Do you feel like you have not lost weight when you have lost a lot?

OhMsDiva

I am just wondering if anyone can relate to my situation. I have lost about 70 lbs since last April. I used to feel much lighter, but I am guessing that now I have adjusted to carrying this amount of weight. Now I feel like I am the same size I was. Granted, I still have a lot to lose, but I am just curious if anyone else has experienced this feeling?

Cchioles

Your Mind Is Always Going To Make You Second Guess Your Progress. Trust The Process, Stay Consistent, And You'll See The Results Are Rewarding!

BekahC1980

Cchioles wrote: »

Your Mind Is Always Going To Make You Second Guess Your Progress. Trust The Process, Stay Consistent, And You'll See The Results Are Rewarding!

I totally agree

jellio98

I've lost 50 lbs and I just don't see it. I'm wearing 3 sizes smaller, I've lost inches, random people at work I see only on occasion are commenting on it. But I just don't see it.

I think I was a bit in denial on how big I was. I'm probably now about the size I've always believed myself to be. Part of the reason I started this journey is I saw a photograph of myself and was shocked at how I looked. Mirrors lie.

Take pictures, take measurement, notice how much more energy you have.

Congrats on your 70 lbs!

laur357

I feel like that, even though I clearly lost four clothing sizes. Last night I was preparing to be embarrassed because I went out for dinner with friends and saw a tiny opening between the tables that I needed to squeeze through to get to my seat. Except I was able to easily walk through it with a puffy winter coat on and not even come close to disrupting the other diners.

tomteboda

Congratulations on your amazing weight loss! Your profile picture shows a tremendous change.

Just like you, I'm down 70 lbs from my maximum. I'm not done losing weight. I still have some of my old clothes.. the t-shirt I'm wearing right now, in fact, is one of those, and I need to replace my underwear because they're starting to fall off. It has occurred to me that one of the reasons I gained so much weight was because I had SUCH large clothing to begin with. So I perceived myself as pretty large long before I was that size.

However, there's another reason I really don't see myself very differently: I am the same person I was when I was verifiably thin and verifiably borderline morbidly obese. I feel like the same person. I like science & math, computer gaming, creating music, writing, my family, baking, and travel. I have a variety of very interesting hats, love animals in general and my fur babies in particular, and spending time in the woods. I do not see anyone else any differently regardless of my weight, and by reflection perceive myself the same.

And I don't know about your personality, but mine is BIG! like, REALLY BIG! I do nothing by half-measures. I love fully, live entirely engaged, and enjoy with no reservations. I speak up and speak out. So emotionally I occupy a lot of space, and I'm NEVER going to apologize for that again. I spent my late teens and early twenties trying to disappear physically, psychologically, and socially. Now I realize that I am who I am and I don't have to be invisible to make other people comfortable.

Embrace it. You're you no matter what your weight is. And when you doubt the effort its taken, look at your "before pictures." They're amazing.

Machka9

OhMsDiva wrote: »

I am just wondering if anyone can relate to my situation. I have lost about 70 lbs since last April. I used to feel much lighter, but I am guessing that now I have adjusted to carrying this amount of weight. Now I feel like I am the same size I was. Granted, I still have a lot to lose, but I am just curious if anyone else has experienced this feeling?

Yep! I'm going through that right now.

I lost 57 lbs, and before Christmas, I felt quite slender. Over Christmas I gained about 5 lbs. So my total loss right at the moment is 52 lbs. But I feel like I gained it all back. I look at clothes in my closet and think, "I can't wear that, I'm too heavy again" ... but in reality, I can wear those clothes. I haven't gained it all back. Nowhere near.

melissabergernesbitt

Hi ... I so understand I lost 110 and have kept it off but last few months feeling huge again ... Back at it half way to goal

ToriGabrielle

I've lost 40 lbs in the past year. I don't feel like it at all. I feel like I've lost maybe ten. People mention it all the time and I know I am wearing much smaller clothes. But I still feel pretty big sometimes. I think it's my body composition, so that is what I am trying to focus on more and more now.

victoria_1024

Oh yeah. I've lost close to 80 and people will tell me I'm tiny and I just look at them like they can't possibly be talking to me. Sometimes I'll notice something about my body, like how muscular my shoulders are, so it's not like I can't see any of the changes. But overall I still often feel like a fat person.

