I have lost 30 lbs and I don't feel it at all!

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  • jlmnk1313
    jlmnk1313 Posts: 207 Member
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    I have the same problem. I don't see it in the mirror...but I have always felt I looked like a hippo in the mirror anyway. Sorry...I am sure you can tell I don't have much self-esteem:frown: My pants and undergarments are getting baggy and my friends and family say they can tell. However, I don't notice it yet. I'm with you...I am ready to start seeing results in the mirror.

    Yeah I see a HUGE person in the mirror and wonder if I ever won't! I hope we both see it soon! Good luck!
  • PrairieRoseNE
    PrairieRoseNE Posts: 265 Member
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    The scale says you've lost 30 lbs - which is awesome and something you should feel proud about!

    I've lost 30.5 so we're almost the same - the place I notice is thinner is my face. I also know that my waistline is thinner because my jeans are really baggy - but otherwise I can't tell. Sometimes I think when a person has been overweight for a long time, we just always have that mental picture of ourselves as overweight, no matter what other people see & say. I look in my bathroom mirror (head & shoulders) and I smile back - but when I go to the Fitness Center and see my whole self in the wall of mirrors - I still frown.

    Just keep doing what you are - you've lost 30 already - don't let this mirror image thing slow you down! ((HUGS))
  • cornerofgreystreet
    cornerofgreystreet Posts: 180 Member
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    I totally understand what your going through. I have lost 20 pounds and can barely tell. Please don't get too discouraged. I keep telling myself that the first 20 pounds might not have been very noticeable but the next 20 are going to be very obvious. Keep your chin up, your doing the best thing for yourself and it will all be worth it in the end. Good luck!!


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  • jlmnk1313
    jlmnk1313 Posts: 207 Member
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    I had kind of the same problem when I lost 50 lbs in 4 months on a liquid diet ("Oprah's Liquid Diet") years ago. I could feel I was taking up less space in the world but I could not see it in the mirror. What worked for me was that I stood in front of a paneled door in our house and had my husband take a Polaroid picture (now it would be digital, of course) of me on the same spot on the same day each week. Putting the pix side-by-side and studying them, I could finally see the progression of weight loss. Otherwise, I had no idea what I looked like. When we were out at the mall, I'd ask my hubby to point out women who looked the same size as me -- a tricky task for him, bless his heart! When I'd go to buy new clothes, I always brought the wrong sizes into the dressing room (usually too big). Hang in there ... 30 lbs. is a LOT and you are doing a great job!!! Try taking pix once a week and see if that works for you.

    I will do that THANK YOU so much!
  • jlmnk1313
    jlmnk1313 Posts: 207 Member
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    Honey, I went through the EXACT same thing. Most of it is mental, I think. We see ourselves as we were not as we are. At about 25 pounds lost I felt like a failure because I didn't feel I had lost alot of weight. My pants were falling off and I was getting compliments but I just couldn't "see" it. I wasn't great about taking pics, but I did have a few. I lined them up side by side and saw that my before made me look like I was pregnant! No wonder my pants were falling off. I still have long way to go. I had to learn that the changes are gradual and we don't see it. Take plent of pictures in the same clothes and you will start seeing the difference.

    Thank you I am glad I am not the only one! I do feel like a failure some days! I just see how much I need to lose and am not seeing it! Thanks for the advice!
  • jlmnk1313
    jlmnk1313 Posts: 207 Member
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    The scale says you've lost 30 lbs - which is awesome and something you should feel proud about!

    I've lost 30.5 so we're almost the same - the place I notice is thinner is my face. I also know that my waistline is thinner because my jeans are really baggy - but otherwise I can't tell. Sometimes I think when a person has been overweight for a long time, we just always have that mental picture of ourselves as overweight, no matter what other people see & say. I look in my bathroom mirror (head & shoulders) and I smile back - but when I go to the Fitness Center and see my whole self in the wall of mirrors - I still frown.

    Just keep doing what you are - you've lost 30 already - don't let this mirror image thing slow you down! ((HUGS))

    Thank you so much! That is totally how I feel!!! I appreciate the hug! I smiled at it and needed it!!
  • jlmnk1313
    jlmnk1313 Posts: 207 Member
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    I totally understand what your going through. I have lost 20 pounds and can barely tell. Please don't get too discouraged. I keep telling myself that the first 20 pounds might not have been very noticeable but the next 20 are going to be very obvious. Keep your chin up, your doing the best thing for yourself and it will all be worth it in the end. Good luck!!

