Whats in a number?

I am curious to know why people pick a certain weight they would like to be at?  I know some have been at that weight before and would like to get back there (like myself) but how about those who never been there.  Why that weight and not any other weight?

My goal weight is 135.  I have been there 2 1/2 years ago before having my son and would like to get back there.  My clothes fit better and I felt better.  At that weight my asthma didn't bother me as much and I didn't have any attacks at all.  Alot of health related symptoms disappeared and I felt GREAT!  So I was just wondering how do others chose their goal weights and why a particular number?

Do you prefer a specific BMI as well?

Just like you, I want to be at the weight where I felt the best at. I used to always be around 118-122 pounds, and that was the perfect weight for me. At my heaviest, I used to be 135, and even though it doesn't seem like too large of a number, but I felt horrible, I was always tired and none of my clothes fit. I lost almost all the weight last year and went down to 121. Now, I'm at 126, and want to go back down to around 120, like before

I just went with the highest weight that would give me a "healthy" BMI (though it would give me a much better bodyfat% as I appear to be a muscle-y girl).  It also happens to be what my mum weighs (same height as me) and a nice round number (140 pounds = 10 stone). 

your goal weight should be the weight you truly feel the most happiest and healthiest at. i'm about 5'4", my highest was 155 and my lowest was 107.. i wasn't happy at either.. at 155 i was pretty active but ate A LOT OF JUNK FOOD, and at 107 i ate nutritious food (not enough though) but DIDN'T EXERCISE.. so i found a balance between fat and skinny-fat.. now i'm maintaining around 110-115, and i feel great. i'm thin but toned, and i'm able to be more lenient with my calories! i think it just depends on you and how your body feels, not the number on the scale.

good luck

I agree with each of you.  I dont think the number is what drives us to be where we would like to be.  I think its the way we feel and look at that certain weight that determines where we want to be.  I know someone who is 155 and is 5'2 but she feels her best at that weight although she says that she is considered to be overweight.  My dr always says that the weight charts are just guidelines and doesn't determine our exact weight.

I picked my goal weight of 140 lbs because that is the highest weight I can be for my height to be at a healthy weight, which is something I really want. I havent been at a healthy weight since probably birth (I was even a chubby toddler), so to finally be considered a healthy weight, would be absolutely amazing!

well my goal is to be 138 and like you, i've been there once before.

when i started CC i was at 138 trying to get to 130 because it would mean a healthier BMI.

 the result:  undereating then overeating, watching my calories then not watching . exercising then not exercising, it was a long rollercoaster that eventually led myself to gain 20 lbs. now i want to loose it and get back to 138. or maybe 135 just to make it even :D.

Initially I aimed for a safe number... 180 was in the healthy range for my height and frame type... but then I put weight back on after crossing under the 200 mark and many life changes incurred.  My new goal is 170.  Realisticly speaking getting rid of the oversized stomach and getting healthier are my goals so whatever that translates to in pounds is much more important than what number I have set for myself.

ajtimes24u, on a personal note, it's good to see after my time off from here that one of my old CC friends is still around.  I hope you've had more success than I have at this.  Hopefully second time is the charm and it sticks for the rest of my life.

Hey night I was just reading some of the post and messages that we had.  I use all the suggestions and ideas that you have given me from last year.  Well I have had a rough time and I am back again.  I went up by 10 pounds from a lot of things.  Basically not focusing and stress but I am back and determined to go it yet again.  How about you?  How are you?  You were so focused and determined I remember when I started back on CC I was hoping to see if you were still a member.  Well congrat for taking the step again and I am here if u need me..

I was pretty beat down with life circumstances.  I ended up taking a job where the boss would have his feelings hurt if we didn't go to lunch (company paid).  That is nearly too much to resist for me given I have a wife and three kids to support... so any free food is just too tempting.   My time to exercise got eliminated in a long commute (moving and not having the $$ to join another gym) and stress poured on due to stupid things at work.   So, I definitely failed.  I didn't fail horribly (put back on about 20 pounds total), but I failed enough that I knew I had to come back here and make this site & my dedictation to counting calories and exercise (thus my health) the priority it should be.

Hopefully this next year eclipses the bad decisions and stress from this year.  Hopefully 2009 will be a great one for you too.

I wouldn't say you failed you just merely took a break and allowed other things to become priority.  I'm glad your back and know that you will be able to get those 20 pounds off with ease.  You did it before you can do it again.  Stay positive if you believe you can you will.

I've never been slim, my entire life I've been overweight, so I kind of came up with a number out of thin air.  However, it isn't entirely random.  My goal weight is 133.5, which is exactly half of my high weight, which was 267.  I think it would be awesome to say that I weighed half as much as I used to weigh.

That would be awesome sasquatch.  How long have you been on CC? 

Not long at all, only since September.  That's about when I first started seriously attempting to lose weight this time.  I actually lost about 70-80 pounds four years ago, and stayed from 185-195 until this year, when I gained ~20 of it back.  In September I decided that enough was enough, and I was ready to get it all off and keep it off.

That is good.  That is what I said also.  Enough is enough and I need to do this so I can get myself back to where I was.  Good luck and I am here if you want to be buddies.

Trish what you just described is me as well.  One week I would watch then I would go off the wagon and not.  A vicious cycle that is what it is.  When I was at my goal weight I used to say oh a little extra sauce won't hurt me but ultimately it did.

Keb I feel the same way to be at my goal weight would be amazing and I would feel like I can accomplish something.  Good Luck

I am sure this is not exactly what you are going for, but a medical ideal body weight (IBW) for females is 100 pounds plus 5 pounds for every inch of height over 5 feet.  For example, mine is 130 because I am 5'6".  But, I agree, feeling good is important.

Well Aj. I picked an old high school weight, because I have not seen that weight in over 14 years. I've always gotten 15 to 20 pounds close to that weight- after every child birth, but never reaching it. I get close to it, and here comes another baby. I've always gotten to.. 145 or 155. I even hit an all time high with my last baby after the baby 160. No big deal. I can handle it. Then..... I went up and up. Heaviest weight ever with one of my children was the baby girl. 287 on the nose, and it took me 8 months to drop down to 160. She only weighed 6 pounds.. I mean.. What was I eating! Then.. I got bigger and bigger after me and my ex husband really called it off. Then I started to see every number on the scale but 130-135. I've seen upper number's and lower number's. SO yes! It's time to get back to that old track body, basket ball, and volley ball weight. That's why I picked 130-135, because it's been so long since I've seen that number on the scale, and people always tell me. You can't go back to your old high school weight. I think that's a lot of BULL.

Edit to make word changes.

Original Post by sasquatch7:

I've never been slim, my entire life I've been overweight, so I kind of came up with a number out of thin air.  However, it isn't entirely random.  My goal weight is 133.5, which is exactly half of my high weight, which was 267.  I think it would be awesome to say that I weighed half as much as I used to weigh.

 I am totatlly in the same boat.  Right now I am working towards 212 lbs--the weight i was in 7th grade.  My ultimate goal is between 125 and 150. i dont know.  ill just figure out as i go.

My goal weight is 136.3 lbs. lol! The only reason I use this as my goal weight is because it was reccomended by CC.

Now that I am only 4.7 lbs. away from being at that weight, I think I would like to lose maybe 10 more lbs. beyond that but I will see as I go along. I am 5'6" and the best weight would probably be 130lbs. (5 lbs. for every inch after 5' 100 lbs.)

I think I would like my BMI to be 20 that way it gives me a little wiggle room on good and bad days.