Hearts_2015

Pictures, pictures, pictures.... photos are proof when your head tells you something different!! Face shots, body shots... then put them directly next to one another(before photos) so you can REALLY observe what the two look like side by side. Yes our head messes with us, that's for sure. But pictures never lie

knelson095

I find myself feeling fat and thinking that I haven't been at all successful...but then I think about when I was in the store buying dog food and how heavy the bag was...I've lost as much as that bag weighs and that is truly amazing to me. Halfway to goal, just 30 more to go!

helenbenzie75

Cchioles wrote: »

Your Mind Is Always Going To Make You Second Guess Your Progress. Trust The Process, Stay Consistent, And You'll See The Results Are Rewarding!

Love this quote!

helenbenzie75

I fell the same. Overall I have lost 6 and a half stone and I can still feel fat. It's only when I look back on photos and my friends call my skinny (I don't see myself as skinny at all!) that I realise I'm not big.

louisedbatchelor1983

jellio98 wrote: »

I've lost 50 lbs and I just don't see it. I'm wearing 3 sizes smaller, I've lost inches, random people at work I see only on occasion are commenting on it. But I just don't see it.

I think I was a bit in denial on how big I was. I'm probably now about the size I've always believed myself to be. Part of the reason I started this journey is I saw a photograph of myself and was shocked at how I looked. Mirrors lie.

Take pictures, take measurement, notice how much more energy you have.

Congrats on your 70 lbs!

I completely can relate to this!

dragon_girl26

Hearts_2015 wrote: »

Pictures, pictures, pictures.... photos are proof when your head tells you something different!! Face shots, body shots... then put them directly next to one another(before photos) so you can REALLY observe what the two look like side by side. Yes our head messes with us, that's for sure. But pictures never lie

This^

I've lost almost 65 pounds over the last 3 years, and still have a ways to go. Even though I've (mostly) kept it off all of that time, I still feel like the same fat girl I was 4 years ago. People today look at me and tell me I'm not overweight (which I still am, but just considerably less so), and I still have a hard time seeing myself as the smaller version of me. I still feel like I could wear that size 20-22, even though I still have some of that stuff, and I can practically wrap it around myself. Photos tell the story, though...find some old photos of yourself, and you'll see the difference...and you'll be blown away.

KareninCanada

Yep. I have been up and down roughly 40 pounds multiple times over the last decade or so. And aside from looking at photos, I couldn't have told you whether I looked any different. Evidence is required - photos, measurements, keeping records. Then you can look and say, "Do you SEE that, self? Now shut up."

ilex70

Pictures, pictures, pictures.... photos are proof when your head tells you something different!! Face shots, body shots... then put them directly next to one another(before photos) so you can REALLY observe what the two look like side by side. Yes our head messes with us, that's for sure. But pictures never lie

OP you have lots of company. Once upon a time, probably around 275 - 280 I had size 26 jeans. I lost a lot a few years back, from about 260 down to 160. Working on taking off regain ATM.

Your head plays tricks with you coming and going. Besides pics, if you have kept at least one of your largest items of clothing try and put that on when you are feeling big. Reality check.

Somewhere between 160 and 175 I was at an outlet mall with my mom and we saw a big sale at a women's plus size store. I recalled that they had carried size 14, so figured some things like dresses/top might fit. Every damn thing was too big.

zcb94

I can relate! I've lost 30 pounds so far, but still feel like 210 pounds. I was in counseling to try to help with the loss process but it did nothing. However, I do think I could use some therapy to gain a "thinner" mindset. When I return to college, I'll ask if my old therapist still works there, or see her boss.

QueenofHearts023

Yes. I've had some body dysmorphia while losing the first time around (I saw myself fatter than I was) .. so this time I'm going to take progress pictures because I think that will make me see things more clearly than the mirror

walking2running

One of the reasons I overeat is because I feel like I am meant to be fat. It is that self doubt that keeps me resorting to food, because I have no confidence that I will maintain the weight loss. I feel like an impostor in my skinnier body. If I fall off the wagon, I will repeat that behavior the next day because of the belief that I am helpless when it comes to food. I have to battle that mindset on a daily basis.

CalorieCountChocula

Success on the MFP is measured in abs. I used to be 365lbs. I bounce between 225 and 230 now mostly randomly. When I was losing and my clothes were getting smaller it was awesome. When I started weight training and gradually the XL shirt became an L even though my weight stayed the same that was cool. But it becomes the new normal eventually. Time passes and you forget you were much fatter. All you see is how you're still not as small as the people in the success threads. No abs. Stomach still too big. Meanwhile their advice seems to be working for everyone but you. It's crap but I guess it beats the alternative (that is, never having lost any weight).

sanfromny

I've lost 60 lbs. For years I kept close in my closet because I thought I still needed them. It took my forever to stop picking up size 16. I still pick up size 12 now although I'm 8-10, and probably not a 10. I look in pictures and think I look the same. I don't know just what it is

CoffeeNCardio

I've lost 25 lbs and I don't see any difference. But everyone I know says they see a drastic difference. I just assume my brain's automated self-image generator has yet to update (thank you Matrix). My husband especially has noticed a difference, but I just don't see it. I feel it physically when I wear certain clothes, and it's frustrating to wait, but I plan on getting to goal and staying there forever, so I'm content in the knowledge that my brain will eventually catch up to everyone else's eyes.

