Day 197: What’s in a Number?
The farther down this road I go the blurrier the destination seems to become. Let me explain what I mean a little bit. When I was at 400 pounds I decided that my ultimate goal was to weigh 240 pounds. It was kind of a dart thrown in the dark but the number seemed so far away at that point that 240 was a nice round number. When I started reevaluating where I was at, I decided that 240 wasn’t the number that I wanted. I decided that 220-225 would be a more fitting goal. Heck, according to BMI guidelines I would have to drop clear down to 187 to fit into the “normal” range for my height. I know that 187 is not a healthy weight for me, not if I’m all cut up anyway (which is definitely the plan). Rachel from Body By Pizza reaffirmed my thinking on the matter and she actually worded it way better than I ever could:
‘Tunnel vision’ is a side-effect most of us will experience at some point thanks to the many misconceptions, misinformation, and plethora of stigmata surrounding weight-loss. I am no different. Did you know that the ‘ideal body weight’ for someone of my gender and height is 118-120 pounds? These ‘one size fits all’ ideals crafted by a bunch of suits and medical persona can wreck some serious havoc on the psyche of individuals that fall just outside of the ‘norm’.
I was getting all amped up and refocused about my new weight loss goal and then I got an email from a reader that totally blindsided me:
Question for you, you are always so upbeat and energized and excited about the results you are seeing, have you hit a rut or been at a place where you feel like your just plateauing (however you spell that) where all that hard work and eating just seems to not be getting you the results you think you should have? Thats me this week, for the first time ever with working out I have actually been very frustrated this week. I gained 3 pounds, increased body fat by 3% and my measurements either increased or stayed the same. Yet at the same time I feel better, and I have taken before and current pictures in a bikini and they look better, you actually see a change, so I guess I’m wondering where my body fat is going, and why it keeps going up. I started at 19% body fat now up to 26.3….. What the heck… I believe I am increasing muscle mass but canot get rid of body fat. I feel as though I am eating correctly, and I do now eat 6 small portions of healthy food a day, and drink water. etc…Anyway I just need to vent and am wondering what things you have found helpful to get you through those “tough” times. Any suggestions??
I read the email and was in a bit of shock. As far as I could tell she was doing all the right things but she clearly wasn’t happy with the numbers. I’m obviously not qualified to give her any fitness or nutrition information but I could definitely identify with her. I replied from the heart and I think my response shocked me even more than her email. I totally taught myself something while writing this:
A couple of things: Sorry to hear your having a rough time this week. I’m not really the right person to ask about the body fat increase and such because I’m really not a nutrition or body composition expert by any stretch of the imagination. I also have kind of a hard time comparing you and I because I was waaay fat and that is not your situation at all.
As far as the hitting a rut part or frustration part, I think I might be able to help some. I haven’t had any issue with getting results, but I attribute that mainly to the huge amount of weight I had/have to lose. The program will probably keep working for me as-is until I get to my last 30-40 pounds. Then, I might need to make some adjustments. All that being said, I have been kind of frustrated the last few weeks. I haven’t been able to lift ANY weights for the last six weeks so I haven’t been losing weight as quickly as I had hoped. I’m still steadily going down but because I’m not building the lean muscle my metabolism isn’t as fast.
There are a few things you said that really stood out to me; “I feel better, and I have taken before and current pictures in a bikini and they look better, you actually see a change.” That’s actually a really important statement. I know it’s hard, but what are the chances you are too caught up in the numbers? You’re at a point where you’re fine tuning. You’re not making a huge body transformation. Have you been more stressed lately? Was there anything leading up to your weigh-in that might have skewed your results. Are you always weighing at the same time of day (this was huge for me, I fluctuate as much as 2 pounds during the day). If your inches increased in some areas, were they the right areas? Sometimes more inches isn’t necessarily a bad thing. How are your sleep patterns? These are all factors.