    Thank you and I am so trying! Tonight it seems so hard to get up and excercise because I just feel like it isn't working! I am gonna get up now and do it!!! P.S. the little one in your profile pic is ADOREABLE!
  • InMyJeans
    InMyJeans Posts: 87 Member
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    The last time I lost weight I didnt feel it until I was 50 lbs down. Im down 23 pounds so far and I dont feel it at all. My pants are fitting much better though. Thats how I can tell Im losing weight by the way my pants are fitting, which is more important than the number on the scale.
  • RedHotRunner
    RedHotRunner Posts: 850 Member
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    I'm at 43 lbs lost and sometimes have problems seeing it, too. Here's what my husband does, when I'm doubting my progress:

    Take a couple of shopping bags and fill them full of rice, flour, hand weights ... until the weight in the bags totals the amount you've lost. Now, walk around the house while carrying the bags. It feels like so much! And you just have to remind yourself that you're no longer carrying that around with you.

    Whenever I'm feeling down, my husband always says, "Should I get out the bags?"

    That's just my tip. Congrats on the 30 lbs! You're doing great!
    *like*

    I always envision a pound as a pound of ground beef. Ever see one of those 5 pound rolls? Nice to know i'm no longer carrying that around.
  • bettertracie
    bettertracie Posts: 196 Member
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    Well, I've lost more than 75 pounds since I started this whole 'trip' and I dontfeel any different in my own skin or feel like the difference in the mirror is that big of a deal... but I've always been fat, so for me I think I'll always be a little fat girl on the inside, but everyday I'm retraining my mind, body, and soul to be the beautiful woman everyone else says they see... and then I went over to a relatives who had a family picture of us and I about fell out of my shoes, "who is that fat girl in the pictures!?" And that was at about 40 pounds lost.

    I know this is a really hard reality, but for me, I'm getting stronger on the outside and letting this lifestyle change my body, mind, and soul one workout at a time... and bottom line is no matter how much weight you lose, the picture you see in the mirror is dictated by the image you already have of yourself in your mind... and how long it takes you to see 'beautiful' is up to YOU!

    Yes we are here to make improvement on ourselves, that doesn't mean there was anything WRONG with us before... find your happy zone and don't worry about how long it takes to feel 'better'... it will hit you square in the face one day and then you'll be hooked for life like me!!!

    Stay strong!! Look at how far you've already come!?
  • Erica9903
    Erica9903 Posts: 156
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    I think it's harder for us to see our changes because we are so fixated on seeing immediate changes...or at least that's the case with me. Maybe you should take an updated picture of yourself and compare side by side with your older ones. That helped me. 30 pounds is quite a bit of weight and I'm sure there's definately a change. Keep your head up. Good luck and congrats to you on your progress to date:flowerforyou:
  • jlmnk1313
    jlmnk1313 Posts: 207 Member
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    Well, I've lost more than 75 pounds since I started this whole 'trip' and I dontfeel any different in my own skin or feel like the difference in the mirror is that big of a deal... but I've always been fat, so for me I think I'll always be a little fat girl on the inside, but everyday I'm retraining my mind, body, and soul to be the beautiful woman everyone else says they see... and then I went over to a relatives who had a family picture of us and I about fell out of my shoes, "who is that fat girl in the pictures!?" And that was at about 40 pounds lost.

    I know this is a really hard reality, but for me, I'm getting stronger on the outside and letting this lifestyle change my body, mind, and soul one workout at a time... and bottom line is no matter how much weight you lose, the picture you see in the mirror is dictated by the image you already have of yourself in your mind... and how long it takes you to see 'beautiful' is up to YOU!

    Yes we are here to make improvement on ourselves, that doesn't mean there was anything WRONG with us before... find your happy zone and don't worry about how long it takes to feel 'better'... it will hit you square in the face one day and then you'll be hooked for life like me!!!

    Stay strong!! Look at how far you've already come!?

