What is your definition of "healthy"? My first testimonial!

I recently received a message, and I asked permission to post the message and answer this person in my blog post. This was also my first official testimonial... it felt great to know someone has been following my blog and benefited from it! There were a few questions asked in this message, please read on after the message to find my answers.

Kelly! I am LOVING your blog. I've recently had a health wake up call and have been working to lose weight... I'm down 17 lbs finally and have at least another 10 to go!

I have a random question for you. How do you measure  "healthy?" Do you keep yourself in a target weight goal? Or do you just eat healthy and stay active and let your body figure out what's the right weight?

This is all new to me (the healthy diet, the regular physical activity), which is sorta embarassing to admit, but now that I'm getting closer to the end of weight loss and the beginning of staying at that point, I'm wondering what a healthy/active person does to stay at that place.

Sorry if this is a weird message -- I've been reading your blog and I get so inspired everytime I read it! 

First of all, I want to say that this was NOT a weird message! It was great to have someone ask questions and let me know their progress. Secondly, I would like to point out that this person was about 2/3 of the way to their goal, which means if they haven't already, they are going to hit a plateau as far as the scale is concerned. This is a warning that I give to anyone I have been helping to reach their weight loss goals. Your body will stall for a while when it's losing weight, for a few days or even a few weeks. This is when many people give up, or start eating unhealthy things because they get frustrated and think that what they're doing isn't working. Be patient! If you are making some serious changes in your eating or exercising, your body needs time to adjust.

What is my definition of health?? I had a few terms in mind when I decided to change my lifestyle. I had a goal weight in mind, but I wasn't 100% set on that goal. If I was within a few pounds, I was going to be happy. So for me, I had a time limit (12 weeks) and weight loss goal of 20 pounds. I did some research, planned ahead, wrote down my goals, made up a preliminary workout plan (because that needs to change every week or so) cleaned out our cabinets, went grocery shopping, then made some serious changes. I did not falter once from those decisions, and it just so happened that I made my target goal exactly within 12 weeks. I continued my lifestyle, and actually lost 5 more pounds and went down one more size, and have been holding steady at that weight for about 2 months now. To me, that was my body saying, this is where you need to be. And I feel extremely healthy.  :)

Now my situation will probably change in about a month, once I wean from breastfeeding. I will drastically reduce my calorie intake, and the amount of 'good' fats that I consume will be reduced as well. Am I going to freak out if I gain a few pounds and go back up a size? Absolutely not. I will continue to eat the daily servings of foods (that I think everyone should adhere to) and I still have no desire to eat anything unhealthy (soda, white flour, sugar, etc.)

These are just my personal goals. And this is why I call it a lifestyle, not a diet. This is a way of living, and if anything, I would love to improve upon it more. What are your personal goals? Do you have an ideal size, weight, or just the satisfaction of knowing that you're living in a healthy way?

If you have a specific weight in mind, I would suggest calculating it using a BMI calculator. You definitely want to make sure that you are in the "normal" range. I would not want someone to get their hopes too high... hello, we are not super models. Also, I wouldn't stress about reaching a certain number on the scale. Keep in mind your current lifestyle, genetics, etc. If your weight is within a normal range, you are eating all of your food groups (more on this on my next post!), you're drinking plenty of water, and you have a decent amount of energy, you should consider yourself "healthy".

Of course, a doctor can tell you how healthy you are better than I can  ;) Thanks for the questions!