I have officially decided that the "weight loss" portion of my program is done. I've made an appointment with my family doctor for tomorrow morning, to see if she will write me a note for WW permitting me to set a goal weight outside of the "healthy weight range" (and I hope she does, or else I'm kind of screwed) but regardless of whether or not she agrees, I'm still done.

I had a near-fainting spell on Sunday night that scared me half to death, and I've been having lightheadedness upon standing for the past few weeks. That's not normal for me. And I can't help but think that it's my body's way of telling me "hey, enough is enough!"

I've been feeling wonderful all the way along, but it seems like the closer I get to my "ideal weight" of 125, the worse I'm starting to feel. And I'm having to spend more and more time at the gym just to lose...and to be perfectly honest, while I enjoy my workouts, I am simply not willing to have to spend hours at the gym. I'd like to have a life that doesn't revolve around treadmills and ellipticals, and I *know* that a life at 125 would require that.

I'm happy with the way I look. I know I have toning left to do, and I'm perfectly happy to do that...but to keep working and working and working, and making myself physically sick, just to reach some arbitrary number, is not sitting well with me right now.

So if you'll pardon my asterisks....**** the BMI, **** the "ideal weight", and **** the scale. I'm happy where I am, and I'd rather be healthy than "ideal."

(But I still really hope she'll write me that note, and I'm not sure what I'll do if she doesn't.)

Snoofie, you have to do what is best for you . What does your doctor think of your lightheadedness and near fainting spells ?
By the way I am your same height and according to The Calorie King a healthy weight range is 101-127, of course I think 101 is ridiculous. Did WW set the goal of 125 ?
I would make my decision on what the doctor says and how you feel.

Good for you! I agree that being healthy and happy is more important! I am trying to convince myself that being fit is more important than reaching a certain weight. I bought a body fat meter and am working on losing body fat and pant sizes. The number on the scale changing is just a side effect of my main goals!

Good luck with everything and remember that you are your only advocate!

I've only done the WW At Home program, so I don't know how the meetings work, but why exactly do they make you have a doctor's note to set your weight goal? I could see if you were setting it too low for your height, but why do they get to tell you what range you have to fall into?

I guess that struck a nerve with me, because I feel that weight loss is a personal matter. Yes, we can reach out for support and accountability, but as far as goals - that should be up to the individual.

Now that that's off my chest, I've read several articles that you can be healthy while still being overweight. It's not just about the number on the scale. I also think some people's bodies just aren't meant to get to a certain number. When I was younger and thinner, I was in the Army - I was in great shape physically, but I was still over the weight allowance, no matter what I did. They used my body fat measurement and I was always within the normal range.

It's not just the number on the scale.

The doctor doesn't know about the fainting spells and lightheadedness; I've made an appointment for tomorrow morning, and I'll tell her everything that's been going on for the past few weeks. If, in light of that, she still thinks I need to lose more weight, I'm sorry to say that I'll be looking for another doctor. Which I don't really want to do, because other than this issue, she has been the most amazing doctor I've ever had.

As for the goal weight of 125...my doctor set that. Based *solely* on the BMI scale, I might add, which is also why I'm not willing to accept it as the be-all and end-all.

In my weight tracker, there's an "ultimate weight loss goal form" that you're supposed to fill out once you've decided on your goal. And it says, specifically:

"I understand that Lifetime Membership will be awarded if I have achieved a weight goal that is within the Healthy Weight Range for my height (or outside it with a doctor's note) and it is at least 5 pounds less than my joining weight."

According to their Healthy Weight Range, at my height (five feet) I should weight between 107 and 128 pounds. My doctor set my ideal weight at 125. I'm not going that far. I refuse to. I'm already beginning to feel...well, not *sick* exactly, but not as great as I did, say, ten pounds ago. If you could see me, I can guarantee that you would never believe I weigh 140 pounds.

I'm just so *tired* of numbers on a scale being the only "acceptable" indicator of my success. Yes, I'm very proud that I've dropped from 203 to 140, and I've worked very hard to get here. But I don't see why I'll be seen as "ideal" if I lose another 15 pounds when, in my opinion, 15 pounds more will make me look skeletal. I mean....my ribcage is becoming visible. I never wanted to be able to see that. Shouldn't a highly trained medical professional be able to see that just because 125 is lower than 140, that doesn't necessarily make it any better?

I think it was summed up best by one of my co-workers yesterday; he asked if I was done losing weight, and I said, "Well, according to my doctor, I still have another 15 pounds to go."

His response? "Who's your doctor, Stevie Wonder?!"

has it occured to you there might be some other physical problem causing the dizzyness?

Considering the fact that I had bloodwork and a full physical less than two months ago and everything came back perfect? No, not really. Why, do you have any suggestions?

My blood pressure (well, at least the last time I went to see her) was perfect; my insulin resistance is in remission; my PCOS symptoms have abated. So unless there's something completely out of whack, there's nothing to explain these new symptoms.

