How important are 'Before' photos to those who've succeeded?

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  • lorenzovonmatterhorn7549
    lorenzovonmatterhorn7549 Posts: 495 Member
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    It's never too late to take a pic. If you are doing things right, you will always be progressing. My progress picture does not represent me at my heaviest but it still shows how far I've come. When I get down in the dumps, I look at that picture and it reminds me how far I've come.
  • dsjohndrow
    dsjohndrow Posts: 1,821 Member
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    I didn't think I would make, so I didn't do it. :(
  • spirit05
    spirit05 Posts: 204 Member
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    I struggled with anorexia as a teen and young adult so taking before pictures was an absolute necessity for me.
    I still see myself at over 300 lb. when I look in the mirror and the pictures show me that I definitely look different, even when I don't see it.
  • toscarthearmada
    toscarthearmada Posts: 382 Member
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    I didn't start taking before and after photos or measurements until I had already lost about 25 pounds. I regret it so much because I don't know the accurate inches I've lost!

    However, my before and after photos make me cry sometimes. I never really considered myself to be that unhealthy but looking at those photos....I'm not that person anymore.

    My photos are so important to me, it's physical proof of what I've done.
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,134 Member
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    I don't find my before photos motivational. They're just a way to compare how far I've come with losing weight.
  • Beezil
    Beezil Posts: 1,677 Member
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    Without taking them, I wouldn't have noticed how much strength training and diet changes alone (without losing more weight) changed my body. Leaning out is hard to see unless you take progress pictures.
  • Julesbait
    Julesbait Posts: 190 Member
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    Add me to the just-do-it camp!
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,022 Member
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    It is my biggest regret about the whole process. Of course I have photos of myself from before I lost weight, but I never took any legit "before" or "during" photos. I didn't start taking actual progress photos until I had already lost over 100 lbs. When I started working with my current strength coach, he requested that I take them once a month, so I'm doing that now, and I really wish I had taken them the whole time.
  • jayce54321
    jayce54321 Posts: 110 Member
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    I am in the minority, I don't consider them important. I know I've lost weight and I know I feel physically better. I don't need pictures to remind me of the 'before' me. I just need to keep improving the current me.
  • catarata1
    catarata1 Posts: 21 Member
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    I take a series of photos every week and compare them to my starting point and a previous week or 2. These have really helped me to stay motivated, and it is interesting to be able to see what happens when I go off my diet/exercise routine ("uh oh, I'm back to Week 5!")

    I agree with the poster above that taking so many progress pics is overkill. Once a month would probably be just fine! I do find it really motivational for some reason, though.
  • aldousmom
    aldousmom Posts: 382 Member
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    I have a few pics of my "before" and really I prefer to not look at them. Seeing them brings back the overwhelming embarrassment of looking like that, and I don't want to relive that, ever. I don't do much comparison, even tho I can see a huge difference in race and running pics.
  • twixlepennie
    twixlepennie Posts: 1,074 Member
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    I didn't take any before I started losing weight and have no regrets. I know where I've come from-going from a size 14 jean to a size 2 jean is all the 'before/after' I need :bigsmile:
  • impemberstar
    impemberstar Posts: 23 Member
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    I think your motivation is really great. Mind if i frend you and we can motivate eachother?
  • amcsouth
    amcsouth Posts: 283 Member
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    I kinda think they are important especially if you are looking to lose alot of fat. Lots of people complain that they don't see any difference in their bodies after however many months but they are eye-opening. Lets you know how far you've come :smile:

    I personally HATE looking at them! I feel so embarrassed that I let myself get like that but its a little reminder of where you started. :smile:
  • garber6th
    garber6th Posts: 1,894 Member
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    For me the pictures are a must, especially because my brain seems to take longer to catch up with my weight loss than my body does. I sometimes think I look the same as I did 100 pounds ago and the pictures help snap me back to reality and show me how far I have come.
  • brookielaw
    brookielaw Posts: 814 Member
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    I wish I had done it. The problem is that I frequently see myself as the "old" me. The icon I have now is the closest to a "before" pic that I have but it's not really representative of my worst. It sure is great though to be able to see the two side-by side, both for the "WTG brookie!" feeling and the "SEE! YOU'RE NOT THAT GIRL ANYMORE!!" It seems like your brain takes a long time to adjust to seeing what is really there now versus what you saw before, if that makes any sense.

    I am not overly embarassed of the old pictures* that I'm willing to share. I worked with what I had in the best ways I could. I wish I had some full-body shots for comparison purposes.

    *You'll never see the really bad ones. They hang on my fridge.
  • happycauseIride
    happycauseIride Posts: 536 Member
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    Yep, do it. I hated having my picture taken, but now I am thankful for the few I had. In my mind I still see the fat person I was every time I look in the mirror. I have dropped 4 jean sizes and I still don't see it. The pictures help to give me a visual that I am actually making progress when I feel like I'm not.
  • Followingsea
    Followingsea Posts: 407 Member
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    I hated them at the time, but I am so grateful now that I have photos of myself at my highest weight. I find it particularly useful since it's harder to see gradual change in the mirror day-by-day, so if I'm feeling down about lack of recent progress I can pull out a picture from [whenever] and really SEE the difference.
  • woodml1
    woodml1 Posts: 199 Member
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    Earlier this year I lost a lot of weight for my first figure competition (pics posted on my profile if you want to look)! The post show rebound hit me hard and I gained back ALOT of weight between then and now. I'm really happy that I took the progress pics training for the show because it's a reminder that I CAN do this and I have done it before. (I'd bold the 'I' in those phrases if I could.) For me, it's been even more powerful than other people's transformation photos!
  • tlcarolinagirl
    tlcarolinagirl Posts: 1,700 Member
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    So important. I took my "before" shots last night and if that wasn't a swift kick to the rear, I don't know what is. I can't believe I look like that!! If I hadn't taken the pictures myself, I would've throat punched anyone who said that was me and swear they photoshopped it.

    Anyhoo, I am totally and completely motivated now!

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