PWLP: Week Thirteen - Lesson Three

Personal Evaluation

1. How did you arrive at your "right weight" number?   I used the body mass index to create a range of ideal weights for a female of my height (5'8"). On the one website I came across, it said for someone of my height, the ideal range of weight for a small framed woman would be 126-139 lbs, a medium framed woman would be 136-150 lbs, and a larger framed woman would be 146-167 lbs. Weightwatchers.com suggested that an ideal weight would be 132-164 lbs. In taking this into consideration, I determined that a healthy 'first' goal on my weight loss journey would be 180 lbs, because it was exactly 100 lbs down from where I started at my heaviest weight. I figured that once I reached 180 lbs, I could regroup and see if pursuing a weight less than 170 lbs was attainable. I haven't weighed less than 200 lbs in a long time, so I figured I'd take this one step at a time.

2. Do you have any fears or doubts about your ability to reach and continue at your "right weight"? Describe them.    Yes, I do have constant nagging fears about my ability to get to 180 lbs. I worry that I'm a person who's destined to be fat forever - that I'll never be able to lose this weight. I worry that I was born to be 'bigger' than everyone else... that I will always have to buy clothes in the plus sized section, that I'll never be able to wear a bikini, or have slender legs, or have a flat stomach. I worry that I'll get just under 200 lbs, and I will hit a plateau - and I won't be able to lose the full 100 lbs I originally set out to lose.

3. Have you thought about a "weight range" that would be right for you? What do you think that range is?    At this point, I'm not really 100% sure what that weight range would be. I haven't been less than 200 lbs in a long time, and I can't say that I know if I'm supposed to be closer to 140 lbs, or 160 lbs, or 180 lbs. Personally, I think that a good starting point for me is to just weigh in at less than 200 lbs. Once I reach that point, I can regroup and decide where to go from there.

4. Have you had a "body composition analysis" performed? If so, how has that helped you answer the above questions? (If not, please consider it. It will help you work through these questions).    No, I haven't had a body composition analysis done before. I would like to try it though. I wonder where you get one done... maybe at a gym.