Hi everyone

I'm writing this in the final hour of the Yom Kippur fast...so please ignore any massively egregious grammatical issues. I'm hunnnnggggry.



Anyway...I've been on the South Beach Diet since mid-May (so, about 5 months?) and in that time, have gone from 166 pounds to 124.5. (i'm sorta fluctuating between 124 and 126 for a few weeks now..) My original goal weight was 120, so I'm pretty close to that..but the thing is, I still have some pretty flabby areas, especially my legs, and I'm tempted to re-set my goal to somewhere around 115.

My height is 5'4", my BMI is currently about 21.5 (i think...i'm bad at those calculators), and I now wear around a size 4 (though I also own 2s, 6s, 8s, I'm currently about five different sizes, haha.)

I guess my question is, how do you know what the right weight for you is? I know, obviously that I'm much happier and healthier now than I was five months ago. (In fact, I had to hide all my pictures of the old-me, because they upset me so much.) But, it's like, how do you know when you are the best you can be? Or is it a constant process?

I know, obviously, this diet is a way of life, and not a "diet", so it's not a matter of going off it at any point, but I want to get to the place where I feel satisfied with where I am, and don't cringe at the idea of special occassions and occassional treats, etc.

I"m rambling...hope this made sense

Hi alye,

I actually just changed my ticker goal weight about 2 minutes ago, so your post is very timely (for me, at least ). My original goal was 140 lbs because I was once told to lose 20 lbs when I was that weight -- I can hold a grudge better than just about ANYONE and wanted (quite childishly) to get back to that weight just to say "Ha! I look good at 140!" to *someone.* A "someone" who is deceased, by the way -- if that's any indication of how weird I can be sometimes . I then shifted my goal to 139 lbs so it would be an even 50 lb loss total. But I switched it again today (to 135 lbs) because I don't think my belly flab will be gone -- or AS "gone" as I want it to be -- until I get into the mid-30s. When I get to 135 lbs, I'll see how I feel.

I think you need to find a weight that makes you happy, but that is also not too difficult to maintain. If when I hit 135 lbs, I find that it means spending 2 hours a day in the gym, well...I won't be 135 for long .

I'm "happy enough" where I am now -- I could live at 145 lbs for life -- but I also want to see how the 130s feel, too, so I'm going to go for it .

So yeah, I think it's a process. There are some gals over in the maintainers forum who have been posting about how they've decided to gain some weight lately. So, the process goes on...

I think that's a very good point to bring up. I too am 5'4" and have had as my goal weight 120 for a while. When I lost weight (the last time around) and hit 130, I debated dropping it down further. I think once you hit your goal weight, there is nothing wrong taking it a step at a time and seeing if you are comfortable at a lower weight. So long as you are doing it the right way. If you are anything like me, you may have the problem of carrying all your weight in one place. Since I had regained some of my weight, it all went straight to my tummy and I just look ridiculous now. Also, since women have a harder time putting on muscle (or I should say, not just making muscle underneath their fat) I also think it's a worthy goal to lose a little more than maybe you'd like to maintain at. Keeping a goal will always keep you focused and keep you from slipping, and once you have achieved a weight where you feel good about yourself you can think about doing some kind of weight training and toning that will actually mean something and put a few lbs back on as muscle not fat. Good luck with your loss so far and let us know how it goes

I also think that one should evaluate for themselves what weight they think that they can realistically maintain for the rest of their life (based on lifestyle, eating habits, body type, weight history, ect.). My heaviest was 272 and I was always a "big girl" (I weighed 192 at age 13). So for me to have my goal weight at 110 would be completely unrealistic for me.
Also, I think that one should see what the healthy weight range is for their height and age (and look at ideal BMI). For my height (5-4) 132 lbs will put me right where I want---and need--- to be.

I'm finding that it's all about compromises too. I'm in a similar boat at the moment, a few pounds past my original goal and feeling my way around for where I'll be happy. I'd like to slim down my legs a bit more, it's the first place I gain and last place I lose. I look a bit odd with my 26" inch waist and 16" calves I don't want my upper body to get any thinner though, I'm on the verge of looking a bit too bony for my liking in the rib cage.

I have noticed though that once you get this close to the end every pound really shows a difference, so alyeditrix, these last 5 pounds might shape you up a lot more than you think.

From my experience, the close your get to goal weight, the more you need to start thinking in terms of your goal body rather than a number on the scale. If your legs are flabby at that scale weight, why not consider adding heavy resistance training rather than further dieting? Adding muscle will make maintenance easier, make you smaller pound for pound, and looks a lot better than skinny

Mel