Do you still feel "fat" mentally after a lot of weight loss?

b1delane

I was just talking to my aunt and cousin about this! Some customer at my job asked me what size I would wear in a certain jacket because her friend (which is a size 5) looks about my size, I said large and she says "really I don't think so could you try on this medium for me I want to see if it will fit you?", me being the good Samaritan that I am, agrees (in my mind though I scoffed at her because I just KNEW it wasn't my size)...sure enough it FIT!!! I was so surprised! First I am not a size five but an eight, and second because I see a whole different person in the mirror. I still see the overweight girl and not the fit women. It still shocks me everyday. Knowing and believing I guess are two different things!

Sul3i

I didn't til I reached goal got complacent stopped working out and eating healthy... didn't gain much back but I jiggle a lot now n thatmakes me feel fat... I'm working towards getting back on track now

YaGigi

I got a different problem. All my life I was pretty and curvy/slim. I used to work for TV, was a model, was in music videos.
And now when I'm fat, I still feel sexy and curvy. And I go straight to the 38 size dresses in Dolce and Gabbana and those sale assistants look at me like wtf

Just you wait, DG *****es, I'll be back in a couple of months!

I bet when I'm old 80 something grandma, I still will be thinking I'm a hot chick, lol, that will be a sad sad picture.

05saleengirl

As crazy as it sounds yes...I still do at times. For example...if.I walk past someone and they look at me...in my mind I'm automatically thinking..."they think I'm fat; they are staring at me cuz of my weight". After being picked on for my weight for many years...its hard to think otherwise.

jennfranklin

Yes..It is crazy! I know I have a long way to go to get to my goal, but I am down a total of 64 pounds. 37 while on MFP, and I do feel fat some days! And I mentally cannot imagine myself any smaller! Does anyone have that same problem?

quirkytizzy

Yeah, I have total body dysmorphia...

Doesn't seem to matter how much weight I lose, I'm always chunky in my mind. When my profile picture was taken (this was a couple years ago when I was about 20 pounds lighter than now) I commented on how my belly was fat and poofy. I wish I was joking...and I wish my belly was that "fat and poofy" now. :ohwell:

I have this, too. Pictures of my early 20's in which I recall very clearly thinking I was fat. How silly we are when things are put into perspective!

shabnaum

I still feel fat because I have fat jiggles on my arms and belly, cellulite on my thighs..sometimes I still feel like I look fat in some clothes......I feel like once I'm lean and muscular I won't feel fat anymore...I hope one day it will go away..I technically fit in my healthy weight zone for my height so hopefully weight training and HIIT will make the jiggle go away

Miss_dannii

Yes definitely. I call it fat girl issues. Confidence doesn't come for free with weight loss, I wish it did.

UKChloeT

A few years ago I lost 3st (42lbs) and a friend of mine was going through her waredrobe and didn't want an old pair of jeans so gave them to me. I never thought they'd fit me because my friend has always been slim and I could never be the same size as her....
I tried them on when I got home...and they fit! I screamed at the top of my voice and ran to find my OH, jumping around like a mad woman!
Then, I started going shopping and noticed that mediums were too big...its really odd because I started to think it was a conspiracy! Like the shops had put the labels on the wrong sizes or something.

And now half the weight has gone back on and I'm back at the beginning again....5lbs down, 16lbs to go!

Ayla70

I still feel ridiculously fat, although I'm down 35lbs. I still have work to do and just about at the halfway mark. When I look in the mirror I feel that it's not me and I didn't lose anything. I swear each time I go shopping for new clothes I go straight to the big sizes XL / XXL section when I know I fit a Medium. Just yesterday my friend asked me what size I wear and she was going to pick up a shirt for me. I hesitated and said Large because I felt that a medium would be too small.

Anyone feel the same?

Yes! I still go to the same size clothing I was, because I still don't truly believe I'm any different. I don't really feel a lot different. But then I never really felt as big as I was to start with. I always felt a lot more able than my body allowed. I've lost almost 30 kilos, and I honest do not feel like I look any different whatsoever.

ZombieChaser

Yes I still do - Over the last 2 years, I went from 200 lbs to 135-140 lbs. (Most of it is pre-MFP)
I still see the fat girl in the mirror at times. And it scares the crap out of me. It's a long process, and I'm having more realistic days than before, so it's only a matter of time before my brain catches up to my body.

You'll get there too - one thing that's helped me is celebrating the little things. Write them down, so that when you're not feeling it, you can go back to it and remember who you ARE right now.

