Hey guys, so this post is going to take a lot of inner reflection (at least it did for me). My question is: in a hypothetical society where there is no ideal body and all weights are equally loved, what weight would you keep your body?
Right now I want to be a toned 140 and I believe I can stay there comfortably but I'm not sure how I would feel about my body in this hypothetical society because I think my standards of beauty have been warped too much by our real society. However to the best of my ability I think that I would like to be a toned 180 lbs. I say toned because I enjoy feeling strong and being healthy is still important to me. I just like the way I look at 180 (my highest weight btw.)
We can't kid ourselves. Being seriously overweight causes significant health problems. Lose the lbs for health reasons. When you are in your teens and 20's and 30's some might think that being a certain weight will be the end of all of your social problems. But in reality, it is not. The same can be said for being seriously underweight.
We can't kid ourselves. Being seriously overweight causes significant health problems. Lose the lbs for health reasons.
I am not sure what you mean by "seriously overweight" because while it is true that being obese is going to shorten one's life span you can be overweight and extremely healthy. Exercise and diet have much more to do with one's health than one's specific weight.
I want to lose weight for a bunch of reasons.
First of all I weighed that much because I had an unhealthy emotional relationship with food. I was using it like a drug to make me feel better and to help me avoid real issues going on in my life.
Second of all I am scared to get pregnant (which my husband and I plan on doing soon) at my current weight...not because my weight might hurt me or the baby in pregnancy. I am afraid that if I don't control my eating now then it will get out of control during my pregnancy and when I give birth I will be very far above my ideal weight. If I begin pregnancy at 140 and end at 170 then I will still be happy with my body but if I begin pregnancy at 180 and end at 210 I will feel really bad about myself and spend time losing weight when I should be spending all my time enjoying my new baby.
Third of all I want to lose weight so that I can stop thinking about my body. At that weight, picking out what to wear takes time and effort since "regular" clothing is not always made well for heavier people and because it is easier to be seen as "sloppy" if you are fat and not dressed well. If I am thinner I will be able to just throw on jeans and a top and feel confident that I look good.
Fourth of all, I want to be viewed a certain way by people. I am 23, entering graduate school and trying to get my first job. Those are all big steps and I just don't feel confident that I will be given as much of a chance at 180 as I will at 140.
... Third of all I want to lose weight so that I can stop thinking about my body. At that weight, picking out what to wear takes time and effort since "regular" clothing is not always made well for heavier people and because it is easier to be seen as "sloppy" if you are fat and not dressed well. If I am thinner I will be able to just throw on jeans and a top and feel confident that I look good. ....
You NEVER stop thinking about your body even after the weight is gone. You still have to work hard to maintain those losses or risk gaining the weight back. Don't kid yourself; maintaining weight loss is just as hard (some would argue that it's even harder) as losing it in the first place.
Jossfit...you have a point, I have never maintained at 140 so I wouldn't really know how hard it is. What I do know is that since I have begun dieting I have stopped craving things that once were so hard for me to put down. I used to turn to fatty foods to feel good. Now after eating a fatty meal I feel like I lack energy and want to go to sleep - not a good feeling. But after eating a healthy meal I feel totally energized. Also, exercise used to bore me. Now after dieting for a while I have found that I love doing Zumba and bike riding. Due to this change in how I view food and exercise I feel like once I get down to my goal maintaining will not be a crazy challenge. I can understand maintaing being hard if your goal is to be very thin but I am more realistic. I can admit that I love food too much to ever be a size 2. I chose 140 because I like how I look (I have old pics of me at 140), its healthy and to maintain that weight I only have to eat a little less than I did at 175 .
I am not sure what you mean by "seriously overweight" because while it is true that being obese is going to shorten one's life span you can be overweight and extremely healthy. Exercise and diet have much more to do with one's health than one's specific weight.
All the extra weight puts extra stress on your joints and back. Lose the weight and many times the pain goes away. I know all about being "healthy" and being in the obese range. My blood stats are in the "amazing" range. But that doesn't change the fact that extra fat is proven to cause cancer and diabetes. Everyone should listen to their physician for advice as to what is a healthy weight for them. I would never take the word of a random person on a message board.
At 267 lbs my body was in constant pain. I wasn't being kind to myself and my relationship with food was totally unhealthy.
Now I can run and lift my kids and feel no pain. My desire to lose this weight and keep it off has nothing to do with society. It's all about me, so my goal stands .
I'd want to be around 135-140. I can't figure out what my ideal weight is supposed to be by medical standards today. I see as low as 125 (seriously?) and as high as 140. I thought I looked good and I felt good at that weight range before, and I think I might have to fight way too hard in order to keep my weight any lower than that, and I'd look like a stick person.
I'd want to be around 135-140. I can't figure out what my ideal weight is supposed to be by medical standards today. I see as low as 125 (seriously?) and as high as 140. I thought I looked good and I felt good at that weight range before, and I think I might have to fight way too hard in order to keep my weight any lower than that, and I'd look like a stick person.
I totally get what you are saying. I have a friend who is 5"7 130 lbs and keeps saying "I really just want to lose 5 lbs." To me that is obsessive because at that weight and height toning will make you look so much better than being thinner. I guess it depends on the person. I have a large chest and broad shoulders and hips so I doubt that 125 is realistic for me. I suppose someone with a smaller bone structure and chest would be able to reach that number. Maybe the range is to accommodate different body types.
My ideal might be influenced by society, I don't know. But what is that? Hollywood or where I grew up or my family? because those are all different, conflicting ideals. I feel like I want to be more toned than a lot of Asian fam members, but at the same time, I want to be smaller than the "ideal" in my overweight "typical" hometown, and the "ideal" changes depending on what borough/neighborhood/workplace I am in. I don't know why I have a certain idea of what looks best on me aesthetically, or why I lean towards one ideal rather than another. Oh well.
I totally get what you are saying. I have a friend who is 5"7 130 lbs and keeps saying "I really just want to lose 5 lbs." To me that is obsessive because at that weight and height toning will make you look so much better than being thinner. I guess it depends on the person. I have a large chest and broad shoulders and hips so I doubt that 125 is realistic for me. I suppose someone with a smaller bone structure and chest would be able to reach that number. Maybe the range is to accommodate different body types.
I agree! I think my bone structure would inhibit me from getting in to the 20s without looking like a skeleton. Plus, I have a decent amount of muscle tone that would also interfere. I think 125 is probably for a smaller boned woman or for someone who doesn't work out. Even 130 seems like a stretch to me. I think if a person has to work too hard to maintain a weight, then it's probably not very realistic. Working hard is one thing, but a constant battle is something else entirely.
A nurse I work with observed that the people she's known throughout her life and especially in the medical industry, who are very thin get sick more frequently than the heavier people she's known. She believes that people should take their ideal medical weight and add 10 percent. That would put me at right around where I want to be if I were to consider 130 as my goal ideal.
My ideal might be influenced by society, I don't know. But what is that? Hollywood or where I grew up or my family? because those are all different, conflicting ideals. I feel like I want to be more toned than a lot of Asian fam members, but at the same time, I want to be smaller than the "ideal" in my overweight "typical" hometown, and the "ideal" changes depending on what borough/neighborhood/workplace I am in. I don't know why I have a certain idea of what looks best on me aesthetically, or why I lean towards one ideal rather than another. Oh well.
Interesting thought. It's true that it seems like the place we spend the most of our time and the body shape we see the most is what defines our own comfort level and what we see as attractive. I work around heavier people and although I want to be much thinner than they are, I see my ideal as heavier than the medical community recommends. I wonder if I'd feel differently if everyone I worked with was a stick person.
Ideal Weight
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