I'm below 200 lb!

I've actually hit two goals that I couldn't imagine being at again! Not only am I under 200 lb I have had a total weight loss of 75 pounds now! It's been more than a decade since I was under 200 lb. Probably closer to 18 years! I was 201 pounds when I got pregnant with my daughter and then I never saw the 100's again... so yeah 18 years...wow.

I've had a stall this last month and a half. I've had to work harder to get the 9 pounds that I got off in the last 6 weeks. I guess that's normal for the 4-month mark? And I started losing my hair... that's not making me happy...

Can anyone tell me how I can get that running tally of monthly weight-loss listed underneath my ticker? I've got it all written down elsewhere but I wanted to put it here.

Also how do we decide what a realistic goal weight would be? I don't want to be one of those people that never reaches their goal. But then again I don't want to put down a goal that would be too easy to get just so that I could say "I reached my goal!"

I'm 5' 5.5" with a medium frame.

Yay! That is amazing :) not sure about the ticker thing, but if you're not sure about what your ultimate goal weight should be, as your surgeon. Looking at a BMI chart will also give you a rough estimate.

Congrats on your great accomplishment! It is always so exciting to hit those big milestones. And yes, as you go on, the weight comes off more slowly. For me, I would have losses in spurts. Just stick to plan, make sure that you are drinking lots of fluids, and the weight will come off.

As for a goal weight, my goal was lower than my surgeon's. He believes that losing 50-60% of your excess weight is okay. I wanted to be in the Normal BMI range. That is where I am and I feel good. But in the end, only you can decide how your body feels and whether you are happy at a certain weight.

The tally is added in the signature (you type it in).

Ultimately you need to pick your goal. You can base it on your doctor's recommendation - I personally think most of them give a 'higher than' goal than what it could really be because of their statistics. I wanted to overachieve the average

You can base it on the BMI scale... you can pick your own number from thin air, or even try having a DEXA scan to see exactly where you are muscle/fat/bone wise (These are great, and I loved having mine).

But you have to be happy with wherever you end up, so you really need to pick it yourself.

I am 52, 5.5" tall and picked an arbitrary number of 145. It put me 5lbs under the 'normal' scale on the BMI charts, and I liked that. I got down to 136-138, and I really like it there, so now that 145 seems too big. I did a DEXA Scan and my fat count was something like 29% if I remember correctly. At that point I started considering another 5 lbs, but I didn't. I'm still on the fence about that, but the holidays and my not so stellar eating habits got in the way, so now I'm dealing with a small regain since Thanksgiving. We'll see if I ever get to 133, or if I am happy with the 136-138. But I AM getting back to that number, at least. I am currently, as of this morning, at 142.2.

Don't trust your 'medium frame' thoughts... I thought I was a large framed woman, but I'm not.

Congratulations on under 200!

As far as goal weight goes it's very hard to know when you've been MO for so long. I think it's good to have mini goals along the way, but I chose the top end of a normal BMI.

I highly recommend getting a Dexascan for bodyfat testing as you are closer to goal. Between excess skin and greater muscle mass from carrying around all the excess weight I ended up upping my 'normal' goal by 19 pounds. I did get lower than that but that was 'reaching goal' for me.

When my surgeon asked me what my goal weight would be I totally had no clue. I had been obese my whole life--even as a child. At 273 pounds with my past history,200 didn't even seem possible. I wanted to push myself though so I said 163 as that would be 100 pounds down. I didn't even whether I was large,medium or small framed because you couldn't really see my bones. After all my mother always told me I was largeboned when I came home from school sobbing because the kids tormented me about my size. Once I started losing though I quickly passed that 100 pound goal and was still headed down so I lowered my goal to 145 which at 5'6.5" was the top of a normal bmi. When I achieved that goal I was still losing and vets here advised me to see where the loss would stop. Today I weigh 117 to 120 which is the bottom end of a normal bmi. My rheumatologist suggests I keep it as low as I can and still be healthy because I have severe rheumatoid arthritis and am unable to take any of the NSAIDS usually used to treat it now. I have maintained my weight now for over 41/2 years and list from 273 to 120 in about 9 months. I won't say it's easy because I have to make smart food and exercise choices every day--but it is doable. I just take it one choice at a time and remind myself how much better my life is now than at 273. A before picture lives on my frig to remind me where I came from and to help focus .me to make the healthiest choices I can. If I can do this--you can too. Before and after pic to follow.

YAY!!! Congratulations on reaching One-derland! So happy for you!

At almost 5'6 and a medium frame, my personal goal would be between 125-140 pounds depending on your core muscle density. You will know when you get there what feels 'right.'