And then, if something *is* out of whack, my question then becomes: WHY is it out of whack? Because the *only* thing that has changed with me since the last time I went to see her is that my weight has gotten lower (I've lost fifteen pounds since then.) So is it completely crazy to wonder whether my body is actually rebelling against the continued weight loss? I eat healthy (plenty of fruit and vegetables, no processed foods, plenty of water) and I work out. Now, granted, I have been working out harder in the past couple of months...but that's simply because, in order to lose more weight, I *have* to work out harder. So, there you have it. I am becoming more than convinced that my recent symptoms are connected to my continued weight loss in some way.

Whether that's believable to anyone else...well, to be honest, I don't care. I'm the one living in my body, and I *know* when there's something not right. And there is definitely something not right. And to make myself sick just to reach some arbitrary bullshit number isn't worth it to me.

sounds a bit like hypoglycemia but that is only a guess. I've just never heard of anyone having those problems while they are eating enough. If you are following ww you likely are. I'd be more worried it is something else.

I've had a couple fainting spells and figured out that it was a combination of low iron and dehydration. Immediately after working out I'd get faint. It's situational and wouldn't be picked up on bloodwork. As long as I keep water with me during my workout (which I didn't - figured 45 minutes on an elliptical in my basement, no big deal to go upstairs and get a drink when done - yeah, think again) and I take an iron supplement (tend to forget it often, but really need it during TOM - other times, not as much) and I'm fine again. Plus, seasonal allergies have been making me light-headed lately and I tend to have low blood pressure anyway.

Some doctors just don't know anything about weight loss and diet. I think I would talk to him about it. But definitely ask him about the lightheadedness, that is not normal. Now, I have a little bit of vertigo and feel dizzy occasionaly and afraid I am going to faint although I haven't. There is medication for that.

I think it's best to talk to your doctor and do some testing just to be on the safe side. It could be your diet, but you really don't want to miss something in case it isn't!!!

FWIW, I have issues sometimes with dizziness and it all comes down to when and what I eat. If I start eating too many carbs, not enough protein or not enough snacks I'll get that. Even when I was over 200lbs I would get that. So it might not hurt thoroughly looking at the types of food choices you're making.

As for WW, well, I think you have to do what's best for you. I know their are benefits for becoming a WW lifetime member but 3FC is a great forum to turn to with a lot of resources. There are a lot of us who have done it on our own too so maybe try to sit down and seriously think about how you're going to handle maintenance without WW. Make out a plan so that you're least likely to slip up along the way (especially since it sounds like you were really counting on WW to help you through maintenance).

Are you getting enough fat and trace minerals? It could definitely be that you are at a good weight for your body, but it sounds like you may have some deficiencies - fainting isn't normal for a calorie deficit, even a substantial one.

I hope you find out what is wrong and either way, congratulations on your losses!

I am eating enough. I am eating more than I ever have, actually...so that is not an issue. So if this is hypoglycemia, something else is causing it, and I am convinced it has something to do with my continued weight loss.

As I have said before: I live in this body and I know when something is off. I also know when I'm satisfied with the way I look. And this is it. Now, whether my doctor agrees with me on my goal weight is another matter, but to be frank, if she's not willing to look beyond the BMI to realize that I am at a healthy weight, then I need another doctor.

As far as I'm concerned, deciding someone is at a healthy weight based solely on how tall they are is insane. Yes, I'm only five feet tall, but I'm also muscular and have high bone density. The BMI takes nothing like that into consideration and therefore, in my personal opinion, is useless when it comes to actually deciding whether or not a person is healthy, regardless of what weight they are.

No one knows YOU better than YOU!
I completely see where you're coming from and I can almost predict I could be in the same situation at some point. My goal of 139 at 5'2" is my 'dream' weight ... and I hope to get to it, but I could completely see myself reevaluating at around 150 depending on how things go.

I have also always looked less than what I actually weigh, both in the size I wear for clothes and general appearance. I have always been muscular and am confirmed large framed. In high school I could leg press more than most of the guys in my school. When I was pregnant, even at 230 pounds, when I would go to the doctor the nurses would always put that damn little slider to the 100 range and I would have to tell them to up it to 200 when they were weighing me on the non-digital scale. Hated that moment each and every time. Funny thing is when I really knew I had let things go way too far was when last year I went for an appt (not preg) and the nurse went right for that 200 for the first time ever. UGH! lol
Even now friends will talk to me about weight and assume I weigh less than them, when I in fact weigh quite a bit more.

Anyway, I see some taller than me that have goals set way lower than mine when I look at people's goals on here. And that's great for them and what's probably going to be best for them. I can with certainty say I will not even attempt to be getting into the 120's or even low 130's. Hey, I could eat those words down the road, but I doubt it. My lowest adult life weight was 160 and I remember how I looked, what I wore and how I felt ... and am pretty sure 35 more pounds would be unattainable. So all this rambling is just to let you know I get it.

Congrats for all you have accomplished so far. I hope the doc can shed some insight into the dizzy spells, etc. It could be a deficiency in something, and it could be you're right on... your body is wanting a break!
I am going to work 150% to make my goals, but when it comes time to re-evaluate I DO know I will not completely suck all of the joy out of life to reach a number.

Maybe the doc would be willing to go by body fat percentage if she could measure it more accurately??

Best of luck whether you decide to maintain or continue losing. Maybe you'll find after maintaining for a while you're ready to give it another go, then again maybe this is your comfort zone. Let us know how the appt goes!