Little ways people have noticed that I've lost weight . . .

atypicalsmith

It's funny, because even though I've lost nearly thirty pounds this year, most people don't recognize it. Here is what I've gotten:

I LOVE your new foundation; it really brings out your eyes! (I don't have a new foundation.)

Your eyelashes are getting so long! Is that because of the drops you're taking for glaucoma? I heard that a side effect are eyelashes growing longer. (No, it's because my fat puffy eyes aren't fat and puffy anymore and don't hide my eyelashes.)

You're letting your hair grow longer. It really slenderizes you! (Well, maybe, but I doubt it. Perhaps the 25 lbs. I lost did it.) (Oh, and I still have 30 pounds to go, so I can't wait, hah!)

That is such a cute skirt! Where did you buy it? (I bought it six years ago at Goodwill and wore it until I was too big for it. But now I fit into it again.)

I love the new color of your hair. Where did you get it done? (My hair is the same natural color it's been most of my adult life.)

Sigh. Anyone else had anything like this?

bkate24

Yup! I was at 156 pounds for much of last year, got down to 152 by the start of the summer. At the end of July I started using MFP and joined a fitness class. Now it's near the end of the summer and I'm 144, and I have more muscle than I did before. I got my hair drastically cut (to a pixie) over the summer and people who haven't seen me since spring keep telling me how good it looks and how much it really really suits me. I've had my hair really short many times before in this exact style (cycle of growing it out and then cutting it) and never got these comments.

What they're seeing is just that I lost weight in my face. One of the big reasons I wanted to lose weight was that even though I was within normal weight range (although near the top, and I have a small frame), I have sort of small facial features and any kind of excess fat goes to my face, and I don't carry it well because my actual face gets kind of lost in the fat. I'm excited to keep losing weight and keep having my actual facial features emerge from the fat!

I keep wondering when people will realize that it's not the haircut, it's weight loss!

atypicalsmith

Hah! Let them wonder, and then when you lose the rest, BAM!

bkate24

Congrats to you as well on the comments! Even if they don't realize it's weight loss, they clearly see a difference.

I think if people know someone, they get used to picturing someone as looking a certain way and then don't bother to really look at the person after that. Their brains just kind of mentally assume that "Oh, it's Jane, let's fill in what we already know about Jane." It takes something drastic for them to shake up that mental image, I think.

victoria_1024

For a long time people would just make vague comments about how nice I looked. They wouldn't really comment on my weight loss, but would make some sort of comment about how I looked. Once I hit 50 pounds, everyone started commenting about my weight.

lemurcat12

I wish, but I was fat enough that everyone has gotten that it was fat loss.

Marilyn0924

Well congrats on the weight loss that just happens to bring out the beauty in your eyes and hair coupled with the ability to rock the retro look!!!

Merkavar

atypicalsmith wrote: »

Your eyelashes are getting so long! Is that because of the drops you're taking for glaucoma? I heard that a side effect are eyelashes growing longer. (No, it's because my fat puffy eyes aren't fat and puffy anymore and don't hide my eyelashes.)

Oh no, I had long eye lashes before losing weight, will people see them as even longer now?

Maybe I can cut them

My sister describes my eye lashes as camel eye lashes.

For me it was too obvious that I lost weight people didn't make comments about hair or clothes. They made them about weight loss.

Vune

I get the impression from the comments about your hair and eyes that you are probably looking a lot healthier, rather than just thinner. That's awesome! Isn't that the real goal?

I've mostly been getting weight comments, sprinkled with the observation that I look happier and seem more confident. My nurse used the child sized cuff on me the other day when she probably didn't need to. I've lost 40 lbs since December, and I gained 25 of that during a 6 week span last summer. Maybe that made it more obvious, like no one wanted to say that I had gained a lot of weight in a very short amount of time, but they're all letting me know that they noticed.

Congrats on all your losses!

