but only because of medication. In recent years, I've been in the low hundreds and high 90s, although I went up to 108 during one holiday season and it took a very long time to get down.

    I now have a slower metabolism and am recovering from an injury and can't be active. My goal right now is to maintain, although it's frustrating. When I recover, I'll aim for 100. If I can maintain that, I'll try to go lower, but I don't know if that's realistic. We'll see.

    My bf %, per my scale, has ranged from 16 to 23. If I could maintain 18%, I would probably be satisfied.
  • momto1g1b
    momto1g1b Posts: 118 Member
    I came up with a goal weight of 135lbs (I'm 5'5") because when I was last at that weight about 10 years ago, I felt fit and healthy. Depending on the day I'm one or two pounds away from that and I have more fat in my thighs and tummy that I would like to shed, so my new goal weight is 130lbs.
  • mommy7
    mommy7 Posts: 153
    I originally set it at 120, because that is what I was when I got pregnant with my first child (almost 15 years ago). Then, I rest it to 105 after seeing lots of photos here. I need to just scrap that low number because it really is pretty worthless, being skinny doesn't equal being fit. I'm 1-2lbs over the healthy BMI threshold, but I find the BMI thing to be crap as well.

    So, I am going to focus on healthy eating, exercise, and getting my BF% down. I began at 36%, am now at 29%, and want to shoot for 18-20%.
  • jjnt007
    jjnt007 Posts: 302 Member
    I chose mine from the BMI screen. I chose healthy weight
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