How to not hate your body when losing weight?

okbuddha

I was able to restart my CrossFit gym membership two weeks ago, and I switched to an app that counts my macros (and noticed my fat intake has been almost double what it should have been, yikes.) But I'm at the heaviest I've ever weighed, and it's hard not to hate my body in the meantime.

Speakeasy76

Focus on what your body can do and being grateful for it. It can be something as simple as allowing you stay healthy, get out of bed every morning and being able to go to CrossFit. Not everyone can do that.

Practicing gratitude in general is a great habit to get into (I'm still learning). I'm not saying that by practicing gratitude you completely ignore things you'd genuinely like to change, but I feel this actually motivates me more than shaming myself.

goal06082021

My body may not look exactly the way I want it to right now, but it sure does do a good job of keeping all my organs in one place.

Maybe it would help to think about what your body can do, instead of how it looks. I started doing a very simple yoga routine this month - it's been literally three weeks and I've already improved my balance on all 15 poses, it is already easier to go through the whole thing. I can do a hundred squats in a day if I want to; 2 months ago, my hips were so tight I could barely do 10. I'm so excited to see more progress in myself - I'm starting to see a little, teeny, tiny bit of muscle definition, if I squint and flex hard enough.

My body does some pretty cool things. These thick thighs have let me walk to some incredible places. My jiggly arms are perfect for hugging my family. My ample tummy makes a great cat-bed. Being the size that I am is not a moral failure on my part, I'm not going to hell for being fat. Taking steps change that and improve my health and strength is a choice I'm making because I want to do it, because that's the only way it's going to get done - because I want to, on my terms.

AnnPT77

Even when I was obese, I didn't hate my body: How much fun could I have without it? Zero. Even fat, it could do lots of entertaining things.

Seriously, it's fine to want to improve, and work on it. But it's your current body putting in the work. Can you appreciate it for that, maybe: Its gift to future you?

AndreaTamira

It's simple. I see my poor body as the victim of my mind. Pretty sure it only gained weight because my mind told it to eat too much and not move.

So, I don't hate my body for being mistreated for so long. That's not fair on it. It held up pretty well despite that, actually.

I am working on not hating my mind. And on rehabilitating it so it stops bring a jerk to my body.

DancingMoosie

It's going to be improving in so many ways through this journey. Can you not love the changes?

190reasonswhy

I try to think of this as a process. The in between phase from what I want to where I am. Bridges are function and usually not that great to look at.

chantellezxc

I don’t know, I would say it’s normal but it can be motivation to change. I definitely feel the same, I do really hate being bigger than the size I feel comfortable at. I really like seeing the weight come off and other changes in the right direction and that is making me feel more like myself again so I am happy still.

aquitteriamnot

I’ve never hated my body, regardless of my weight. My body didn’t make me overweight, my choices did that. God gave me life and limbs and the choice to do with them as I please. Focus on being grateful for your body, not your appearance.

Despite size, the human body can do amazing things. Find something else to focus on other than weight and looks. I have been getting various arts and crafts kits to help me find other joys in life.

Good luck on your journey.

Lietchi

Before losing weight, I hated the look of body, sure. I hated being unfit. But weight loss has given me more appreciation for my body.

Sure, I still hate my skin (particularly prone to stretch marks), and I can safely say I don't have any natural aptitude for sports. But otherwise my body has performed quite well. I lost weight as fast as intended (so my metabolism wasn't 'doomed' as I thought before) and thanks to regular exercise my fitness has increased a lot. I'm probably fitter now at 150lbs than I was at 135lbs in college.

No, while not perfect, my body allows me to do a lot of good and fun things, so I don't hate it 🙂

88olds

Step back. Odd how the extreme mindset comes up so much and in so many different ways in weight loss.

Maybe try to find some other ways to talk and think about your current situation. And when I say talk, I mean literally. I’ve done this kind of thing. Stand in front of a mirror where you can get a good look at yourself and say out loud what you’re not satisfied with. As in I don’t like this and I don’t like that. What else can you say? It’s unacceptable? Unsatisfactory? You aren’t happy looking like that? Say anything other than hate.

Then try to dial it down some more. Say this or that need improvement. Say it can be made better. Saying you hate something first shot out of the box is too extreme. Try to find something more reasonable. It gives you something to work with.

I didn’t decide that I loved my 285 lb self, but I decided that I was still entitled to basic respect. And that included respect for my self improvement project that had weight loss at its core. Whatever you may see as your shortcomings, you still possess the ability to to change.

girlwithcurls2

I was bored this week and scrolling through blogs and came across something that I wish I had read YEARS ago (DECADES, really). "I don't have a body. I AM a body. If I hate my body, I hate myself." Don't do that. You are worth so much more than whatever your opinion of a number or a size is. Your body is the only one you get. If you've committed to changing it, then treat it well and with love while you do it. You will read a lot on mfp that people reach their goal weight, but it hasn't changed their mindset. It can be helpful to work on the mind and spirit as well as the body

littlegreenparrot1

There are people I love who are not perfect, their shape and size is irrelevant to me. I don't hate them for it.

I deserve to pay myself the same respect. I require kindness, empathy, understanding - this is all simply another aspect of self improvement, same as I have set other goals and achieved them.

If the plan isn't working it just means I need to re-adjust the plan. I have never found moralistic language around food or weight to be helpful. I take much better care of things that I love than those things that I hate.

deputy_randolph

I focused on what my body COULD DO...positive vs. negative thinking. Add 10 more lbs to a lift! Yea! More reps! Yea! I rarely ever even think about what my body looks like anymore. Except every once in awhile when I see my shoulders...and then I flex in the mirror a little bit like a total bro. Ha!

okbuddha

88olds wrote: »

I didn’t decide that I loved my 285 lb self, but I decided that I was still entitled to basic respect.

This definitely brought me back to high school. I don't know if other girls did, but I kept a close eye on my weight because I saw how mean and competitive it could get towards anyone who gained