How did you feel when someone mentioned your weightloss

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Replies

  • tiona83
    tiona83 Posts: 99 Member
    Like most have said it depends on who says it to you. I have noticed that people I have not seen in a while are usually surprised, so whatever pops out of their mouth is an instant response. I have only felt uncomfortable when the fiancé of my sister in law went on and on about it almost every time I saw him (every couple months). Now that I look back I think he was just in aww and because I did not see him all the time he had a mental picture of me as "fat". I think this is true about many people we see. Some of us were "fat" for so long that they have that mental image ingrained in their brains. So when they see us after weight loss their brains react in shock.
    On another note we all have friends and family that secretly are jealous/envious and they might not even realize it. Hence the reason some can't stop talking about it, encouraging you to eat something your turn down, or encourage you to gain even though your at a healthy weight.
    Just never apologize for your weight loss! And learn the art of changing the subject. :)
  • Jkn921
    Jkn921 Posts: 309 Member
    Don't feel anything really, I thought I would but I don't. When I realise it myself, it gives me true happiness as I notice the hard work that goes into it and it's such a rewarding feeling.
  • LessHeavyVeggie
    LessHeavyVeggie Posts: 208 Member
    I'm not at that point yet... 16lbs out of 140 doesn't show too much yet! Well, my mum says my face looks thinner about every 2 days, but I think she's just trying to be supportive but it makes me feel a bit uncomfortable as I know there isn't really any difference! (not being modest there, it's true)
    So I am looking forward to the first time someone else says I look different (as I will be more likely to believe it then!) but I know I will feel awkward as I'm terrible at receiving compliments but will love it internally!
  • alibee88
    alibee88 Posts: 31
    Only my husband has noticed my weight loss, no one else has said anything.

    I'd love it if someone had noticed!

    Yeah it's really odd, as you can see from my ticker I've lost about 15kg so far taking my BMI from obese into the healthy range and none of my friends have said ANYTHING about it so far...

    I told my mum about it because she normally buys me clothes for my birthday and I didn't want her buying me anything massive as I've dropped 2/3 sizes. All I get from her is about how I should stop now and not lose anymore, so I'd love some positive comments from someone!
  • jenmom2myboys
    jenmom2myboys Posts: 311 Member
    I love it! Makes me feel good that all my hard work is paying off!
  • sadrithmora
    sadrithmora Posts: 121
    Think I'd have to put myself with those who feel uncomfortable about it, at least slightly. Yes, it does make me proud about achieving something, but I'm still just under 9lb off my goal. So when someone mentions it they always phrase it along the lines 'you've lost so much' and that just makes me feel like this is the end result, and not just a 'snapshot' of the progress. I know they mean it in a nice way though, so I keep that to myself. Maybe it's just me being over self-concious about this stuff.
  • fit2014yay
    fit2014yay Posts: 41 Member
    I really like it when people notice - it gives me a "pick-me-up" and an encouragement to stick with it. I have gotten the "you don't need to lose anymore weight" line already. LOL. I just told them that my goal was a few vanity pounds lower and that I'd probably gain them back & that shut them up. :P They don't have to know the whole story.
  • Sarahsteve7kids
    Sarahsteve7kids Posts: 146 Member
    It hasn't happened yet! I will let you know when it does but I am guessing I will be damn happy!!!
  • FatNFightingIt
    FatNFightingIt Posts: 22 Member
    I love when people notice. It reinforces the pride that I have in myself. What I find amusing is when people say "What's your secret" and my answer is I don't eat processed food and I exercise - It's that simple. What they really want to hear is that I took a magic pill that is doing it all for me so that I don't have to do it for myself. Obviously, that is not the case. The other side of this is that if you eat something that people perceive as "bad" and they tell you that "you can't eat that". Because clearly I don't know what I can eat if you JUST told me you noticed how much weight I've lost. I got this...don't worry. I guess what I am saying is - Be proud of your accomplishments. You've earned them!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    What is ironic about this thread (and there have been several others like it)...is that there are also tons of threads in RE to "when will people notice and say something?" I just personally find it fascinating.

