70 pounds down and still.....

unavailable_username

i have lost 70 pounds so far in this little fitness journey of mine how come I feel worse about myself instead of more confident? I do not see the 70 lbs I have lost all I think is the 30 pounds I have left. Is this normal? Am I the only person like this?

DrJenO

Sometimes I find it hard to keep from sliding back into that self-body-shaming mindset. It's like I'm so used to being fat and not liking the way I look, that I just continue feeling that way.

That's only part of the time, though. When I realize how much more I can do, I feel great - like when I had forgotten something in the top floor of my house, and had to run all the way up the stairs to get it - 50+ pounds ago, that would have left me out of breath and with hurty knees.

Maybe make a list of all the things you can do now that you couldn't do then, or get some of your old clothes (if you still have any) and put them on.

psych101

You've done so well!

Are you taking progress photos? I find those are my main source of motivation sometimes!

ell_23

Can I please ask what for your details? Like original weight, current, goal and height?

I'm willing to bet money you have lost a lot visibly…its just hard for you to see the change as its so gradual. If you measured yourself before and now I reckon you'd see inches off. I wasn't fat to begin with, but just 20 lbs down I get lots of compliments so 70 must be a change!

walkdmc

You're normal and it's probably healthy because it means you continue to look toward your future. Too often people lose a lot of weight and feel like they "did it" and gradually forget their end goal.

I'm 15 pounds from goal and all I can think about is how far I have to go. (and I think I'm normal!).

SteveMFP123

Take photos, I've only lost 14lbs and I really didn't notice a difference in my body until I compared my day 1 photo to my day 90 photo, it looked like I'd had the baby I was carrying. After seeing the difference I felt better about myself and it gave me the motivation to soldier on.

dopeysmelly

It's similar to how I feel, but I never felt negative about myself even at my heaviest. I genuinely forget that I look different and so I'm only really reminded of how far I've come when I meet someone I haven't seen for a long time and they do a double-take/open-mouthed-fish-look. The rest of the time, I do think about what I left to go.. for about 5 minutes and then I get on with my life.

prettyface55

Congratulations on losing 70 lbs!

amoreamore

I'm 5'9... Start weight was 172, current weight is 151, my goal weight is between 130 and 140. I felt really chubby when I started, but was technically only 2 pounds overweight. Now that I've lost 20 pounds, I'm well within a healthy range for my height, and every one tells me I look great... But that doesn't change the fact that I still feel overweight. My confidence is slightly higher because I've had to go to the store and buy smaller sizes (all of my old clothing started to fall off), but I still feel really chubby. It's odd, I look in the mirror and hardly notice a difference even though I know that there has to be one.

Apparently this is really common among dieters though. That's why they tell you to take progress pictures so that you can see the side by side comparison. Since you look at your self in the mirror everyday, it's easy to miss the changes.

I can empathize with you. Just keep on trucking, you'll get to your goal weight soon enough. Until then, don't let what you see in the mirror derail your efforts. You're making big changes, even if you can't see it right now.

Kalikel

It may or may not be normal.

Your confidence shouldn't be wrapped up in your body. If it is, neither your body or your confidence will ever be good enough.

Being happier with your body as it gets healthier is totally normal.

MelodyandBarbells

There could be body image issues at play here, but sometimes we think weight loss will fix everything in our lives but that's not always the case. Just like you've worked on your weight, you may have to take on anything else that may be bothering you. You just get to have a smaller body while you do it, and have hopefully learned from your success that you can achieve anything you set your mind to

paomiamifl

I've gone from 226-135.6, I feel the same as you do! like others have said, maybe you've been too used to seeing your "imperfections" that NOT seeing them is hard? I've lost 90 lbs and I constantly wonder where the heck did I lose them from since I look a bit skinnier, not minus 40% of my body! It's frustrating, but all we can do is keep going? I feel I have to lose 20 or so more and it feels endless. I'm 5'1 and wheelchair bound so I think my metabolism is just whacked and slower than I'd want it to be!
Best of luck, friend me if you like! We can root for each other!

paomiamifl

I had a first goal of getting to 145. When that happened, I set second goal at 132 (which supposedly will put me at a 24.9' normal, bmi.) all I think about are these damn last 20 plus.

ClaireyDeexx

70 pounds is incredible!!

FitOldMomma

I'm curious. Are you a "glass half empty" type of person in all other areas of your life?

Losing 70 pounds is a very awesome accomplishment. Perhaps you would do better setting smaller goals, rather than one big one.

Today I talked with a gal at my pool and she told me she's lost 57 pounds. Told me her doc advised her to lose 75 total. That seemed so overwhelming to her so her doc advised her to set her first goal of losing just 10 pounds. Then 10 more, etc..

Today she said she is only 3 pounds away from her 'goal'. I thought it was an interesting way to look at things.

Again...congratulations on your great accomplishment!