So I'm 5 lbs under my original goal of 148 and I think I've reached my new goal of happy. It's been about a week and I've been watching my body and although there is still a little I'd like to shave off, I'm not sure it's worth it. I'm afraid that going down to the 130s will result in a loss of boobage and tooshyness So I think I might stick it out at 140-145 for a while and see how it goes. Not to mention I just spent a bunch of $ on fall/winter clothes that I'm in love with!

It's pretty amazing what going from 148-153 down to 143-148 did. It was a shocking difference. So if you're wishy washy with your goal I highly recommend going the distance for 5 more lbs, you'll be shocked at the difference. 148-153 just didn't feel right for some reason, especially with bloating around TOM, or if I ate too much or was retaining water because the stars were aligning with Mars or whatever. This new range feels a lot better to me.

Now the tricky part will be finding my maintenance "sweet spot". I'm ridiculously happy at my current calorie level so we'll see how this plays out. So I've been thinking about this for a few days, but I think it's time to officially call it...again...it's maintenance time!

Congrats on making it to maintenance!

I am so, so glad you have hit a balance you can live with - that will make your maintenance so much more successful when you're happy with both body AND plan! Each pound off when your body is that small takes a lot of effort, but it is SO worth it!

Congratulations chickie

Congratulations! I'll join you by this time next year hopefully!

Congrats You have done amazing! I have always enjoyed your posts as I have been calorie counting at a higher level and following a similar plan to yours over the last year. I feel like I am at a turning point like you were when you hit your first goal. I am now down to my original goal of 145 (on days without bloating ) and I was seriously thinking about stopping there because of all the lose skin. I already lost the boobage LOL quite awhile back and a push up bra is my only option. I think 5-10 more pounds is what is going to make me happy though because I have quite a bit of stomach left. I guess for myself, looking trim in clothes and like a wrinkle dog without, is better than still being in the "overweight" category.

Anyway, you are inspiring

I'm going through this decision process right now. Thanks for the thoughts!

Congrats!!! Not only on reaching the goal number, but on finding the happy zone. I can relate to the feeling. I started off with a goal of 150lbs, a number I hadn't seen since 5th grade. Once I reached that, I played the just-5-more-pounds game all the way down to 125-ish, haha. But I agree, it's sooo worth it.

Once we're smaller, each pound makes such a difference. Each just-5-more-pounds made a world of difference on my smaller body. But also, I've noticed that now when I bloat by the usual 2-3lbs during my TOM, I feel like an absolute WHALE because those 2-3lbs make such a difference. I used to not even really notice bloating.