    I myself liked it, but comments were generally more along the lines of my fitness rather than the actual weight loss....i.e. "damn dude...how much are you squatting these days?" or "how many miles did you ride today bro...damn, that's awesome." Most people I know were very excited to see me start working it again and getting back into shape. I know my wife digs it...
  • rbiss
    rbiss Posts: 422 Member
    I love it. I want to loose 100 lbs and I am down 19 now. Someone came up to me and asked what I as doing and was shocked they could see a 19 lbs loss. Hell yeah, hard work is already paying off!
  • atiral
    atiral Posts: 43 Member
    Noone noticed until I had lost 40lbs. Then, EVERYONE noticed. All in the same week. Most of them noticed on easter and that is all they could talk about- in a shocked tone of voice. I personally hate it. I really don't want people looking at what I'm eating or looking like and commenting on it. I just want them to treat me like a normal person, big or small. I don't think it's appropriate to comment on other people's weight, but I know some disagree.
  • ew_david
    ew_david Posts: 3,473 Member
    It makes me feel good that the work I've done is visible to others. I smile and say thank you.
  • kar328
    kar328 Posts: 4,159 Member
    It depends on who says it and how/what they say. Most of my interactions are with the coworkers - people I'm not overly fond of to begin with. I have 112 lbs to lose - just passed the halfway mark. I kept it a secret, nothing on Facebook. People started noticing in the 30 lb loss range. When asked, I will say how many lbs I've lost because I'm proud of it. Not how much I have left or what I weight currently I've mentioned this site to people, I think a few have accounts already, but will not add anyone I know in real life to my friends' list. I'd prefer it never to be a topic of conversation but realize with the amount I have to lose and how much is gone so far, that it is noticeable so it will be brought up. I usually answer the question, then steer the conversation elsewhere.

    I will say most of the time, the comments are simple and nice. "You look good" etc. I don't like my food police, the people who feel compelled to ask if it's real chocolate I'm eating and is that on my "diet." Yes and I'm not on a diet are my answers. I get people who go "see? don't you feel better now?" like I'm a child. I'm waiting for someone to pat me on the head. One thin coworker who complains about her muffin top calls me "Skinny Minnie" which is condescending since I"m clearly still obese and insulting, because to me, skinny is not something I want to be. Fit, thin, healthy, yes. Not skinny.

    Felt good to vent that :laugh:
  • Artionis
    Artionis Posts: 105 Member
    Recently in a social situation a casual friend introduced me to her friend with the comment that I've recently lost 30 pounds. The other woman responded, "Wow. You must have been really fat!" I immediately replied "what a tasteless thing to say." She then fell all over herself to apologize.

    I have learned to handle the moment -- I don't do the girly thing of keeping quiet and having hurt feelings later. I call out bad behavior on the spot.

    OTOH, when someone is genuinely happy for me that I've changed my lifestyle, I cut them some slack.
  • sweetblackberry1
    sweetblackberry1 Posts: 29 Member
    Today, for the first time since I started losing weight (25 lbs in 4 months) someone mentioned that they noticed I was losing weight. I was wondering how you guys feel when someone compliments you on your weightloss. I personally felt uncomfortable, and I didn't really tell anyone I was losing weight. It's just one of those things that is awkward for me. I was wondering what everyone else here felt, or feels when someone mentions your weightloss
    [/quote

