I wanted to post for a second about "goal weight" or whatever, because it's really interesting to me!:
Like many children of the 80s, I was raised on pizza and pasta and all that American fare. So, unlike many of us here on these boards (children of the 60s or 70s) who can easilly look to their high school weight as a time when they were not overfed, I was -- if you have a discerning eye -- an overweight kid and teen and adult.
No, I wasn't overweight by society's standards, but honestly, even kids who eat too many calories (due to the pleasure trap) wind up with body fat that they never needed. So I was probably ten pounds overweight by my own estimation, when I was in grade school (but so was everyone else -- just sayin'), and then even more overweight in junior high and even more overweight in high school, etc.
Of course, society's norms and perceptions kept up with my weight accummulation, and I continued to be seen as "normal" and "pretty" and whatever.
The thing that's interesting to me is that I was in my 30s when I began this way of eating, and I probably weighed upper 130s. At this time, i thought that 116 might be a dream weight for me.
As time went on, I started to realize that 112 was just thin relative to SAD standards, and that I was genetically and biologically capable of being happy, healthy and satisfied at 104. So then THAT became my fantasy weight.
And -- we kinda all know this story -- at some point you realize that the sheer volume of food that one is ingesting, is by no means biologically driven. My BODY didn't need as much food as I was eating, even at 112. I was doing a lot of pleasure eating and hardly ever felt a sensation of hunger. I went from pretty full to stuffed, and then I started eating again when I was back down to "pretty full".
So I started to have an awareness over time that -- same song, in a different key -- that I was genetically and biologically capable of being happy, healthy and satisfied even at lower body fat levels. I'm not sure that I have a number in mind as to what my favorite weight is these days, but I DO understand that these numbers would've sounded unbelievable and unrealistic (and probably delusional) if any diet guru had told me what I was capable of, back when I was living my SAD life.
I mention this because I think it was the experience of a few of the Star McDougallers as well, that they started out thinking, "Wow, I can't imagine even getting down to 140" and then they sailed right past that weight when they truly got their shit together.
I think it's a really common experience!
On the other hand, I know that my current scale weight and current body fat levels sound to other people like I have become a moron and a genetic mutant, but I think it is just a matter of perspective. Once you start to see how much (aka how little) body fat you need to sustain health, then you can decide how far above that you would like to be, if any. It becomes a matter of aesthetics (what looks pleasing to your eye) and also satisfaction with life (those who like to eat regular plan instead of MWL).
That's my thought for the moment!