When to stop?

[Goreandglitter]

I’m still technically “overweight” but being morbidly obese most of my life this is a massive improvement. I’m SMALLER than the size I would have killed to be my entire life. I’m a Medium or large 10/12 at 5’9” it looks good on me.. my curves are banging and overall I *should be happy but now I’m obsessed with well what if I was just a solid medium?? Or even a small? Would I be happy then??
Would I stop seeing myself as the same size I was before?

Those coming from being morbid obesity what’s your stopping point? Don’t get me wrong I’m not stopping the meds… but your point of moving into a maintenance frame of mind? I never had health issues so that wasn’t any sort of goal it was purely vanity.

Photo added for reference

 

[Morbius]

This is such a good and important question.

These are miracle drugs but they sure do give us some new problems to deal with.

The main reason I am on a GLP1 is that if I count calories in & out -- which is effective for me -- I start to develop disordered eating. The counting becomes obsessive and my mental health suffers. I believed I was at risk for developing a long term eating disorder.

Losing weight is easy now and I don't fret at all, but I am a little worried that as I transition to maintenance mode I'll invent some new unhealthy thinking.

(I don't have body image issues, with me it is something about goal setting and putting numbers to things--same end result though.)

 

[Laxfinity]

I’m still technically “overweight” but being morbidly obese most of my life this is a massive improvement. I’m SMALLER than the size I would have killed to be my entire life. I’m a Medium or large 10/12 at 5’9” it looks good on me.. my curves are banging and overall I *should be happy but now I’m obsessed with well what if I was just a solid medium?? Or even a small? Would I be happy then??
Would I stop seeing myself as the same size I was before?

Those coming from being morbid obesity what’s your stopping point? Don’t get me wrong I’m not stopping the meds… but your point of moving into a maintenance frame of mind? I never had health issues so that wasn’t any sort of goal it was purely vanity.

Photo added for reference View attachment 7218

I honestly don't know the answer to that question. I am still trying to figure that out myself. I just wanted to say you look absolutely phenomenal... I hope you can figure it out. 💖

 

[kimmykat415]

First of all CONGRATULATIONS! You look absolutely fantastic!

You are probably the only one that can answer that question for yourself. I just came here to say you certainly aren't alone asking that question. I had a goal weight in mind that was a number I considered to be "reasonable" based on how challenging getting the scale to move for me at all over the past five years and some fear that these meds might not work for me. Well, now that I've proven to myself that they do work I'm considering goals weight numbers I haven't considered possible for twenty years.

In the event it helps, some of the factors I'm considering are: Is this target a healthy weight for me? Is this a # I would ever have a prayer of maintaining without assistance from a maintenance dose? or at least maintain on a reasonably healthy diet and a minimal maintenance dose? --When I was younger I could diet down but some levels were impossible to maintain for more than a couple months in part because there was so little food being consumed.

Lastly, nothing says any of your decisions about stopping are forever. You could try maintenance now and then decide you want to get a little lower later or vice versa. When I was on the fence about starting a friend said the same thing to me. Unlike weight loss surgery, you can always stop or adjust.

 

[Divide By Zero]

I think it just takes time.. lots of it... for your mind and body to finally agree. I was ashamed my entire life to be seen without a shirt. Now I hate wearing them. It's a hell of a transition. Congratulations on your progress. I'd say keep going if you're curious, but let that be the only motivation.. curiosity. That's where I am. I want 6-8% body fat just to see if I can. I'm not doing it for anyone else or anyone's perception of me... though I do look pretty damned good for my age and enjoy the looks I get (I've been lifting for a little over five years so have some muscle to show for it). Enjoy the achievement but embrace the new lifestyle. Always seek to improve, even if you don't. There is a lot to be said for simply maintaining.

 

[zpped]

I blew past my original goal a long time ago. At the beginning I had to keep readjusting my mind for what was possible. Then I learned the wisdom of no longer thinking about size and weight but healthy body fat levels (For men 10-20% and 18-28% for women).

Being in that range means there isn't any more health to be gained from loosing more fat. After that point it's just a personal preference. I've lost 100lbs and am sitting at 16%bf. I've set a personal goal of getting under 10% just to see what it feels like but I'd be just fine in my current body for the rest of my life too.

 

[aquis]

I'm curious to here the responses from those who have reached there goals. But also wanted to say, great work!

 

[Airborne Daddy]

I blew past my original goal a long time ago. At the beginning I had to keep readjusting my mind for what was possible. Then I learned the wisdom of no longer thinking about size and weight but healthy body fat levels (For men 10-20% and 18-28% for women).

