Goal Setting Help

Is 310 to 180 in a year a reasonable goal?

130 lb in a year is certainly possible for some people. I'll be 4 months out tomorrow and I'll be down somewhere between 95 and 100. However I was 442 on the day of surgery. You're a relative lightweight in this population which will lower your avg rate of loss.

That might be a little hot. I started out at 320 and got down to 225 in about six months and have been at what some would call a stall ever since. Two days ago I weighed 216.5. A new low for me but I fully expect that to bounce back up some. Remember the scale tells only part of the story. I think its more important to establish proper life long eating and exercise habits. If you do that you will continue to lose weight and tone up. Your body will have time to adjust and you won't look like a refugee recently liberated from a prison camp. I'm losing weight much more slowly now, but my clothes continue to get loose and more importantly my muscle mass is slowly returning. I'm not ready to post any photos of myself yet, but I am pleased with the direction things are going. Would I have liked to be where I want to be in just a year? Of course, but it took many decades to get me to where I was, so I need to remind myself that slow and steady is the fasted way for me to get to Onederland. And I fully intend to get there, just don't know how long it will take. 17 pounds to go last time I checked!  

Well, I went from 310 to 200 in a year and to 180 in 15 months.  I average between 195 to 205 and feel great.  At a 180, I felt sick and looked bad. Set your goal and you can do it!

everyones different.  I had my surgery on May 21 '07.  I was 346 and weigh 171 today.  175 down in about 10 months.  For some reason I've always been great at losing.  Now I need to transition to "maintaining" and living my new and better habits. Brian

It depends on your height, age, and how much exercise you will (or can) put in.  Tomorrow is one year for me.  I went from 375 (a month before surgery, perhaps only 350 at surgery) to 208 this morning, at 6'0", 30 years old, and going to the gym about 3-times a week.  I probably could have gotten under 200 were it not for a 2-month lull where I wasn't trying very hard and lost little weight.  180 would have been hard to imagine, but would have been possible _maybe_ with a 12-month biggest-loser type effort (again, though, I was starting out heavier than you). If you are under 40, 5'10" or under, and willing to exercise a fair amount  and watch what you eat (reasonably, not like hard-core dieting), then 310 to 180 should be very doable.  If you are older or work less then it might be tough because you won't burn as many calories.  And being taller makes it less likely because you'll be pushing up against being merely "overweight" rather earlier in the process, and after that point the loss slows down dramatically for most people because it becomes harder to lose fat without losing lean mass (which burns more calories). Best of luck.

ardberg pretty much hit it on the head. there's a lot of factors to consider but it's possible given the right motivation, age, exercise and diet. i lost over 140 in seven months. i got sick though so it doesn't count. yes, it can be done but count on adhearing strictly to the rules on everything plus exercise. i lost so fast i didn't buy clothes, just sweat stuff until i stabalized.

so yeah, go for it. even with surgery it's going to be tough but doable. you're going to stall witht the best of them. that's when you really have to keep the faith. your body will have to take time to adjust so it stops losing no matter what it is you want it to do. wait it out and continue to do the same thing. it'll happen! carbonblob

Yes with a but.  Just be willing to adjust if necessary.  Who knows how it will go for each individual but go for it.

I went from 260 to 180 in a year's time - to reiterate, your mileage will vary.

Starting at 310, which isn't that high unless you are only 5' tall, losing that much in one year might be a stretch but as others have pointed out, a lot of factors come into play - which surgery you have, your age, your activity level after surgery (exercise!!!), etc...  I had the VSG and lost  120 LBS  over 18 months. and I'm a relatively young 44.  Your goal of 310 to 180 is probably do-able.