    WOW you have done fantastic! I do realize part of this is the image in my head I just don't know how to change that! i see who i use to be ( i was thin) and I just want that person looking back at me! Thanks for the advice
  • jlmnk1313
    jlmnk1313 Posts: 207 Member
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    I think it's harder for us to see our changes because we are so fixated on seeing immediate changes...or at least that's the case with me. Maybe you should take an updated picture of yourself and compare side by side with your older ones. That helped me. 30 pounds is quite a bit of weight and I'm sure there's definately a change. Keep your head up. Good luck and congrats to you on your progress to date:flowerforyou:
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    THANK YOU! I am going to do that! i actually took a pic today so I will post it and see if I can see the difference or if anyone else can either!
  • blessedmommy2x
    blessedmommy2x Posts: 110
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    I can COMPLETELY relate! I haven't lost that much yet, but I've lost 22lbs. I don't notice the difference at all. I think the reason why is because my weight is dispersed all over my body.. So instead of just losing my belly, I'm probably just losing a little here and there. Which is why I don't see any difference. We will notice the difference...hopefully soon! Hang in there, the more we lose the closer we will be to SEEING the difference!
  • lerchfighter
    lerchfighter Posts: 19
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    Here's the truth on this whole thing. Your body plays a very cruel joke on you when you go through a large weight loss phase and 30 lbs is HUGE!!!. I'm a P90X guy, 47 years old and have been through a pretty radical weight loss phase that was strange in that I didn't have any tangible VISUAL results even after a 20 lb loss. The problem with looking at yourself in the mirror every day is that you don't see the before and after AND your body loses weight from your head/toes into your middle. Essentially, you look worse in the mirror after losing a certain percentage of body fat because your face, shoulders, chest, legs, calves and thighs get thin but your hips and abdomen are the last battle ground for fat. You now are thinner in the upper/lower range of the hourglass and look larger in the middle. Stick with it!!. Even if it takes another year on the program, you'll wake up one day and see the body you envisioned. I always tell friends who start radical diet/fitness programs to avoid seeing themselves in the mirror for 3 months.

    I'm not a huge fan of the scale. A measuring tape is a much stronger advocate of your progress. Take measurements, stay on track and don't re-measure or re-visage (my term) yourself other than in 30 day increments. Depending on your work out, you may be having a muscle for fat exchange that doesn't represent a positive in MFP report sdso don't beat yourself up on the daily self-examination.

    Hang in there. 30 LBS is a massive achievement and I don't care if you started at 500lbs or 120 lbs. Don't monitor scales, monitor measurement change and, if you can do that, you can hit your goal. Uncle Ted is behind you!!

    Great White Buffalo Props
  • Tamishumate
    Tamishumate Posts: 1,171 Member
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    it took a good 30 pounds before I could tell, and before I went down a size. now its about 5 pounds a size. when you are bigger , it takes more to notice, it sucks big time. I am sorry . it will get better!:flowerforyou:
  • PrairieRoseNE
    PrairieRoseNE Posts: 265 Member
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    Awesome posts everyone - that's why I like this site so much - all the encouragement given to those asking for help!!
  • Jasmine_Moonstone
    Jasmine_Moonstone Posts: 80 Member
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    I am right there with you. I have lost 17.8lbs as of today. I can NOT see a difference at all except in my face. However I can feel it in my clothes. Other people are also saying they see it, but I fail to. :( I know that I took pictures today & still can not see it much. Sigh. I am hoping that in another 10-20lbs I will be able to see some difference. I just feel HUGE still. Hugs, you're not alone.

    I also forgot to add that I also got to move down a size in pants. Also my bra is fitting looser. I feel good about that, but I want to SEE it to.
  • Disneymaniac
    Disneymaniac Posts: 14
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    OMG! I CAN RELATE!!!! I too have just lost 31.5 pounds and don't feel it. I can see it in my clothes but when I see myself...I don't feel any changes. It's bizarre. I have about 6.5 pounds to go...so we will see if I feel it then. Congrats to you on your weightloss!
  • Disneymaniac
    Disneymaniac Posts: 14
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    it took a good 30 pounds before I could tell, and before I went down a size. now its about 5 pounds a size. when you are bigger , it takes more to notice, it sucks big time. I am sorry . it will get better!:flowerforyou:
    :smile: Thanks for the encouragement! BTW...LOVE your ticker. Great idea...may have to explore that one when I reach my goal weight.:wink:

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