Hello,

I posted this here because I need your opinions on how close I am to my goal. Obviously you lot have experienced and seen what being close to your goal looks like, so I feel you are more 'qualified' than people like me who are still losing. If anyone here is still losing, please contribute too.

My original goal was 117lbs, but now I'm wondering whether 110lbs would be better. According to an on-line body fat calculator, my body fat percentage is 27%. I know these on-line calculators aren't that accurate. When I heard that people struggle to lose the last 15lbs, I realised that this can't be my last 12lbs. I'm still losing 1lb per week, not the small amounts others have when they're close to their goal weight.

My stats:
Height 5 ft 2.5 (BMI range 104-136lbs)
Weight 129lbs
Age 21

Do you think I have 20lbs to lose?
Do I look like I have 27% body fat?
Do my arms look like they're fat OR slim but suffering from saggy skin?
I'll appreciate the honesty, but be gentle.

Please excuse my messy bedroom.

Hi! You are braaaaave!

To me, you look very muscular. My husband is super muscular and always comes in high on the body fat scale, which he is obviously NOT. In my experience, my last 10lbs before goal made a HUGE difference in the way my body looked, especially b/c I was working out and toning. I would get to your 117 and take another look. I bet you anything the 12 lbs between 117-129 will really carve out your waist and arms.

It also depends on what look you're going for. I'm Latina and I'm feeling like I was much happier about 10lbs heavier (my profile pic is me 10lbs heavier than I am now). Now, I have a pretty skinny look and it just doesn't feel like "me" (I'm also 6'1'' and can look pretty giraffe-ish at lower weights! lol!). I was heavy for so long that I'm going to keep this weight for at least 6 months so my body doesn't get confused about gaining again. In the meantime, I will try to build muscle.

Good luck, and for the record, I think you're gorgeous!

I think you should lose 10 more pounds and be done.

Jay

ok. i think you look great!

it kind of depends on your expectations. are you trying to be string bikini ready? just slim? which areas are you wanting to improve?

maybe you need to make your tricep muscles stronger. everything else looks great to me.

if my legs looked like that, i would just stop now. my hardest spot to lose from.

In my experience, it's not so much the last 15 that are hard as the last 5. I'd say just keep doing what you're doing, and when you're satisfied with your results stop losing then, regardless of what the number on the scale is.

First, It doesn't matter what I think.
It only matters what YOU think.

Your ticker says you've lost 71 lbs,
and your picture looks really good.
You have muscle along with a curvy body.

This is a recent weight-loss, and you are 21 years old,
which gives you very elastic skin,
so by summer, your body will look even better in a bathing suit.

I set a goal number that was very meaningful to me,
and reaching that specific number has helped me in maintenance.
If your own goal number isn't particularly meaningful,
and you feel it's appropriate to keep your current goal,
or re-set your goal at or near your current weight,
then I'd say do it.

BUT....make that goal weight number the top of your Maintenance RANGE,
and continue eating and exercising the same way
until you drop a little lower in that range.
Let your body choose what it wants to do about a lower weight.
The graphic in my signature shows my own Maintenance Plan.
I am 5'0".

You look great!
You are so smart to be doing this at 21 not at 40 like when I started. My skin didn't bounce back. Yours will. I agree with the others-- keep doing what you're doing until you are happy with the results. Work on toning and see where you end up. The actual number isn't as important is how you feel about yourself.

You don't look to me that you can lose much more though! You look fabulous!

Actually, I started at 17yrs old. It's taken 4 yrs of mess ups - not counting calories, eating too much, eating too little, exercising too much, exercising too little, twice I regained 15lbs over a year because I got bored with exercising/counting calories- to reach this point. That's why I'm worried about my arms because I've spent so long doing this. Also, I've always been fat, so my skin might have been stretched for too long.

I want to be slim and toned. My mind is skewed because I've never seen myself slim. I'm not as pear-shaped/curvy as I thought I'd be: almost flat bum and boobs are saggy and small. My hips are finally slimming down, so hopefully my legs will be next, but my stomach got half an inch bigger. Plus my face is still round, so I look 13yrs old instead of 21. I guess my expectations weren't realistic.

Thanks for the feedback! I'll aim for 115lbs. If that's too low, I can just hover between 115-120, as I originally planned when I aimed for 117lbs. If 115lbs isn't right, I won't be far from 110lbs. Then I'll start building muscle to get the definition (not bodybuilder) I'd love.