Hello

[kitttty]

Hi!

I'm new to FitDay, but I started increasing my exercise and counting calories last week. Since I was 15 my weight has yo-yo'd between 165 and 265 pounds. Right now I'm at a very heavy point (258 pounds), and I'd like to get back down to around 180. I usually don't have any problems actually losing weight (because I have a home gym and I'm good about logging my calories). My problem is maintaining my weight once I reach my goal.

My recent weight explosion was due to a medication. Earlier this year my doctor put me on antidepressants, which lead to a weight gain of about 30 pounds in two months!!! It turns out my depression was actually related to a hormone imbalance and I didn't even need the antidepressants. Now I need to lose that 30 on top of the 50 I already needed to lose.

I've been looking through the forums a bit, and this seems like a friendly place, which is encouraging. I spent some time on PeerTrainer, and I absolutely hated it. It seemed like most people there endorse only a raw vegan diet and cleanses, which certainly aren't for me. There were also too many people in the forums who were there to only put down the fat people and make them feel worse!!!

I do have a question though for people who are more in-the-know. I am 5'9", which means my "normal" BMI is between 125 and 169 pounds. However, when I was 165 pounds I looked so skinny that people thought I was sick. I'm naturally curvy, and at that weight my bones were sticking out and I didn't like the way I looked. I'm aiming for 180 pounds, which is a BMI of about 26.5. Even though that is technically overweight, I feel that is the right weight for me. Does anyone else feel that the BMI chart is just totally inaccurate for their body?

Thanks, and it's good to be here!

[wildbeanerz]

Hi Kitttty ... Welcome to Fitday!

I honestly can't remember weighing less than 180 and being @ a size 16 squeezed into those jeans laying on the bed! But the top end of the average weight for a 5'10" woman is 174 and I don't know for sure where my goal weight is. I have more of a look that I am going for rather than a certain weight. Maybe I have more of a size that I am going for. But I feel that I am not a slightly built woman and would never want to look under weight just to fit the category.

Oh and yes, we are all friendly. I have never seen anyone put down someone else for being overweight. That is the reason we are all here. Just in different stages of our journeys.

[kitttty]

HI Wildbeanerz! Thanks for the welcome!

I hear you about going for a look instead of a number on the scale. I really just want to be healthy more than anything else. I have fractured my foot and ankle several times throughout my life (due to an old sports injury), and now it's arthritic. At age 32 I have arthritis!! I've found that the heavier I am the more it aches. If I can get to a point where I no longer notice any pain I will already have reached a goal!

As for sizes, I guess we're all different despite weight/height. When I was 165 pounds a size 12 was loose around my waist, but fit my hips and bust. However, my mom (who is only an inch shorter than me) was a size 16 when she reached 165 pounds.

[Nailkita]

Welcome,

I think health should be your main concern over the number on the scale as well.

I'm 5'11" and my weight's supposedly supposed to be between 149-179 ish. But when I hit the 190/180 area everyone I was around had met me AFTER I lost the 50lbs and were all going "WTH is wrong with you" and wondered why I was watching my food and refusing sugary drinks (I now just use my family's history of diabetes as an excuse to avoid questions).

So it's whatever you feel comfortable with. You're doing this for you not the number on the scales.

[01gt4.6]

Welcome to FitDay. Being a guy I can't say that I'm curvy but I do understand not liking the BMI #. I got down as low as 167 and thought I was looking decent but my BMI still had me as being over weight. Now that I look back at it, of all my different weights I liked my build the most at 178. It's a crazy #'s game, trust me. 20 years ago I remember weighing 192 and b/c of my bf% I was in the best shape of my life.

Just go until you like the way you look. I also think you'll body will tend to find it's own "natural" weight. Mine seems to be mid 170's. I can drop down in the 160's but always come back up to the 170's.

Hormones, medications, weight, depression and overall health can be tied together. Many people that lose weight get off of depression meds, bp meds, cholesterol meds, etc. Just as many people with depression gain weight, sometimes from the meds, sometimes just from eating. It's amazing though when we lose the weight, our overall health gets better.

[taubele]

I definitely think that the BMI numbers are sort of just a guideline -- like speed limit signs! The important thing is to be healthy and happy with your body. The number on the scale is just one (very small) way of indicating that to you.

It's more important to me that my blood sugar, cholesterol, and other numbers are healthy than whether or not I'm hitting some number that some guy got out of a formula I also think that when I look in the mirror and am satisfied, that the scale number won't matter at all! I have a number I'm looking to hit, but really, once I get around there I'll be going more for a body fat percentage and a certain "look" than anything else.