It’s hard not to focus on measurements while you’re trying to improve your image but you know you’re healthier and that’s a HUGE deal. I also think you’re at a point where achieving your IdealShape (see what I did there) is going to take some trial and error. Like I said, you’re at more of a fine tuning stage of your weight loss. Weight Loss requires a certain amount of faith I think. It’s unfortunate because we have a very “results now” attitude as a society, but it’s also fortunate because I think it makes us mentally stronger when we believe in the process and it ends up working for us. Nutrition and fitness experts know the science behind weight loss but all of our bodies are so different. There is going to be some troubleshooting.
HELLO! Areyouserious? Where did that come from? I had never even said that to myself let alone somebody else. Even when Shan at The Fabulous Fatties decided to ditch the scale for good it didn’t really click (at least in my conscious thought). How many of us get totally focused on the numbers and miss the entire point of the journey? We are all trying to get healthier and what’s “normal” for me isn’t necessarily “normal” for you, and vice versa.
All this has led me to one conclusion, I’ll know healthy when I get there. I won’t stop working until I have a confident feeling that I have actually arrived. Once I’ve arrived I’ll do everything I can to stay there. I probably will use things like body composition, the ability to reach fitness goals, and actual health measures like cholesterol, blood pressure, and heart rate as measuring sticks, but ultimately I will ask myself: “Is there anything I can’t do because of my health?” When I can honestly answer that question with a resounding HELL NO, I will know that my goals have been met.
Amen! I have become a firm believer in listening to your body not a chart or what you may think your ideal body weight would be.
You will know healthy when you see it and that is exactly what you should be is healthy.
I really think that if everyone would just realize it is not about the number on the scale. It is about all of the other things first then the scale will fall into place.
Great Post!!
Couldn’t agree more. My ‘goal’ is 147, total stab in the dark. Picked it because of a stupid chart that said the high range for my height was 147. Just wanted something to satisfy my geeky need to chart things. I think I will know when I hit my true goal by the way I feel though. Goals are good, being obsessed with them, not so good.
I heartily agree. Numbers and charts can be fine to get you started so you have a target to shoot for, but in the end, it’s all about how you feel. I’m almost 5′9″ and one chart I saw said my weight range should be 120-145. 120? Yeah, I got that much in my bra. As you start seeing progress, it’s important to re-evaluate your goals. Otherwise, we get so set on that one magic number that we neglect other things. Think about how your clothes fit, how strong you are, how much endurance you have, and again, how you FEEL, because those are all much more accurate measures of progress.
Good strategy. I’ve always had 180 as my ultimate goal in mind, but your idea here certainly seems healthier, both mentally and physically, than fixating on a number.
Really a wonderful post Ryan, you hit it right on the head. In order for me to get down to a “normal” weight for my height, I’d have to be 194 lbs. Maybe that’s realistic, maybe not. If I get to that weight, great. If I’m not quite there yet, and my body is obviously starting to tell me “hold on there buddy, not so fast”, then I’ll listen and be happy with how far I’ve gotten.
as always your words as fantastic and your ability to INSPIRE as you work toward your own goals—-amazing.
and thats not an easy feat to achieve.
I also wanted to thank you so very much for your support of me as well.
I really appreciate it, Ryan.
Tremendously.
When I was 213, 150 seemed unreachable. At some point, I changed to 148 (that’s me at BMI = 25, the overweight/normal line). Now that I’m there, I’m healthy as can be, and look okay, but still flabby. Maybe I can get to 130, I’m quite sure I can get to 140. But I’m not fooling myself it’s about health at this point, it’s aesthetics only.
Many years ago, a gym told me I should weigh 115. As Donna said, so eloquently–
Loved your guest post at BGB. I love hearing men get real.
Isn’t it pathetic how wrapped up in the numbers we get? I fall victim all the time too but I know what happens to me when I don’t weigh – binge-city! Thanks for the great reminders & congrats on all your success!