    I feel the same especially when people now are saying that I'm too skinny and that i don't need lose more weight and i have only lose like 17 pounds :/
  • sarahjasminebicknell
    sarahjasminebicknell Posts: 17 Member
    wow, how can people not notice you losing 15 kgs! maybe people don't know what to say so they don't say anything, i've found this more so when people know you may be sensitive about weight, well done! :smile:
  • RealMarkD
    RealMarkD Posts: 92 Member
    For me, it never gets old--it's always been in a complimentary way. I spent far too long over-weight, and I've put in a lot of work the past 16 months to get it off & keep it off. I will take every comment about my weight loss as a huge compliment.
  • VodkaSalad37
    VodkaSalad37 Posts: 66 Member
    I hate it when people mention it because it always seems so intrusive:

    "It looks like you lost some weight. Keep it up". Bleh. I especially hate it from people at work because they are always so nosy... Even though it's a compliment, it always seems so back-handed.

    If someone notices I lost weight, I want them to come up to me and say "Your *kitten* looks friggin' taut in those pants" and then walk away.

    I think I'm only sensitive about work people though- I know that the ladies I work with are gossipy geese and I think it hurts my self esteem because I don't know what they'll say once I leave the room.

    My son will come up to me and say things like "Your butt used to be thiiiiiiis big", holding out his hands, "but now it's only this big", making a shrinking motion. He'll also say that I'm "less squishy".

    Since I've been chubby all my life, I hide weight loss from my family. My dad would always say things like "you are so pretty.... you just need to lose some weight". I've been avoiding them since I started dieting and I don't plan on going to visit until I make a more drastic weight change. I just don't want to hear anything besides "You look amazing".

    I think I have a few issues....
  • kk_140
    kk_140 Posts: 518 Member
    I felt confident. Better than confident.

    I looked good before, now I look great. And when people tell me I feel even better

    But some comments hurt a bit. Like "You look so much better now!" or "You look so healthy now" It always makes me think, "Man, what do you think I looked like before? Bad and unhealthy. Thanks"
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,740 Member
    Mostly, I like it.

    Sometimes, I don't.

    I feel like I am kinda "past" being annoyed and upset with people for insinuating (in my mind) that my weight was unacceptable in the past or I looked terrible before and am only acceptable now. That's stuff I dealt with in the beginning, but I'm 99% over it now. I accept that someone who has not seen me since I was a bloated size 22 is going to marvel over the sight of me wearing size 12 skinny jeans...I do. I was a lot heavier than this when I was 16 years old. I'd comment, too, if the same thing happened with a friend or family member.

    Yesterday I went to a close friend's college graduation and I found myself having a total anxiety meltdown right before leaving the house. I was trying on lots of clothes and thinking "this makes me look fatter" (which I seriously NEVER think that even when I was 120 lb heavier) and wondering if people would see me and think I'd gained since posting a before-and-after photo set on Facebook a couple of months ago...even though I have lost weight since then. Then I'd put on a different outfit that was very flattering and think, "this looks like I'm trying to show off/get attention".

    In the end, I wore a frumpy outfit to the graduation ceremony and then just wore a tie dye and jeans to the BBQ after...felt fine, and only 1 person (my friend's mom) called me "skinny girl" and I laughed and breezily said, "Oh thanks, I'm not skinny just not as fat as I used to be!" and that was that. They also didn't fuss about my husband and I eating very little (we had dinner plans and don't really do hot dogs or hamburgers anyway). So it was a lot of stress for nothing!!

    I think whether you lose 10 lb or 150 lb it is a matter of becoming more comfortable with yourself and your body, and that takes time for most of us.
  • lessismoreohio
    lessismoreohio Posts: 910 Member
    Several people at work have commented on my weight loss. For me, it's a little awkward. I just thank them, and let them know I'm using MFP to track calories consumed and calories burned (I don't want them to think the weight loss is from something other than my efforts to lose weight).
  • BiblioTrecho
    BiblioTrecho Posts: 26 Member
    Spark notes version - When someone first mentioned something about my weightloss it was like I had run into Gloria Gaynor's ghost. At first, I was afraid; I was petrified.