Being in that range means there isn't any more health to be gained from loosing more fat. After that point it's just a personal preference. I've lost 100lbs and am sitting at 16%bf. I've set a personal goal of getting under 10% just to see what it feels like but I'd be just fine in my current body for the rest of my life too.

Few professional male athletes are under 10% outside of boxing and wrestling. Female athletes are 13-22% according to Google. Be careful and good luck.

 

[zpped]

Few professional male athletes are under 10% outside of boxing and wrestling. Female athletes are 13-22% according to Google. Be careful and good luck.

There are significant strength and energy penalties under 10%bf so it wouldn't make sense for most athletes.

I'd like my long term center point to be about 12% but I won't know if that's sustainable for me until I try. I still need to put on another 10-15lbs of muscle as well (I'm still down 7lbs from my peak lmm) And I'm still 13lbs over what I weighed when I got out of basic training.

 

[ZippityDooDah]

Wow, you're looking great, congrats on your amazing accomplishment!

Obviously only you can decide what's best for you, but I think a lot of us relate and I don't know if there really is an "answer". I've done the lose over 100lbs dance three times now in the past 35 years, and if there's one thing I've learned it's that the idea of an "ideal" weight when you look at yourself in the mirror and declare that you've finally achieved exactly what you've been looking for doesn't really exist. For me it usually comes down to just finding that "comfortable" place where I don't feel compelled to lose more, but I won't complain if I do.

 

[Goreandglitter]

This is such a good and important question.

These are miracle drugs but they sure do give us some new problems to deal with.

The main reason I am on a GLP1 is that if I count calories in & out -- which is effective for me -- I start to develop disordered eating. The counting becomes obsessive and my mental health suffers. I believed I was at risk for developing a long term eating disorder.

Losing weight is easy now and I don't fret at all, but I am a little worried that as I transition to maintenance mode I'll invent some new unhealthy thinking.

(I don't have body image issues, with me it is something about goal setting and putting numbers to things--same end result though.)

Same I was obsessive about counting calories and it was super unhealthy.

 

[Goreandglitter]

Wow, you're looking great, congrats on your amazing accomplishment!

Obviously only you can decide what's best for you, but I think a lot of us relate and I don't know if there really is an "answer". I've done the lose over 100lbs dance three times now in the past 35 years, and if there's one thing I've learned it's that the idea of an "ideal" weight when you look at yourself in the mirror and declare that you've finally achieved exactly what you've been looking for doesn't really exist. For me it usually comes down to just finding that "comfortable" place where I don't feel compelled to lose more, but I won't complain if I do.

Aside from the body dysmorphia and negative self talk .. that’s where the sane part of me is. I’m overall content with where I’m at but if I lost a little more I wouldn’t complain. That’s a great way to put it

 

[pavlovs]

The end point for me was a point my doctor picked. It was halfway between the lowest possible weight for my height, and the highest possible weight for my height to still be in the "normal" weight range. That sounded smart to me, it gives me some pounds to play with on either side of the goal weight. I have another 20 to go. When I get there, I plan to stay there with meds for a year, then start a maintenance plan.

 

[AKC97]

You look great!

 

[Calm Logic]

The end point for me was a point my doctor picked. It was halfway between the lowest possible weight for my height, and the highest possible weight for my height to still be in the "normal" weight range. That sounded smart to me, it gives me some pounds to play with on either side of the goal weight. I have another 20 to go. When I get there, I plan to stay there with meds for a year, then start a maintenance plan.

That makes sense if one is not very muscular. The ideal for me would be body fat percentage using DEXA scans, which seem affordable at Groupon.

 

[AndyPanda]

I’m still technically “overweight” but being morbidly obese most of my life this is a massive improvement. I’m SMALLER than the size I would have killed to be my entire life. I’m a Medium or large 10/12 at 5’9” it looks good on me.. my curves are banging and overall I *should be happy but now I’m obsessed with well what if I was just a solid medium?? Or even a small? Would I be happy then??
Would I stop seeing myself as the same size I was before?

Those coming from being morbid obesity what’s your stopping point? Don’t get me wrong I’m not stopping the meds… but your point of moving into a maintenance frame of mind? I never had health issues so that wasn’t any sort of goal it was purely vanity.

Photo added for reference View attachment 7218

Don’t ever stop! There is a peptide out here for everything! Always try to be better tomorrow than you are today.

