Monday, February 11, 2008

Weight Loss Throwdown: Monday Update

I had another decent week and I'm sooo close to being within the healthy or "normal" BMI range. I weighed in at 146.6 this morning and that's a BMI of 25.1, which is still overweight. But when I get to 145, I'll be at 24.9, which is normal. I'm not going to let myself be controlled by the numbers, but it's just a milestone that I plan to surpass and never see again! The next milestone will be the 130s!

I went shopping over the weekend and got some size 8 pants! I don't remember the last time I wore an 8. Not even in high school! (Wow, that's embarrassing to acknowledge.) But this isn't my goal weight, so I got the pants at a second-hand store. I don't plan to stay at this weight for long!

But I do have a question for all of you out there in blogland. How does a person determine their goal weight? I've never been at a healthy weight in my adult life, so I don't know what weight will feel right. According to some schools of thought, a 5'4" medium -frame woman should weigh about 120. But I don't know if I'd even be able to maintain that weight without killing myself. So I guess what I'm saying is that I don't know what my goal weight is until I actually get there. Right now my goal is just to have a healthy BMI and then to get out of the 140s!

Previous weight: 148.4
Current weight: 146.6

Pounds to go for 7%: 5.8

And now, a moment of silence...for my pants. My favorite comfy sweatpants don't fit anymore. They're just too big! Yes, they were roomy to begin with, but now they just don't stay up. I guess I'll just be on the lookout for a new pair of SMALLER favorite pants!

8 comments:

Alisa said...

Julie!!! Holy crap, what a different tone than last week's entry. 2 pounds in one week, not too shabby. I have a feeling Kariann will be giving you some crap for this :). That is awesome about your pants size 8 and your sweat pants. It makes me want to see you and what you look like. I too plan to post about how good I feel today. I had a decent week, but not stellar, still my weight is coming along ok and my pants are fitting me better. Looks like you got payoff for all your hard work.
As for you weighing 120- I think that is an ok weight for SOME women your height, but I think it would be incredibly tricky to maintain (I could be wrong). For me to be at 120 it is a BMI of 20.6 which the equivalent for me would be weighing 108 (I checked). I have weighed everything all over the board and can tell you how my body looked at each weight. I actually look pretty darn good myself at 120. If I am 110 I look teeny. When you guys came to visit in AZ with Mom and Dad I was about there and Dad thought I was TOO small. That weight is hard to maintain, although fun to be at. So I think as long as you are in a healthy BMI and you are happy with how your clothes fit and how you looke, but most importantly you are eating in a comfortable, realistic way you, that you would be happy with for the rest of your life, then that is a good weight. It takes experimentation. I am still learning.
PS you know what Erin weighs and looks good at and she is the same height as you- she would be a good person to talk to. I don't think 120 is something she thinks is very maintainable.

Alisa said...

I stopped making sense in the middle there sorry-- you weighing 120 is the equivalent of me weighing 108-- I totally messed that up.

Julie said...

I understood what you meant. I do think 120 might be too small. But that's assuming I could even get down that far...

Erin said...

Julie, congrats! I wish I had a 2 pound week, not the case. Started my period this last week and that didn't help. I was up last monday and so I'm down this week but not by much more than a pound. As for the 120, I agree with Alisa in that you'll have to see how you feel as you get smaller. I know for myself I couldn't maintain that without starving myself and don't know if I could even get there. I was probably about 125 or so when I came to visit for the marathon, maybe higher, I really don't know and I was thin, at least for me but I didn't maintain that weight. So good luck. My goal is to be more like 130, if I could maintain 128 that would be nice, but the weight is coming off much slower now.

Unknown said...

Julie, you rocked it like a star this week! Kudos to you (I mean the candy bar...I wish I could feed you one...or ten!)

As for Goal Weight, it depends on what your goal is, of course. Once you're at a healthy BMI, you choose what works best with your lifestyle and what you want. The Healthy Range is really quite generous so you have room to play. 10-down for a special occasion, 10-up for Normal Life...you choose.

My only suggestion, buy cute clothes starting from your Healthy BMI weight down to whatever you want. Take it from me, it's no fun when all your Cute Clothes are for when you're skinny! You may need a little wiggle room and want to look good while your wigglin', not frumpy!

As for the old sweats, burn 'em, baby ~ you ain't never goin' back there!

Julie said...

Believe me, just because the pants are used, doesn't mean they're not cute--they are and I love 'em! But I'm not gonna invest a lot of money in a new wardrobe that I may only use for a month or so (hopefully not much more).

Erin said...

Julie, well I am now tagging you since Alisa tagged me. Sorry! Good luck.

anna said...

congratulations! first of all, your weightloss has been incredible! i'm so proud!! secondly, the day your comfy sweatpants don't fit can feel like a sad day but it's soooo joyous! i'm excited for you. btw, i have never ever been a size 8. it must feel awesome!!

i don't know how to determine a healthy weight. so i always go by body fat %. stay within the athletic range and you are good. for me, weight really is just a number. sometimes you gain and it's muscle. sometimes you lose and it's muscle. getting body fat % tested helps to determine how much is muscle and how much is fat. i've already given my speech on BMI, don't get me started. ha ha!