My dh's granny is old old OLD and lives on the west coast. Since we're not sure how much longer she'll be around, we're kind of planning a trip out there for late June, early July. I want to be down under 200 pounds by then. That's about 10 pounds per month.

I'm worried that I won't make that. Is that unrealistic? The last time we were out there, I was 5 months pregnant and probably weighed 230-250 (around what I am now), and I felt so disgusting. All these beautiful beaches, and I was carrying around a big belly full of flub. Being just pregnant would have been amazing - all those gorgeous just showing photos on the shore. Ahhh it makes me want to be preggers when we go back!

So your goal is approx 40 lbs in 4 months ... or 10 lbs a month ... or 2.3 lbs a week (on average).

It's not entirely unrealistic, but in my experience it's not entirely likely. 2.3 lbs a week is on the high end of what you should expect and most people simply don't lose in a linear fashion. Some weeks you may lose 2 or 3 lbs and some weeks you may only lose 1. Or you may not lose at all.

Keeping to that level of consistent weight loss will require that you be extremely stringent in your diet and exercise routine and that you don't slip or "cheat" or skip the gym or anything, even once.

I won't say undoable because some people can lose at that rate. But I will say unlikely.

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I had a very similar situation when I started losing weight. In July, my mom told me I was going to come spend Christmas with her. My mom had never seen me at my highest weight and instead of being happy at the thought of Christmas with my family, I was depressed and apprehensive, which is a LOUSY way to feel. It was one of the big sparks that led to my weight loss - the feeling of shame about seeing the people I loved best.

Personally, I found it was better to not try to attach weight loss goals to specific dates, I didn't want to get frustrated or feel rushed or pressured. I knew I definitely wanted to lose weight and be healthier by Christmas, but I never set a specific pound goal. I started at 200 in July and was 153 at Christmas -so 47 lbs in about 5 months (Aug - Dec). 10 lbs a month is definitely doable and I did it without being frustrated or unhappy with the scale!

It might be doable, but as the others are saying, putting a timeframe on your weightloss can really backfire! Why not just start and get healthier! And see where you are this summer! If you're on your way and fitter, I bet you'll feel better about yourself no matter what!

But if you "only" lose 30 pounds you might be depressed -- and that would just be silly!!!

Yeah... Losing weight is hard enough without being frustrated all the time about not meeting an arbitrary goal. That doesn't mean goals can't be useful as targets, just that they can't always be met on time. I've never met a weight loss goal on time, but here I am, slimmer anyway.

Jay

I agree.

It is nice to have goals, but in the grand scheme of things-if you stick to your diet and exercise regimes, you are going to be slimmer on that beach in July than you are right now. It really doesn't matter if you are 18, 26, or 40 pounds slimmer by then-anything is an improvement on now, right?

My problem with setting dates for specific weight loss, is that if you don't make your goal by your vacation/reunion/wedding...you feel like you failed. You don't want to feel like you failed to meet a 40 pound goal by vacation-if you lose 27 or 33 pounds by then. You should instead, feel a sense of accomplishment.

I think it depends on your personality..are you the type that will beat yourself up if you don't make the goal? Or do you prefer to set your sights high and if you don't make it reevaluate at that point?

I'm with you I am also aiming for roughly 8-10 lb a month loss and hope to be thin this summer!!

Come join us int he Slimming for Summer Challenge we have a goal of may 18th and most of us are trying to lose more than 20 lbs by then.

Holy cow!, can I relate to this thread. So a few years ago I lost about 20 lbs. and was pretty much 1/2 way to goal. Didn't quite make my 'lose xx lbs by xx date' -- was literally off by a couple of lbs. -- and felt like a failure. Even though I had lost 20 lbs in like 5 months or so. What a dufus! I got annoyed and gained back nearly all I had lost. Thinking I had learned my lesson, I lost the same 15 lbs. Once again, had a set weight loss # in mind by a set date, missed it by a few lbs. Got frustrated, 'took a week' off -- so can you figure out what happend? Here I am again. BUGGERS!!! I'm trying beyond belief to not tell myself I want to have xx off by summer or whatever. ANYTHING less than I am now is better. Weight loss is NOT like a video tape, one thing after another. Its more like a dvd - here, there, up, down, paused -- you name it. But if you stay OP MOST of the time, you will win the battle. Stupid bulge


On the journey of life, I choose the psycho path

I have to agree with everyone. A) are you the type that likes to make goals and then follow thru with what it takes to meet them?? Are you a planner who can map out your goals and what it will take to meet your goal?? Planning is 100% of success. B) attaching a weight to a date can make you feel like a failure if you don't meet. your goal. When in fact...any loss is a great thing. But i do believe some people can lose 10 pounds a month. I am not one of those. The most i ever lost was 5 pounds a month but it was a steady 5 pounds a month. Oh how i wish i could go back to that now just to lose these last 10!!!

i think goals are okay as long as you don't make them an all or nothing event. it can be something positive to focus on. and even if you don't make your goal you still will have made some strides to a healthier you. and that's what really counts.

it can be done! but it wont be east. more importantly it may not be the best, a healthy weight loss is 1/2 pound to 2 pounds a week, you may be punshing it just a bit! Good luck to you!!!!

I currently have a goal for my vacation coming this summer (May 18th to be exact). However- I made the goal fairly small and doable. I only have to lose a pound a week, which I know I can do. The beauty of this goal is... I have a pretty decent chance of surpassing it by then- which will make me even happier. Try setting a much easier goal- and then if you lose MORE than that before your vacation, you'll feel extra accomplished instead of defeated and depressed. 40 lbs in 4 months is quite a high expectation. You'd be surprised at what a difference 25 lbs can have on shaping a body. Maybe shoot for a goal like that instead, and if you lose more than 25 lbs, then you have even more of a reason to celebrate!

The problem with creating a goal based on the scale is that we have no direct control over the scale. Numbers on the scale reflect an arbitrary weight that was established centuries ago. A pound is artibtrary and the numbers that reflect our weight do not always reflect what else is going on.

You could cut off your leg and weight a certain amount less, but of course that is ridiculous.

So the scale is not under your direct control....but it is under your indirect control.

What I mean is: there are things you can control and things you can't. You can control your daily calorie intake. You can control your daily movement. You can tweak those based on feedback from clothes, measurements, and the scale, but that is really all you can do.

I like to set up challenges for things I can control. I choose to eat what I choose to eat and I move how I move and that is the only commitment I can make. The scale often reflects progress based on those choices, but I cannot wish that it will suddenly reflect 20 or 30 or 40 pounds gone.

So I would suggest you set up controllable and measurable goals. You might decide to eat 1500 calories a day, walk 45 minutes a day, and strength train every other day. Meeting those goals is truly something to be proud of and thrilled about! Your body will bow to the biology of fat loss with these behaviors. The scale may reflect what you hope it will, or it may reflect more or less, but you will be a lot closer to your goals and with less frustration.

A lot depends on your personality though.

I understand you wanting to to be under 200 for your vacation and I can relate.

When I started last year I wanted to be under 300 by 2008. I worked like **** and guess what...I didn't make it..I was 309. But after putting it in perspective I realized that if I had not made an aggressive goal, I may not have achieved what I did. At my weight no one noticed anyway, but I could feel my loss and I felt great about it.

Making and reaching goals are important but not reaching them does not signal failure.....just as eating poorly one day does not mean your diet failed...

Shoot for the moon....if you miss don't despair...just be happy to be among the stars! Good Luck...