SLLRunner

atypicalsmith wrote: »

It's funny, because even though I've lost nearly thirty pounds this year, most people don't recognize it. Here is what I've gotten:

I LOVE your new foundation; it really brings out your eyes! (I don't have a new foundation.)

Your eyelashes are getting so long! Is that because of the drops you're taking for glaucoma? I heard that a side effect are eyelashes growing longer. (No, it's because my fat puffy eyes aren't fat and puffy anymore and don't hide my eyelashes.)

You're letting your hair grow longer. It really slenderizes you! (Well, maybe, but I doubt it. Perhaps the 25 lbs. I lost did it.) (Oh, and I still have 30 pounds to go, so I can't wait, hah!)

That is such a cute skirt! Where did you buy it? (I bought it six years ago at Goodwill and wore it until I was too big for it. But now I fit into it again.)

I love the new color of your hair. Where did you get it done? (My hair is the same natural color it's been most of my adult life.)

Sigh. Anyone else had anything like this?

No, but I gotta say your description of your experience is very humorous and made me smile.

SLLRunner

lemurcat12 wrote: »

I wish, but I was fat enough that everyone has gotten that it was fat loss.

LOL, same here. 44 pounds is two twenty pound bags of potatoes with 4 pounds extra on the side.

oh_happy_day

I've recently started getting "oh you're looking well!" My partner notices that I'm bonier in my ribs, shoulders and hips.

Mostly people have stopped looking 'knowingly' at my stomach and insinuating that I'm pregnant. Nope, that's fat.

Alatariel75

Hubster was complaining about our bed and how we needed a new mattress because he was waking up with aches and pains. We worked out that because I'm so much smaller, his usual way of snuggling while we sleep didn't work anymore and he was sleeping funny

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SheridanWild

I must admit that when I finally noticed one large friend had lost weight she said "Yeah .... only 20 kilos"... that's over 44 lb!!! I was really embarrassed but then I had a similar experience myself ... I think when we are large people just see general shape/size and if we are still wearing the same clothes that doesn't help. Conversely it's annoying when people say "You look good ... have you lost weight" like that's the only way to look good! Regardless CONGRATS on being 30lb down ... fantastic effort, I trust the appropriate compliments will catch up!

Nightnurse33

I am at 23 Lbs lost and did not see my mother for several months. All she said was you really need to lose weight, stop eating Pizzia and cake. I never ate Pizzia nor cake WTF....

amelialoveshersnacks

I got 'gee your *kitten* is small!'. My response was 'damnit, I been doing squats'.
Imo, I never had a fat *kitten* to begin with lol

timeforwork

i think sometimes people are not keen to come straight out and say you look good as you have lost weight because it implys you were over weight to start with! all those nice comments may just seem like a polite way of saying they have noticed something.

dramaqueen45

I've been slowly losing for about a year and I work at a school so it's been a couple of months since I've seen my co-workers so now they are saying that I look so slim, and how did I do it, etc? Well I have probably only lost about five pounds since they last saw me, but I think I can chalk it up to buying some clothes that actually fit and aren't all baggy on me.

tekkiechikk

Funny, I was just having a pity party for myself about this very thing. I've lost 48 lbs since January and my buddy at work has lost about 20... people RAVE to him about all the weight he's lost but I get nuthin'... I don't need the validation from anybody to continue my weight loss journey (50 more to go), I know I look and feel great, but sometime's I just want a pat on the back.

It felt good to admit that. Pity party is now over

CreamPuff91

I am down almost 40 lbs. 20 more to go. My coworkers have made comments about my skin looking better, and my hair looking more healthy. I actually have changed my skin care routine and hair style. Some noticed the wt loss and suggested I needed some new clothing that actually fits. The others noticed my wt loss and once I started to wear the new clothing others then asked me what I was doing. Others have noticed the dramatic change especially in my upper torso. I have noticed them looking at me and trying to figure out if I got a reduction done.

