I tried to find a thread on this, but I didn't see anything. I've been trying to set a weight goal, but I haven't been thin in so long, that I don't know what looks good on my body. According to charts I've seen, I should be 130-140 lbs for my height and body frame. I just worry that if I don't set a pretty big goal, I'll lose a bit of weight and settle. The lowest I've weighed in 6 years is 180 and I just ended up gaining it back.
You're looking at BMI charts which mean very little when used to measure an individual.
Pick a goal if you want but the best way to measure progress is with pictures and measurements as your weight is just something you see when you're standing on a scale.
I'm your height and my original goal is 165. I will reevaluate once I hit that point, but for me the most important thing is appearance and muscle tone, and not the number. I think having a loose goal is a good thing but don't make yourself crazy when looking at the scale. As JohnP said, measurements are your best bet to measure the real progress you are making.
Also, depending on your body type it might not be realistic for you to be 130 at 5'6. Just feel it out, set mini goals, and monitor your measurements. Good luck, you can do this!!
Not sure if you guys have seen this site before, but it gives you an idea of what some people look like at different height/weights. I think it's interesting because some people really don't look their weight!!
Hey the best thing about a goal weight is that you can always change it! If you want your goal to be 180 and when you get there you want to go lower, you can!
I'm about your height and when I started out I picked 175. I knew it wasn't my ideal weight, but it seemed attainable and getting THERE would mean much better health than where I was - especially since I exercise too.
Then, when I got to 175, I dropped it to 160 because I could tell I wasn't done and wanted to do more.
Then recently I got to 168 (right now I'm carrying midcycle water weight) and decided somewhat arbitrarily to pick 155 - mostly because it will mean 100 pounds for this current weight loss journey.
Since I did that, I've been bouncing up on the scale and I'm not so sure 155 is attainable, but I'm not going to sweat it. I plan to exercise for life and if it takes me another year to get to 155, so be it. I'm not in a race - and if I never get there and settle around 160 instead - again, so be it.
At some point, just for giggles, I'll go to a place to get my body fat percentage taken. my bathroom scale has me at about 27% body fat. I would like to see it below 25% - that's my main goal. When it hits that at home - I'll go do the bodpod or something to see where it is at more officially and just try to keep my body fat percentage below 25%.
Like Berry Blonde says, you can ALWAYS re-adjust! Honestly, if I went by a number on the scale I probably would have given up a long time ago. I'm 5'7 and by best guess, app. 180 lbs. I am also just about a size 10/M - I can run a 5K, heavy bag kick-box for an hour, lift weights etc. I know I am in shape and I like the way I look. If I went by the number only, I would be considered over-weight and I'm not. Even though my body has kept changing in great ways the last 3 months, the scale does not move and that's ok. A lot of this is about more than the scale - it's about how you feel, how your clothes fit, your endurance level etc. etc. So maybe make a goal for a number, but also, make a goal that's non-scale related. Maybe a certain dress size [or waist size] or a really tough challenge to complete - those types of things have really helped me stay on track.
For me, regaining weight has nothing to do with setting a goal too big or too large-its just me psyching myself out. Just believe in yourself-set a goal-whatever you are comfortable with (140 or something) and when you get there, reevaluate and see where you want to go from there. Well thats what I am doing anyways, going to stick with my number goal and see where it goes when I get there. =)
If it helps I know a girl who is 5'7 and weighs 135 and looks fantastic. I'd post a bikini pic, but I'd feel guilty about posting her personal pic up. Although we are all indivudals and can range at different weights, it is helpful to have a reference of some sort-try the my body gallery site.
I wouldn't worry about that for now - goal weights can change a lot! Just focus on health and feeling good about yourself. Those charts don't account for bone structure, etc.
my UGW is 125 but that's the bottom end of a range that starts at 140. basically, at 140, i will start measuring my waist. as soon as it's 28" or under (at that size, it's possible for me to lose 5lbs and 2" off my waist), that's where i'll stop. i cannot go below 125, though, because then i look nasty - jutting hip and pelvic bones, hollowed-out collar bones, and my ribs visible down my sternum (a look i loathe).