    Extended Directors Cut -

    So, I started losing (unintentionally) in college. I lost 17 pounds without even trying (I was 18yo, 5'8", 200 lb female). I had seen both of my siblings go through the freshman 15 and was determined not to do the same. I didn't realize that I was walking about 4 miles a day across campus, but I was purposefully eating healthier meal options.

    Half way through the first semester, I noticed it. A shirt I had purchased one month prior was too baggy. I thought the washer had stretched it or something at first....and then I started groping handfuls of fabric around my stomach. My roommate walked in and saw me (what she thought) was measuring my progress and made some comment about how everyone was so proud of my hard work and dedication to a healthier lifestyle....And then she saw the absolute look for horror on my face and realized that I hadn't been doing this intentionally, I had no idea what had just happened in the last month, and I didn't know what it meant (as ridiculous as that sounds).
  • Mhgretsch
    Mhgretsch Posts: 259 Member
    Really depends on three things...who is making the comment, how it is said, and how I'm feeling at the time. I think most people have good intentions, but may not be very good about giving compliments.
  • Lorichr
    Lorichr Posts: 54
    Like most people have said, it's a mixed bag. It's great to have people notice my hard work and notice that I have been maintaining for a couple years. I know so many people who lose and gain the same 15-20 pounds and I am so glad I didn't fall into that pattern.

    But I get tired of the question of what is my secret; because there isn't one. I say I started eating less and making better choices and exercising and no one wants to hear that. They want some magical way to love weight and keep it off. So I have quit talking about it.
  • PJPrimrose
    PJPrimrose Posts: 916 Member
    Depends. If it comes up in kind of chit chat normal conversation or if someone is asking for advice it's OK. I know it's a compliment and they are being nice or really want advice.


    If someone brings it up in a mixed group, especially if someone in the group is heavier than everyone else, it's terribly uncomfortable. It's even worse if someone does any kind of comparing. OMG I hate that. I don't want to hear "I'm so fat" from anyone comparing themselves to me. I won't go clothes shopping with a friend(s) anymore.

    I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY hate when someone uses my weight as a weapon. I'll actually get angry at this. The worst is husband that tells his wife he wants her to look like me. People I don't even freaking know have done this! WTF? Another happy occasion is when a mother compares her daughter to me! It's all I can do not to insult my friend's mother or husband! I always think, "Well she can always lose weight. You'll always be a LOSER."
  • MrsZ_71
    MrsZ_71 Posts: 5
    I love it :happy: I have made it no secret that I need to lose weight so when people notice and say something then I get a real boost from it. Usually walk around with a grin on my face for a few hours.
  • siratlas
    siratlas Posts: 239 Member
    i feel really awkward & uncomfortable if they bring it up.....i know that they just want me to recognize that what i'm doing is paying off. i appreciate the support but maybe once i get to a place where i'm more comfortable with my body, it will be less awkward.
  • Coppsj02
    Coppsj02 Posts: 5 Member
    When my coworkers mention it I kinda feel good about myself. A few of us started working together and holding each other accountable for our respective weight loss, so when they say I look good and they can tell I'm losing weight and to keep it up it makes me feel better... but then again we all have the same goal and they ALWAYS say it in a supporting way.

    When other people say it though it almost sounds condescending... like I'm not losing quickly enough. I've lost 50+ pounds in the past year and a half through watching what I eat and exercise, and occasionally I do still yo-yo since I can't always make time for meals with my work schedule... but if they say it the right way and it sounds good or it sounds like I just surprised them, then i don't feel awkward, I just feel proud.
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,149 Member
    I'm only bothered when the person/people tell me I'm an inspiration. How are you inspired by me losing weight? :huh: It's the same feeling I get from people who are inspired by stretch marks aka "tiger stripes" :huh: . Are you also inspired by the scar on my left ankle?

    I changed my life and not for the better, either. I don't eat what I want anymore. I don't do what I want anymore. I'm more depressed than ever. How is that something people want to be inspired by?

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