Set goals SMART: Specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely.
My current goals?
1) Food log near daily. 1 day off is ok. More than that and I get off track. Stick to around 1800-2000 calories per day from low-gi types of food.
2) Earn a PALA -- which is 30 min exercise, 5 days a week for 6 weeks. Don't care what, don't care when, just doing it. (Weekend off ok)
3) Take all meds on time. (ALL days, no days off.)
4) Check in at 3fatchicks for accountability near daily. (weekends off ok.)
5) Desired result: some weight loss. Don't care how much, just something, anything. If I'm doing all the above right, it SHOULD come off. Reevaluate results and goals at end of 6 weeks. -1 lb a week would be nice, but I have PCOS/IR, so minus anything would be fine too. I'm getting reacquainted with myself on PALA, so I'm not sure what my new "normal" will be in this area. Been a while since the last PALA -- years!
I am doing Weight Watchers. They do 5 pounds at at time, which is very doable. They also say that by dropping 10%, you will have major health benefits. The main thing is what YOU want.
I have been perusing everyones answers trying to figure out what is right for me. Thank you for such an interesting topic and all the answers...
When I first started I just wanted to lose 5 pounds. I hadn't been able to lose one pound in years. After about 10 pounds of loss I said my goal was 132. That would mean that I would lose half my weight...
Now- I am not sure that goal is at all realistic. Am I hindering myself by creating a goal that is not realistic or am I giving up b/c I made a goal that will be hard to achieve? I think it may be unrealistic b/c some of those body calculators tell me things like I have 145 pounds of lean muscle. Well, if that is the case how could I ever be 132? Or am I just using that as an excuse?
My original goal was set at 160 by my doctor. He wanted me to lose weight to treat the PCOS but he didn't want to go too low because of the PCOS if that makes any sense.
My goal is set for 150, because then I will be in the "normal" range of BMI for my height.
My dream goal is 140, because I think if I stay in the middle of my BMI range, I'll be okay fluctuating up and down 2 or 3 pounds.
I also have health goals that aren't related to the scale and "size" goals that are about fitting into my old prom dress and things like that.
I love hearing all your responses. Some of you have made me rethink my way of thinking and how I may go about reaching my desired weight. I shouldn't say desired weight because I really don't know what that is. I chose the 160 just to have a doable number. I may just do like some of you and just mark with icons for every 5 pounds I lose. That is not a time, it's just showing my progress and I will enjoy seeing more icons as I go along. I can reevaluate as I go. Thanks again for your ideas. Good luck to all.
It is so weird how everyone's bodies can be so different. I am the same height as you, weigh less and yet I wear a size 22. (well they are super loose now lol) I think all my weight is in my stomach! Oh that makes me sad lol
Don't feel sad, your doing your best. If it makes you feel better. I am one who has weight all over me. I have big arms, big butt, stomach, legs, and face, and mediocre boobs. That is probably why we carry it different. 18 is the biggest jean I have ever wore and 230 is the biggest I have been. I'm at 222 right now due to being sick and I'm trying to keep it off. Good luck and reach your goals.
I tried not to have too many goals to stress over in the beginning. I decided that just one would be best, and that was to enter everything I ate into a nutritional software. I did not restrict calories, I just practiced entering everything and it helped to see what I ate and what the calories were. Then I slowly reduced the amounts over time. As I lost weight, I reduced the calories when I stopped losing.
Coming from a high weight, I did not have any other goal than to get my eating to the point that I could lose weight. Other goals came when I felt comfortable to add to what I was already doing. I'm in my second year of dieting, so my main goal is to get to the 157 pounds by the end of the year. The current goal is to get as much swimming in that I can when we get home, every 6th week. I keep goals workable and they change as my needs change.
i chose my goal weight to be at 140 because this is what i weighed before i let myself go. i thought i was overweight at 140. i thought wrong. right now, i am at 200+ lbs, unable to fit into my bitty clothes BUT i am eating more vegetables, fruits, seeds and grains, and eating less of the processed foods. it is difficult, i have to admit. i am also trying to exercise in the morning (my 5 mile walk/jog with my husky). i hate mornings. but if i wait till the afternoon, it will be too hot for either one of us to be outside (yes, here in el paso, we are having an odd winter season. the highs go up to 70 on some days). my ultimate goal is to go back to school, enroll in the rotc program. i want to be fit enough to get in, continue with the military, and live the rest of my life with my husband, both of us being healthy (with children).
i haven't stepped on a scale in about a while, looking forward to it on monday and see what my progress is..
i haven't set a firm goal, because it seems so far off, and i get discouraged quickly, i plan on starting a "diet" here in a few days, i thought maybe if i read around in here would help get me pumped up and realize that it can be done, so really i think my first goal is just to get under 330 i weighed in this morning at 334.6..yes this is a small goal, but i will be able to use my wii board again, that has really been bugging me. and then after that, i want to be able to fasten the seatbelt again, i hate it, i was able to last year after losing some weight, i started out at 339 last year, don't remember how much i lost, i was still in the 300's so im guessing in 10 or 15 pounds i will be able to..so those are my first two mini goals.
Well, I picked 180 as my goal weight...although it seems kinda unrealistic at the moment. That's always been the number floating around in my head. I would be pretty thin at that weight because I am 5'9 and big boned.
When I was a freshman in high school I weighed 210lbs...I made the varsity
volleyball team and was extremely athletic. I was like a size 12. When I was 275-280, I wore a 18/20 on the top and 22 jeans. Now at my weight I am a size 28 and sometimes can squeeze in a 26.
I do like the ideas of small goals though. Right now I just want to break under 350. I like the goal of weighing less than my hubby, which is 270.
I read somewhere about this women who would constantly buy clothes a size smaller then she was. And she didn't have much money, so it was really taking a chance. She would buy her summer clothes a size smaller in the winter...and buy her winter clothes a size smaller in the summer. I always kinda liked that idea. Either lose weight or go naked.
Then I thought about buying a really cool outfit or dress a couple sizes smaller and hang it on the bedroom wall for a reminder and something to look forward to....is that silly?
I think a lot of you have great ideas and incentives. Keep up the hard work and stay strong. In the end you will be able to do what you set out to do and enjoy!
i chose a goal of 135-140 because that is a healthy weight/BMI range for my height. i believe it's on the higher end, and that's ok with me, because i like being a little curvier.
i've set some mini goals for myself because when i look at that number, it feels like i need to climb a mountain in order to get to it. it helps me to set smaller weight loss goals because they're more readily attainable, keep me focused, motivated, and reinforce the changes that i've made.
i also have non-scale goals that i keep in journal, like astrophe mentioned. tracking my food and exercise has become second nature. whatever i do, eat, good, bad, whatever, goes into a food/exercise log, everyday. i've never been so disciplined in my life about that. also, a daily goal for myself is to really eat 5 servings of fruits and veggies. these little daily non scale goals are also big confidence boosters, are empowering, and are healthy habits that just keep getting reinforced!
I chose my goal weight of 165 because my BMI will be "normal" at that weight according to all those websites (and my doctor's office)
I am doing mini-goals every month and trying hard to hit them, but I will also be ok if I don't hit them right on the head every month -- I just need some kind of small goal to work towards every month. It keeps me in check.
