It occurred to me yesterday that I have a ‘normal’ amount of weight to lose now. I am in the overweight category on the body mass index chart; I am no longer obese nor morbidly obese. I have between fifteen and fifty pounds left to lose, depending on how you want to look at it, but I am no longer in need of dropping triple digits.
It’s a strange feeling to know that I could potentially drop just slightly over what the British call a stone and be at a weight that I could be content with. To me, that seems like the type of thing many people I know might say. I have often heard friends speaking about how they would like to lose ten to twenty pounds. I can’t believe that that is where I currently am at.
Even the slightly more daunting possibility of losing another fifty seems so much more realistic than the more than ninety pounds I have already rid myself of. I honestly can’t get over that fact that I have gotten to this place. I am going to make it!
Then, of course, the question becomes: where exactly will I make it to? I just mentioned that I have between fifteen and fifty pounds I would still like to drop, but that is a fairly wide spread. Where are my numbers coming from?
There are six possible goal weights that I may decide to strive for:
159.2 – a normal body mass index reading
150.0 – the goal I posted when beginning this journey
133.0 – half my weight from my highest point
127.3 – half my weight since starting this blog
126.0 – 140 down from my highest point
124.6 – 130 down since starting this blog
The first possibility is not very likely. I think that simply getting to that point and stopping would leave me worried that I would easily slip back into the overweight category. I’m pretty confident that I will be moving past this weight without looking back.
I’m not too proud to admit that the goal of 150 that is recorded on the side of this blog was picked arbitrarily and because it was a nice, round, easy number to aim for. It never meant much to me apart from that. I needed something specific to work towards when I started out and it is a goal that has served me well, but I still suspect that it is not the point at which I would be truly satisfied.
133 is the number that I think of when I contemplate where I want to be. It really signifies something important to me and is the point I have referred to before as my ‘secret goal’. This – or close to it – is where I actually suspect I will end up.
All three of the final goal weights are there because I don’t like to discount any possibility. I do not know if they are overly important to me, but they are still numbers that represent significant milestones and I am hesitant to dismiss them right away. My best guess is that I will get down to 133 and then make my way to at least the 127 point so that I have a range within which I can comfortably fluctuate. If I am actually able to stay around the 130 mark I think that I would be very happy and healthy there.
All of this is hearsay, of course, until I actually close in a little more on these numbers. Contrary to the focus of this post, I am not overly concerned right now with what the scale is telling me. Rather I want to concentrate on continuing with the healthier eating and activity levels that I have now incorporated into my life.
To me, the numbers aren’t very important at this point, but I still find value in examining where I want to be because it reminds me of what I need to do to get there. I will be listening closely to my body over the coming months to figure out exactly how much weight is right for me to lose. In the meantime, I am still excited to be at this stage. I am actually thrilled that I am overweight and that I may still have fifteen to fifty pounds left to drop. And I am especially pleased that I have reached the part of my journey where I don’t feel like any of this is insurmountable!
FOOD & BEVERAGES:
- 12 glasses of water throughout the day
- 1 banana
- 1 small Mandarin orange
- 1 wrap on a soft tortilla shell with roast chicken, grated cheese, lettuce, dried cranberries, fat free Miracle Whip, mustard, and pepper
- 9 pieces of a California sushi roll with soy sauce
- 1 pear
- 2 1/2 cups orange pepper and mushrooms with calorie-wise three cheese ranch dressing
EXERCISE:
- 25 minute workout video
- 1 hour and 30 minutes of walking completed in 3 outings (25 minutes long, 45 minutes long, and 20 minutes long)
- 1 hour Belly Dancing For Fitness class
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You have done such an amazing job! You'll know what you want to weigh as you get closer. Good job not focusing too much on the scale. Have a great day!
ReplyDeleteKudos to your progress so far, you are truly an inspiration for me!
ReplyDeleteYou're doing great. As great as that feeling of dropping from Obese City to overweight is, it's even better to slip into the normal range. And I suspect you'll find that hanging out on the very outskirts of normal won't quite be good enough for you anymore.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the great work!
I started with a goal of 145 at first. When I got there, I knew that I wanted to lose more to be where I wanted to be. When I reached 135 (my next goal), I decided on 130. I eventually made it to 125, not on purpose, but that's where my body went to and got comfortable at.
ReplyDeleteJust take it a little at a time and you'll know when you are where you want to be.
I would not set a specific goal. I would just go to where you feel comfortable.
ReplyDeleteIt is fantasitc to hear you talking normal numbers, you have done such a fantastic job bringing your numbers down in such a short time.
ReplyDeleteYou are Amazing.
Sheilagh
266, I think you will know where you want to be when you get there based on how you feel & look. My scale weight is more than most people think I weigh so just keep up the great work & your bod will tell you when you are there! Doing great!
ReplyDeleteI know I'm being overly serious here, and you are doing amazingly well, but I often wonder if you're getting enough calories and eating enough. I know some days you eat more than others, and you're getting results that I certainly am not getting, but generally I look at your daily intakes in think they seems pretty low. If you're healthy and losing, then I guess your body can handle it! I've thought this for a long time and haven't had the nerve to say it. Maybe it's because I wish I could eat those amounts in a day and not put myself in deprivation mindset!
ReplyDeleteYou are amazing!
ReplyDeleteThanks, everyone!
ReplyDeleteLeslie, I really appreciate your comment; please don't ever feel like you can't bring anything up here as my aim is for this blog to be a completely honest potrayal of this journey! I do not track my calories as a rule, but based on when I tracked them over a ten day period back near the start of this journey, and on when I periodically check in to make sure I am still on track, I eat anywhere from 1600 to 900 calories on a given day with the range falling mostly around the 1200-1250 mark. I just checked in with the above list of food and it comes in at a total of 1297 calories. Apart from the exercise that I record on this blog I live a very sedentary life, so I believe the lower end of the healthy calorie scale is probably the best place for me to be, food-wise. I have never found it a struggle and I do not feel as though my energy levels are suffering (actually I think it is the opposite) since adopting this new eating strategy. I did speak with a fitness/nutrition person less than a month into this blog and they assured me - after knowing the exact numbers of my daily calorie, fat, protein, etc. intake for a week and a half and asking questions about my lifestyle - that I was doing the right thing. Right now I am confident that I am eating enough, but am certainly not set in my ways - I will happily change my food patterns should the need arise in the future. I hope this responds to you concern and I truly hope you know how much I appreciate your comment! It really does my spirit good to know that there are people out there that care about me and want to see me do this the right way! Thank you!
Hi again 266 - Sounds like you're doing it the right way, and your progress is remarkable. It's always evident in your posts that you are busy and full of energy, so obviously your being well-nourished and taking great care of yourself. I hope to have half the success you've been achieving, and maybe if I get my calories lower, that can happen! Thanks for responding and keepup the good work.
ReplyDelete