Owlfan88

I have had 2 people plus my mom comment on my weight loss (about 20 lbs). Seemingly many more people will comment TO my mom about how good I look. (And I'm not so young that it would be odd for them to talk to me - I'm 49. We know many of the same people in the community through church especially.) I get that comments on weight loss might imply that I needed to lose weight, but I might still appreciate even a "you're looking good" comment.

chaoticdreams

tekkiechikk wrote: »

Funny, I was just having a pity party for myself about this very thing. I've lost 48 lbs since January and my buddy at work has lost about 20... people RAVE to him about all the weight he's lost but I get nuthin'... I don't need the validation from anybody to continue my weight loss journey (50 more to go), I know I look and feel great, but sometime's I just want a pat on the back.

It felt good to admit that. Pity party is now over

Yeah, I know how that feels. I'm very overweight. I've lost 44 lbs with 70 left to go. Meanwhile, already skinny coworker drops 20 lbs and everyone has a comment and a new nickname, despite the fact she lost too much weight and wasn't even trying (she wasn't eating because she was having relationship problems). Bah on them. I feel better and my husband's praise is all the validation I need!

48 lbs is awesome! /patstekkiechikk on back You look amazing!

PinkPixiexox

I know how this feels - it's almost insulting really. It's as though before, when I was 'fat', I was invisible. All of a sudden people are noticing me! *Snarls*!

Mezzie1024

timeforwork wrote: »

i think sometimes people are not keen to come straight out and say you look good as you have lost weight because it implys you were over weight to start with! all those nice comments may just seem like a polite way of saying they have noticed something.

I know this is true for me. People are sensitive about weight, so unless they mention it first, I don't mention it at all. If a friend says, "I lost ten pounds this summer!" with a big smile, then I'm free to say how great they look or confirm what dedication that takes. But if I notice the weight loss and I don't know it was intentional, I hold my tongue and, yes, maybe compliment how nice their outfit looks. For all I know, they lost those ten pounds because they were ill or were unable to eat due to depression related to a family tragedy.

Maybe I'm just sensitive because I've been complimented on weight loss that was unintentional due to illness and emotional trauma, and that's uncomfortable. I do try to not make others uncomfortable.

Sometimes people have said, "I lost X pounds" with so little emotion that I couldn't tell if that was good or bad. One time that was a student of mine who was obese. I had noticed she'd switched her daily cheetos for carrots and celery, so when she told me a month or so into the switch that she'd lost five pounds, I was fairly sure she was losing intentionally, but she told me completely deadpan, so I asked, "Are you trying to lose weight?" Once she said yes and that her goal was to be healthier, I was able to exitedly congratulate her on her success and commend her change in snacking choices. I focused on how great it was that she had set a goal for her health and was sticking with it, and she beamed with pride. (Writing this reminds me how much I miss that student -- she was a great kid. )

Anyway... my point is it's entirely possible more of those people have noticed your weight loss than have said so. All of my friends are beautiful to me all the time, and I do worry that a compliment on weight loss could imply that I thought they were less beautiful to me before.

I probably just think too much.

Billy213

I think it depends on the person. Some people will just say "you're losing weight" etc. Where as others seem to avoid the weight and comment on something else. And the rest are either blind or stupid...

justrollme

atypicalsmith wrote: »

Sigh. Anyone else had anything like this?

Your whole post is ♥ ! (Maybe it's you, maybe it's Maybelline? Nope, it is definitely you!)

bkate24 wrote: »

I got my hair drastically cut (to a pixie) over the summer and people who haven't seen me since spring keep telling me how good it looks and how much it really really suits me.

I love it when I see someone rocking a pixie cut. I bet you're right, they're really seeing your re-emerged bone structure! Recently, I noticed that my face shape has changed back to the heart-shape it used to be, and here I thought I'd be as round as this face: for the rest of my days.

Merkavar wrote: »

Oh no, I had long eye lashes before losing weight, will people see them as even longer now?

Maybe I can cut them

My sister describes my eye lashes as camel eye lashes.

Ahaha! That's adorable, and don't you dare cut them!