Adjusted My Goal

[LindaS 316]

Last year, my goal was chosen without a lot of thought. My surgeon recommended I try for a goal of 135-145 pounds. I'm 5'7.

I had weighed 145 my senior year of high school, and 140 was between my surgeon's recommendation, so I put down 140 as my ultimate goal.

It also made my ultimate goal match my youngest daughter's weight: 115 pounds.

Since then, I have done more research about my ultimate weight goal. I learned that I will be at a normal weight according to BMI charts when I am about 161 pounds.

This really surprised me. Why was my goal 21 pounds below "normal"? Although 140 is still within that normal range, I didn't realize the normal range for BMI was so big!

I have considered changing my goal weight numerous times, and I know I've talked about it here as well.

Today, I decided to do it. I adjusted my ultimate goal by 15 pounds. My new goal is 155.

I'm not giving up on losing weight. I am not changing anything that I am doing. I just feel like this ultimate goal is a good place for me to be. It makes me have a normal BMI and gives me wiggle room as well.

When I get to 155, I might change my mind and my ultimate goal again. But for now, I think this is a more realistic goal for where I want to be.

[Caradina 65]

My goal is set at 150, which will be a 22 BMI, but I would be "normal" at 169. I'm thinking I will reevaluate when I get to 169 and then see. I have a feeling I will be just fine at that point.

[Catracks 865]

Funny you mention this. I went to my 3 month appointment and I brought up goal weight. I thought he told me 110, but he said it's more like 105 for someone who is 5'1". What he gave me was the lowest end of the height/weight chart. My original goal was 130 and around a size 6 pant which is normal BMI. Now I know 105 is too small for me even with a small frame. I would be wearing size 0. I'm thinking about adjusting my goal to 125 or 120. I just don't know anymore.

At 105 my BMI would be just under 20. At 120 it would be 22.7. At 130 it would be 24.6. I thought 18.5 - 24.9 was normal.

Why do these surgeons set the goal SO LOW?

[renee5d 13]

I am 5'7" too and my surgeon set my goal weight at 170 lbs!!! My personal goal is 155 as well...I was once 155 and was able to maintain that weight for about 5 years, that's why I chose it!

[coops 1,790]

Linda, your post makes a lot of sense... sometimes the numbers just don't make sense. Remember, when you get to that first goal, see how you feel! I should imagine you'll be jumping for joy! I know I would at 150-155... and I am only 5'2 ...lol!

You're over 2/3s of the way there... let us know how you get on! =]

[coops 1,790]

Catracks ...110lbs-105lbs! OMG! I just can't imagine an adult at that weight- well actually my mother is probablt in that range and she is, at 78, all skin and bones; she is weak and frail and looks bloody awful! (In general good health but doesn't eat... of should I say eats very little!)

I am nearly 5'2', so not much difference in our height and I honestly can't see myself at such a low weight... my surgeon said I should shoot for 154lb, which I felt was too heavy ... still not there mind, but that is another story! I am really not interested in being anywhere near the bottom end of the BMI, at BMI of between 27-24 would make me happy!

This just goes to show how very subjective the weight loss goal actually is!

[Catracks 865]

Thanks Coops. I think I will stick that that 130 goal. Like Renee, this is a weight that my body seems to settle at. What's really odd is that my family was used to seeing me weigh 100 pounds as an underweight teenager. When I got a little older and put on some weight they thought I was overweight and really got on my case. In reality, I was just fine.

@ Linda - I like your new goal.

[LindaS 316]

One of the key reasons for me to decide that I didn't really want 140 as a goal is my 16 and 17 year old daughters.

They are about 5'5 and 5'4, so they are a bit shorter than I am, but they both are in the 23 to 24 BMI range and weigh more than 140 pounds.

I think my girls are healthy weights and look great. One of the things I really want to change is to make sure my girls have a healthy attitude about food and exercise and understand portions, etc. I feel like my having a goal that is below their actual weight wouldn't accomplish that especially since there is nothing wrong with their weight/bmi.

My youngest daughter is 5'2, and as I said, she weighs 115 pounds. I think she it tiny at this size. I couldn't imagine her (or you, Catracks) at 105. As I said, I already think she is tiny. She wears size 0, and it can be hard to find clothes that fit her.

I want to be at a weight that is healthy and maintainable.

@renee, you and I were very close in beginning weights. Congratulations on your loss to date! I am actually 5'7.5". My original goal was to be under 200, and I felt amazing reaching that. I think I'd be very comfortable between 170 and 180, but I keep thinking of my daughters and being a healthy example, so 155 it is.

