Physical Fitness & Weight Loss Challenge

Setting Realistic Weight Loss Goals

An important component in a SMART weight loss strategy is to have realistic expectations & weight loss targets.

It’s normal and understandable for you to want to lose weight quickly, but it’s important to realize that it’s going to take some time to lose all your extra weight. You have to be patient and give your body a chance to adjust to your new exercise and eating habits.

I know a few people who made good progress and lost quite a bit of weight over the course of a year, but instead of feeling great about themselves and their accomplishments, they felt like failures because they didn’t lose as much weight as quickly as they wanted.

I think they just had unrealistic expectations of how much weight they should be able to lose in a certain amount of time. Don’t let this happen to you.

One of my favorite quotes about success comes from Earl Nightingale, who said, “Success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal.”

As long as you continue making progress and moving forward toward your worthy ideal, you are already successful, even if you haven’t reached your ultimate goal.

Remember that you can’t always measure your weight loss progress with the scale. Some weeks you’ll experience more weight loss than others, and in some weeks you may even gain a bit of weight back.

You are also making progress by continuing to do regular exercise week after week, adding more duration & intensity to your workouts, feeling better and more energetic, losing inches and body fat, building muscle, making smarter food choices, and adopting healthier habits.

As long as you keep making progress, you are succeeding, even if you haven’t lost all the weight as quickly as you wanted.

What Are Some Realistic Weight Loss Targets?

When farmers plant bamboo, they know that in the first few years they will see very little signs of growth above the ground. Then, suddenly, the bamboo will shoot out and grow at a much faster rate than other plants.

The reason is that during those first few years, the bamboo plant is busily creating an intricate root network below ground that will provide it nutrition and support for its growth spurt.

The SMART weight loss strategy is similar. During the first 1-2 months, you may not notice as much weight loss as you would in more radical diet/exercise plans, but that’s because you are slowly building your own internal “root” network of healthy eating, exercise, and thinking habits that will support you throughout your weight loss journey.

Once the small changes that you are making begin to add up, the weight loss will accelerate over the next months.

Here are what I consider to be some realistic weight loss targets to start with...

Target # 1 - Stick with the Program for at Least Two Months

Your main goal during the first two months should be to stick with the program while you build your “root” support network. Continue to exercise regularly, slowly increase your workout duration & intensity, and make small, healthy changes to your eating habits.

If you do end up losing some weight during this time, that’s great. But it shouldn’t be your main goal. Keep visualizing that bamboo plant creating its intricate root network below ground as it gets ready to burst out and have a breakthrough, and remember that it’s exactly what you are doing too.

Target # 2 - Lose 10% of Your Body Weight In the Next Six to Eight Months

Once you’ve reached the 2 month mark, your next target should be to lose about 10% of your body weight during the next 6 to 8 months, or if you don’t have too much weight left to lose, your target should be to reach a Body Mass Index (BMI) of about 25 in the next 3 to 9 months (depending on how much weight you need to lose to get there.)

If you are already below a BMI of 25, then see the section at the end of the article.

Here is how you figure it out:

Target Weight 1 = CW - [(CW x 10)/100]

Target Weight 2 = (25 x Height x Height) / 703

Where ‘CW’ is your current weight in pounds (without clothes & shoes), and ‘Height’ is your height in inches (without shoes.)

Your overall target is to reach the larger or the two target weights.

Example # 1 - 5′ 5′’ and weigh 180 pounds

Target Weight 1 = 180 - [(180 x 10) / 100] = 162 pounds

Target Weight 2 = (25 x 65 x 65) / 703 = 150 pounds

Target is to reach ~ 162 pounds in the next 6-8 months

Example # 2 - 5′ 8′’ and weigh 169 pounds

Target Weight 1 = 169 - [(169 x 10) / 100] = 152.1

Target Weight 2 = (25 x 68 x 68) / 703 = 164

Target is to reach ~ 164 pounds in the next 3-9 months (closer to 3)

Example # 3 - 5′ 8′’ and weigh 179 pounds

Target Weight 1 = 179 - ([179 x 10) / 100] = 161

Target Weight 2 = (25 x 68 x 68) / 703 = 164

Target is to reach ~ 164 pounds in the next 3-9 months (closer to 9)

Remember that this is just a target, keep going even if it takes you a bit longer to get there. If you get to your target sooner than expected, that’s great. Just move on to the next target.

Creating Short Term Targets

Instead of leaving your target 6 to 8 months into the future, a useful technique is to break your long-term target into 5 pound intermediate targets.

In example # 1 above, you would break down the 18 pound loss into four intermediate targets: 175 pounds, 170 pounds, 165 pounds, and 162 pounds. Having these intermediate targets gives you extra motivation and a chance to celebrate your accomplishments more regularly.

In either case, you should aim for losing about 0.25 to 1 pound per week.

Target # 3 - Maintain Your New Weight Range for at Least 2 Months

Research shows that alternating between goals to lose a certain amount of weight and then maintaining your new weight for a few months provide the best results over the long term.

Your next goal should be to keep the new weight you achieved from target # 2 for at least 2-3 months.

If you continue to lose weight, that’s great. If you stay around the same weight level for the next 1 or 2 months, that’s also good.

Your weight may vary by 1-3 pounds around your target weight. Just keep doing regular exercise, maintain your healthy eating habits, and keep you eye on your weight to make sure it doesn’t start to go up again.

After, you complete your maintenance phase for 2-3 months, then consider going for another 10% weight reduction goal cycle.

Keep repeating this until you can bring your BMI back to a bit below 25, which will put you in the healthy weight range for adults.

 

If you are a bit disappointed because of the amount of time that it could take you to lose all your extra weight, just keep in mind that you are going to be making steady progress throughout the process. Think of it as a journey toward a healthier you that will last you for the rest of your life.

If you approach it from a long-term life perspective, what difference does it make if it takes you 18 months, 2 years, or even 3 years to reach your ideal weight instead of a just a year? You’ll still have the rest of your life to enjoy your healthier weight and lifestyle.

Health & Fitness Goals Below a BMI of 25

Once your BMI goes below 25, you are no longer considered overweight, but you could still be carrying more body fat than is healthy for your body type, so you still might want to lose some weight to account for that.

One of the best ways to determine what your ideal body weight should be is to use your body fat percentage as a guide rather than relying on BMI alone.

It’s also possible for some people to be healthy & fit even when their BMI is higher than 25, but these people tend to be bodybuilders, athletes, or “big boned” people with heavy bones & a lot of muscle.

 

This article is part of the physical fitness and weight loss challenge. Click here to learn more and join the challenge.