[linJber]

Curvalicious - here is a link to a site that uses a unique method to measure your frame.

http://www.am-i-fat.com/body_frame_size.html

I always wondered at the concept of measuring the wrist because my wrist is not the same now as it was a year ago, but my frame certainly is. Then I came actoss this site that measures your elbow. You extend your arm horizontal to the floor with the palm up. Then bend the elbow 90 degrees like you're trying to show your palm to someone standing behind you. You can feel the ends of the 2 bones in the forearm and you measure them. This is almost impossible to do alone. I work for a company that builds cabinets. I went out to the shop and asked if we had calipers. (We don't.) When I explained why I wanted them, my boss suggested taking a C-clamp and using it to measure the distance. We positioned it and he tightened it until it was just snug and we slid it off and measured the gap. The only scary part was when he asked, "What size frame do you want it to be?" as he tightened it up! You might want to try it. I've always assumed I was at the high end of "medium" or low end of "large" because I have large hands and fingers and wear size 10 shoes (used to be size 11.) The elbow measurement put me at the top of the medium range, and now that my wrist dimension is more accurate, that puts me in the same range.

Lin

[facingfacts12]

I'll chime in only because I have known and witnessed firsthand how weight and looking thin and fit are not always exactly aligned.

First though I have to say, certainly don't let absolutely ANYONE discourage you or define for you where you can go or what you should be!!
I know for sure, that when you don't believe in something or when someone makes you feel like you shouldn't believe in something, it only makes it 10 times harder to achieve it. How can we achieve something we dont see ourselves capable of doing?
Everytime I achieved absolutely anything of measure it is because I believed 100% that I could, no matter how impossible.

but actually, the reason I wanted to give my two cents is simply because the muscle/fat composition does make a huge difference in terms of how someone can look great at a very varying number of weights.

Even though I weighed in the 130s at one point, I would have to say that arguably, the time I looked my best, I was in the 150s. Meaning looking at photos from both those times I had more of a bikini body weighing in the 150s.
I obviously didn't gain fat to look good at all. rather, I had gained some point to the 170s or so. Then I lost about 20lbs but I was doing a lot of weight training and was very fit. My measurements at 150 were similar to those at 130 and I "looked" better cause you could see a lot of very beautiful definition and I definitely felt better!

I also remember that girl in Terminator 3, who actually gained weight to look good (obviously not gaining fat, but gaining muscle) for her role. She looked like a gorgeous super-model, not by any means bulky at all. But I recall she weighed in the 150s - not typical for what you would hear women/models weighing.

Of course, it always feels nicer to have a smaller number. I have noticed that the women who like to talk about how much they weigh (in public to any stranger) would be the ones that weigh 125 or less. The closer to the 100lb mark, the more they mention the "number".
I have one friend who weighs under 100lbs and seriously, anytime I ever see her somehow she finds a way to mention that to someone.
If she looked the SAME and weighed 150lbs, I'm sure she would not talk about it. So there is probably something that feels really good about a small number - hey look, there's less of me occupying this world!

I would say focus on getting where you dream to be, cause what's a goal if it doesn't make you feel giddy with excitement about getting there.
For me, since I am only at the start of my journey, I know it will feel like a win to be out of the obese category (I still can't believe I allowed myself to get there), then after that, it would be great to weigh what I did for a lot of my adult life - that would feel like an incredible win to me too. And then if I can go beyond that and into the 130s or lower - well, I would feel like I have outdone myself and that the future is so bright I wouldn't need to use my electric company anymore.
At the end of the day though, once I can conceivably get to the point where I look into the mirror and can tell myself - "you look good girl! Stop right there!" I might just throw away the scale cause the number on it probably wouldn't matter so much at that point.

[Ciao]

Originally Posted by cherrypie

it's pretty hard for people to visualize other people at different weights. Just say you will know your goal when you get there.

this. ^

just keep on moving along and (though it may be hard)
ignore those who are trying to discourage you.

soon you'll be getting the last laugh.

[Eliana]

I say, shoot for the starts, BUT...

Speaking from experience here, make sure you are happy before you get there. So very many women reach, say 140 in your case, and are suddenly very healthy and very fit and have honestly achieved something great, but they can't see it because they haven't reached their goal yet. It really is just a number. Focus on the number one thing that is most important, which is your health.

I would personally set that goal a bit higher and then just keep going.

I know I was 113 in college and am the same height as you. But when I reached 145 recently, I was very close to the same SIZE I was back then. I was 4/6 at that weight. I am so much stronger now and I have a woman's body. I'm no longer a lanky teenager and never will be again. But I should have seen 145 as a victory. Instead, I only saw that I hadn't reached my goal.

[runningfromfat]

There are so many good points here. I just want to reafirm what Eliana and facingfacts12 (and possibly others?) said.

- First off recognize your success. Even if that doesn't get you to the magical number of 117lbs. Nobody's going to see that number on the scale but you. However, they will see what you look like every day and if you're healthy and fit they could care less how much you weigh.

- Muscles play a HUGE role. I have two pictures of me at 185lbs one pre-lifting and one-post lifting. You'd never guess I was the same weight at that time! Post lifting I wore something like 1-2 sizes smaller than prelifting.

- Your body changes over time. I've had a kid and two pregnancies, have breastfed for 2 years and lost a significant amount of weight. I carry more weight now in my chest/stomach than I ever did in the past. 140lbs is the weight I was in high school but I had a different body back then and was running anywhere from 5-10 miles per day. I'm not sure if I'll get that low so my goal weight has always been a range from 140lbs-155lbs.

I guess the biggest thing is don't worry as much about your goal at this point. Work on getting to a healthy weight, celebrate the weight you've lost already. It's really hard to say what you'll look like once you get to a healthy weight.. I've been at a healthy weight before but it's been so many years I really don't know what to expect.