[BenisaMartim4 369]

My doc didn't even give me a goal. I am 5'9". I set mine at 180 because that is the smallest I can ever remember being. I was 16 years old and wore a 14/16. To me, I looked thin then. You could see bones. I would be pleased to get back there. I KNOW my hubby will like it 

Sent from my iPad using VST

[carbgrl 119]

Like the joke goes, I want my goal to be weight I was at when I first went on a diet 140-145. I'm 5'5 and for me less than that is to skinny.

[Charlotte 23]

I am 5'9" and doctor set my goal at 160 but not sure about that, I was 125 when I got married and was happy with it, but now I'm thinking more like 130-140. I think I will just wait and see how I feel when I get to 160.

[lsereno 2,525]

I set my goal at 135 (BMI of about 21). My Doctor did not set a goal for me. Goal weight is really personal and has many factors:

• How much did you weigh to start with and how long?: It's going to affect how much extra skin you have and how heavy your bones are.
  
• How much muscle have you retained/added/lost during the process? 10 lbs. of muscle is a different volume than 10 lbs of fat.
  
• How old are you? As we age, our face looks better with a little more weight (one reason I didn't shoot for my youthful weight of around 120).
  
• What kind of build do you have/prefer? Are your bones large, are your hips wide, is your chest large, do you prefer a more rounded look? If so, that's a few pounds there.
  

I feel great at my goal.

Lynda

[nowatgoal 77]

I think you are spot on to reevaluate your goal. I'll share my "goal story". You are a teensie bit taller than I am (I'm just barely 5'7) and when I first was trying to set a goal I wasn't sure what to make it. I remember just before my surgery, I came on here and asked how people were setting their goals because my doctor never gave me one. As a small boned person, using the BMI chart, I ended up with 3 goals:

First - 150 - I knew I'd be happy at this weight and figured it was a good point at which I could evaluate how I felt and then decide if I wanted to take any more off.

Second - 140 - this was a weight I had been before and knew I was really happy with this size and I thought it might be a good second goal depending on how I felt at 150.

Third - 130 - this was a dream goal weight and not one I ever really thought I'd shoot for but thought maybe with the surgery I might someday reach this.

When I finally got to 150, I knew my body was not done losing. I was not able to take in enough calories to maintain 150 and knew it would be easy to keep losing so I decided to shoot for my second goal. Today, I reached 140 and I definitely feel like I could maintain this weight without trouble. My body seems to have leveled off and I'm very happy with how I look. I'm wearing a size 4-6 in bottoms and smalls in tops. I don't feel the need to lose any more so I will ignore my third goal of 130. I can see myself losing a few more pounds and giving myself a little buffer but I'm not "trying" to lose at this point. I think it's nice that my body naturally leveled off at this weight because it means I don't have to fight to stay here. I've dieted my entire teenage/adult life and I don't want to feel like I have to diet any more in order to stay a certain weight.

[Miriam 50]

Funny, because when I came in for my first doctor's / NUT's appointment pre-op, I was told to write down my goal weight (which is higher than my current goal weight - let's see if I can make it there) and was told by the NUT that that was unrealistic because statistically, VSG patients only lose around 75% of their overweight. Well - who cares about statistics??? I care about my body and will do whatever I can to reach MY personal goal - at the goal my NUT mentioned based on statistics (!), I would be around a size 12, and I'd like to hope that I can do better than that (obviously not right away but eventually). Of course, if I do end up a size 12 I won't be too upset - it's still way better than a 24, but the bottom line is that it's my body and I have to feel comfortable with it, not my NUT. So same goes for you in the opposite direction - you do what feels right for you, not what your NUT or surgeon thinks...

[Catracks 865]

It just seems like my surgeon wants to hang on to those silly statistics. On my first appointment he told me: You can only expect to lose 50% of your excess weight so you will probably end up at around 180. When I told him I would be into child's sizes at 105, he told me 130 was okay since that would be about 50% of my excess weight lost.

Is there some kind of new math that I'm not aware of? It kind of pissed me off a little because I just about hit his 50% mark at 3 months out and it wasn't acknowledges.

Oh well. It doesn't really matter. It's not a competition, but it does help me to get results when people tell me I can't do something. I have an authority figure problem huh?

Don't get me wrong. I like my surgeon. He's a great guy, but he drives me nuts!