 

[keangkong]

I’m still technically “overweight” but being morbidly obese most of my life this is a massive improvement. I’m SMALLER than the size I would have killed to be my entire life. I’m a Medium or large 10/12 at 5’9” it looks good on me.. my curves are banging and overall I *should be happy but now I’m obsessed with well what if I was just a solid medium?? Or even a small? Would I be happy then??
Would I stop seeing myself as the same size I was before?

Those coming from being morbid obesity what’s your stopping point? Don’t get me wrong I’m not stopping the meds… but your point of moving into a maintenance frame of mind? I never had health issues so that wasn’t any sort of goal it was purely vanity.

Photo added for reference View attachment 7218

You look great. What's the ideal weight for health? Ask your doctor what your goal should be. What's the ideal weight for appearance? If you ask several different people, you will get several different answers. If you get too invested in weighing the perfect weight, you'll never be happy. Your comment about your curves being nice shows that you understand some of the benefits of being a little bit above BMI. You're right to be concerned about how you'd feel if you lost more weight. I'm not going to try to give you the right answer as to whether you should stop trying to lose weight because you seem to have a good grasp of the situation. I'm confident you'll make the right decision for you.

 

[m100568]

Then I learned the wisdom of no longer thinking about size and weight but healthy body fat levels (For men 10-20% and 18-28% for women).

I'm getting ready to switch over to maintenance and I came to the same conclusion. The scale is not so important right now. From pictures on the internet, I think I want to be 12-15% body fat (for a man). I could be comfortable in that body for the rest of my life.

 

[Goreandglitter]

I think it just takes time.. lots of it... for your mind and body to finally agree. I was ashamed my entire life to be seen without a shirt. Now I hate wearing them. It's a hell of a transition. Congratulations on your progress. I'd say keep going if you're curious, but let that be the only motivation.. curiosity. That's where I am. I want 6-8% body fat just to see if I can. I'm not doing it for anyone else or anyone's perception of me... though I do look pretty damned good for my age and enjoy the looks I get (I've been lifting for a little over five years so have some muscle to show for it). Enjoy the achievement but embrace the new lifestyle. Always seek to improve, even if you don't. There is a lot to be said for simply maintaining.

You look great. What's the ideal weight for health? Ask your doctor what your goal should be. What's the ideal weight for appearance? If you ask several different people, you will get several different answers. If you get too invested in weighing the perfect weight, you'll never be happy. Your comment about your curves being nice shows that you understand some of the benefits of being a little bit above BMI. You're right to be concerned about how you'd feel if you lost more weight. I'm not going to try to give you the right answer as to whether you should stop trying to lose weight because you seem to have a good grasp of the situation. I'm confident you'll make the right decision for you.

There’s no goal for health I didn’t have health issues over 300lbs I don’t now. It’s purely vanity. I saw my doctor last summer when I was 50lbs down and he asked if I was gonna keep taking the meds …. (He’s well aware of my illicit Chinese weight loss drugs). I have one of those odd doctors who literally gives zero shits what I weigh … he doesn’t believe being fat makes you unhealthy.i

The end point for me was a point my doctor picked. It was halfway between the lowest possible weight for my height, and the highest possible weight for my height to still be in the "normal" weight range. That sounded smart to me, it gives me some pounds to play with on either side of the goal weight. I have another 20 to go. When I get there, I plan to stay there with meds for a year, then start a maintenance plan.

I have one of those doctors that doesn’t believe being fat makes you unhealthy he asked 60 lbs ago if I was going to keep taking them lol

 

[elaine77]

I’m still technically “overweight” but being morbidly obese most of my life this is a massive improvement. I’m SMALLER than the size I would have killed to be my entire life. I’m a Medium or large 10/12 at 5’9” it looks good on me.. my curves are banging and overall I *should be happy but now I’m obsessed with well what if I was just a solid medium?? Or even a small? Would I be happy then??
Would I stop seeing myself as the same size I was before?

Those coming from being morbid obesity what’s your stopping point? Don’t get me wrong I’m not stopping the meds… but your point of moving into a maintenance frame of mind? I never had health issues so that wasn’t any sort of goal it was purely vanity.

Photo added for reference View attachment 7218

I lost 100 pounds and stopped. Im 5'8" 155 pounds and a size 5 or 7 juniors. Im shaped oddly and losing more probably wouldnt have me looking very good. I juat landed here with zero fanfare. It was the last 30 pounds that tirz lost for me but most importantly all 100 that Tirz KEEPS off. It just feels right to be this weight. Your brain will "catch up" to your big loss and I bet youll stop thinking on it so much.