Take what I say with a grain of salt as fitness is different for everybody. I've gone through several cycles where I have gained and then lost weight. Right n

Take what I say with a grain of salt as fitness is different for everybody. I've gone through several cycles where I have gained and then lost weight. Right now I am in another weight-loss cycle as a result of a overly sedentary lifestyle; this is the hardest "comeback" that I have ever staged. When People ask me what my goals are I always tell them that I want to loose 30lbs. I don't elaborate any further unless they show a real interest in what I'm doing. In all actuality, my real goal is to loose an "aparent 30lbs." Essentially, when I have reached my initial fitness goals I want to physically appear as if I were 30lbs lighter. Since my regimen is a combination of diet, aerobic exercise, and weight training the actual metrics at the end of my goal will most likely result in me having lost some weight, but also having gained some weight as muscle mass; this is, in my opinion the healthiest way to approach weight loss. Having said that, normal metrics such as BMI, and weight are not good indicators of improvement. Its actually better, at least for me, to use much simpler criteria. In my case I look at easily measurable things: Am I getting stronger? Is my cardiovascular training getting longer and/or harder? Am I sleeping better at night? How are my sustained energy levels throughout the day? Am I staying fully hydrated? Am I handling stress better? Is my overall attitude positive? And finally, do I see visual improvement by taking a self-photo every 2 weeks? Really I only check things like weight and body fat % at the end of a particular fitness goal and even then I don't give it much credence.