My UGW was 120, then several people told me that was 'dangerous', so right now I'm aiming for 135-140. I'm 5'9. I don't put any stock into those bmi charts, because I think they over estimate the healthy weight range. I felt the best when I was 120 pounds, but I was a little shorter then, ( i had a very odd late growth spurt) so that's why I'm aiming for 135-140. Pick a range that seems right to you. You can always re-evaluate later on.
I don't put any stock into those bmi charts, because I think they over estimate the healthy weight range.
But that's probably because you have a smaller frame. People are built VERY differently.
Doctors have told me that my ideal weight is probably around 155-160. That puts me right at the top and a little over the healthy BMI.
My husband is much more finely built and he feels best (and looks right) at the lower end of the healthy BMI. He likes 165. So me at 5'6.5" at 160 and him at 6'1" at 165 with us both being fit and having a healthy weight.
The charts are averages, with millions of bits of data being analyzed to compile them. Use weight / height charts as a guide. I found that if I didn't have a pretty definite goal, I'd never push myself, so I set 100 pounds originally. I do remember what 152 (that would have been 100 pounds lost) looked like - I was that in my early 30's - and I was about 142 in high school.
Charts say that 5'7" should be between 120 and 160 to be in the healthy BMI range. I disagree that they don't mean anything. For most people, they do. I think it's pretty hard to argue that a range of 40 pounds is too narrow or doesn't cover most people who are 5'7" tall. perhaps not the very athletic, but it fits most people.
Go ahead and set an ambitious goal. It will give you something to work toward. Then adjust as you get closer. And - DO NOT feel guilty if you change your goal upward. I would have liked to get to about 152 - 155, but I started to get too saggy for my liking. I was over 250 pounds for over 25 years, and at 60, things aren't bouncing back the way they might at 30 or even 40. So I'm just hanging here at about 160 pounds for the time being. I said for the whole time that I was losing that I was going to lose 100 pounds by Christmas (last year) and when I quit in October at 90, it took a while to realize (only in my own brain) that I hadn't failed. Just don't do that to yourself.
As a point of reference, my daughter is 29, 5'6" tall, works out 5 days a week, weighs 130 pounds and wears a size 4 jeans (sometimes 2), S or XS shirts. I am 1" taller than she is, work out 5 days a week (though not quite as intensely as DD,) weigh 30 pounds more, and wear a size 12, sometimes a 10. Even if I lost 30 pounds, I don't think I'd ever fit in a 2. And I wear a L top. We're all different.
You said yourself that if you don't have a goal you might get to a point and just settle for that. That's ok, actually, as long as you don't gain it back. Then from there, you can re-think your end game. Take it all one day at a time. Hang in there and don't judge the end result until your closer.
I can relate. I haven't been at a healthy BMI for over 8 years!!! You're starting under my high weight so I can really understand having no clue what you would look like at a smaller weight.
What I did was set A LOT of mini-goals with the idea that I wanted to hit a healthy BMI and go from there. In high school I was 140lbs and I really loved my body back then (I have a large frame, and am naturally quite curvy so anything lower would make me look probably too thin) so I don't plan on going under that. So from the beginning I had the idea that I would make a weight loss goal range 140-155lbs. I'm almost to the upper end of that and am pretty happy with my body at this point. I have noticed that my joint pain decreases the lower I go so that's a motivation for me not to stop at 155lbs. Additionally, I'd like to hit a 28" waist so that's another motivation.
I saw all that because I have found for myself it's good to have a lot of different goals besides just the scale and to show the thought process it took to pick a goal weight. There are many men and women on here who set a higher goal weight and then lower it once they reach there. Decide what's best for you and go for it!
Height and weight charts are averages, figured out by math brains, at places like Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, or those math brain people at health and life insurance companies.
The charts and averages can't account for everything. For instance, my oldest son is 5'11" and weighs 190. The charts say, he's overweight. That does not account for the fact, that he is a cop, works out like a fiend and is one big solid muscle.
Personally, I would say, pick a middle of the range goal, and re-evaluate as you get closer. You may want to lose a few more, or you might be happy.
Along with the choice, be sure to work out, lift some weights.
I recently participated in a strength building challenge. Over 3 months, I only lost 4 pounds, but I lost 4.5 inches!
In the end, you have to find an eating and exercise plan and satisfaction with what you have, that you can sustain for life. It's different for all of us.
Height and weight charts - how accurate?
If you want your goal to be 180 and when you get there you want to go lower, you can!