ETA: I'm 5'2". 25 lbs is a lot on a hobbit.

OhMsDiva

tomteboda wrote: »

Congratulations on your amazing weight loss! Your profile picture shows a tremendous change.

Just like you, I'm down 70 lbs from my maximum. I'm not done losing weight. I still have some of my old clothes.. the t-shirt I'm wearing right now, in fact, is one of those, and I need to replace my underwear because they're starting to fall off. It has occurred to me that one of the reasons I gained so much weight was because I had SUCH large clothing to begin with. So I perceived myself as pretty large long before I was that size.

However, there's another reason I really don't see myself very differently: I am the same person I was when I was verifiably thin and verifiably borderline morbidly obese. I feel like the same person. I like science & math, computer gaming, creating music, writing, my family, baking, and travel. I have a variety of very interesting hats, love animals in general and my fur babies in particular, and spending time in the woods. I do not see anyone else any differently regardless of my weight, and by reflection perceive myself the same.

And I don't know about your personality, but mine is BIG! like, REALLY BIG! I do nothing by half-measures. I love fully, live entirely engaged, and enjoy with no reservations. I speak up and speak out. So emotionally I occupy a lot of space, and I'm NEVER going to apologize for that again. I spent my late teens and early twenties trying to disappear physically, psychologically, and socially. Now I realize that I am who I am and I don't have to be invisible to make other people comfortable.

Embrace it. You're you no matter what your weight is. And when you doubt the effort its taken, look at your "before pictures." They're amazing.

I love that. Thank you

OhMsDiva

sanfromny wrote: »

I've lost 60 lbs. For years I kept close in my closet because I thought I still needed them. It took my forever to stop picking up size 16. I still pick up size 12 now although I'm 8-10, and probably not a 10. I look in pictures and think I look the same. I don't know just what it is

I am slowly getting rid of my two big clothes. I still try to wear some of them, but they are so big that they make me look slouchy because the blouses fall off my shoulders and my skirts will not stay up. Some of my clothes are so pretty that I had to part with them, but I also know I do not want to keep them for just in case I need them. Also I look at some of my old blouses and I think wow that is big. I am grateful for my progress and will continue to work on being positive.

zyxst

Yes because my view of my body is the same. I'm either looking down the front or only see myself chest up. We don't have full length mirrors, so I usually do a double take when walking by a decently-sized mirror or large window. I think, "Who's that B walking with my husband?! Oh wait, I'm the B." My body still has the same shape at 140 as it did at 320.

Photos are the best thing I did when I lost weight. I compare now to 4 years ago and it's like a kick in the face.

I know how you feel about clothes. I'm finally donating my 2X shirts despite them being less than 4 years old. They're even too big to sleep in.

kabigelow

I have the same issue. I'm down over 50lbs, three sizes and every time I get a compliment I get embarrassed and talk about how much more I have to go. One of my NY resolutions is to take the compliments and be proud, not be dismissive of the accomplishment. I also started taking pics so I can see my progress (though I wish I took one in the beginning to really see it). Congrats on your loss, its an amazing accomplishment

Ashtoretet

I'm still getting used to a 70 pound loss as well. I go into stores, hold up an item of clothing and still think I'm a 14 when I'm really a 6.

robertw486

People look in the mirror every day, and even with quick losses we don't see things that others do. I only had a little less than 40 to lose, but other people noticed it quicker than me, even though I took my time.

Now on the fitness side, I did notice as the weight dropped and my endurance and speeds went up. But that only applies to some sports as well, or if you push harder and/or longer doing them.

And though I've watched mine change, those that don't use any type of heart rate monitor, it's safe to say that your heart rate thanks you for the weight loss.

tracie_minus100

I've lost 97lbs and still forget that I'm not that 264lb girl anymore. I've grabbed my old size at a store a few times. I've looked in the mirror many times in the last year and been surprised, because I forgot that I'm not obese anymore.
It's weird. But I've heard from other people that it's not uncommon.