Ayla70

A few years ago I lost 3st (42lbs) and a friend of mine was going through her waredrobe and didn't want an old pair of jeans so gave them to me. I never thought they'd fit me because my friend has always been slim and I could never be the same size as her....
I tried them on when I got home...and they fit! I screamed at the top of my voice and ran to find my OH, jumping around like a mad woman!
Then, I started going shopping and noticed that mediums were too big...its really odd because I started to think it was a conspiracy! Like the shops had put the labels on the wrong sizes or something.

And now half the weight has gone back on and I'm back at the beginning again....5lbs down, 16lbs to go!

OMG...so this! ^^

I have silly things go through my head too, like 'my friend stretched the clothes she passed down, so they're not REALLY that small' and 'the shops are obviously carrying bigger sizes these days, where a size 14 is really a size 18'...

Ayla70

As crazy as it sounds yes...I still do at times. For example...if.I walk past someone and they look at me...in my mind I'm automatically thinking..."they think I'm fat; they are staring at me cuz of my weight". After being picked on for my weight for many years...its hard to think otherwise.

^^ this too...

Miss_dannii

A few years ago I lost 3st (42lbs) and a friend of mine was going through her waredrobe and didn't want an old pair of jeans so gave them to me. I never thought they'd fit me because my friend has always been slim and I could never be the same size as her....
I tried them on when I got home...and they fit! I screamed at the top of my voice and ran to find my OH, jumping around like a mad woman!
Then, I started going shopping and noticed that mediums were too big...its really odd because I started to think it was a conspiracy! Like the shops had put the labels on the wrong sizes or something.

And now half the weight has gone back on and I'm back at the beginning again....5lbs down, 16lbs to go!

Lol @ the conspiracy!! I feel the exact same.. when I try on clothes, I always take in a medium AND a large, or a 12 and a 14, even though the medium and the 12 always fit and are starting to get loose on me. I feel like sizes must have changed! lol x

AmeChops

I've gone from 220lbs to 147lbs and yes, I still feel "fat" - I'm not sure if that's down to me being so tiny before I gained the weight or whether it's just because I'm so critical of myself anyways or whether it's a very common thing to occur...who knows?!

HotMummyMission

Story of my lfe

cleanandlean2012

Absolutely!!! I have gone from size 22 to size 16 and still end up looking at size 20+. I cannot see a difference at all, however the tape measure, scales and clothes size tell a totally different story. My trick is to keep good friends around, so if I eventually go too thin, they can tell me to stop!

I also think it is a change of mindset...which takes time. All the best!

Miss_dannii

I wonder if there is some sort of hypnosis people like us can go for to help us with self image.. I had hypnosis for smoking before and it worked, for a while anyway lol

claudineer

I lost 60lbs in 2006. However, I never saw myself as thinner. Everyone was telling me that I was becoming too thin. However, I did not see it. My shirts still felt the same on me. It it was not for my pants (literally falling down as I walk) I would not have believed anyone. I only realized that I had lost weight because everyone was giving me more attention. I became surprisingly angry. I only wanted to be around people who appreciated me at my higher weight.

Congrats on your journey. You have done something very positive for yourself and this is one of the highest honors.

pkw58

I lost 43 pounds, and still can't believe I am a size 8 instead of busting out size 14's. Yesterday I went to buy a fitted shirt to wear with my new suit - size 8 blazer, size 6 skirt. I made myself take a size 8 and it fit! What is amazing to me after being this size for about six months now, is that I am surprised every morning when my new clothes still fit!

I think the hardest part of my weight loss is rebuilding my wardrobe right now. I have weeded and weeded out the too big clothes and it is motivating to have a nice small group of clothes that make me feel great and fit well.

I don't feel fat - but I defintly can't look at a new garment in a store and say -"That looks like that will fit"....

curtis9120

Last year my partner bought me a size 22 (uk sizing) cardigan to cover me up, This year it will be size silk 12 underwear!!!!!!
We have lost 10 stones between us but aree both still getting to grips with our actual sizes rather than our sizes in out heads.

My suggestions are:- Spend as much time in front of a full length mirror as you can. Try clothes on and get rid or alter what doesn't fit. Spend a day doing it and sorting your closet. Get your close friends involved and ask their advice on what suites. You will never go back there, to the dark place.

This week I wore a dress with leggings and boots above the knee. Felt safe and comfy and look good. Then realised when I was out and eating a meal, that my leggings actually are thin enough to look like tights. I realised that I was actually wearing a very short dress and tights, and sat with my thighs on show. Panicked a bit and then thought well I looked good when I set off from home, so must look good now. I relaxed and had a good evening. My legs that have not seen the light of day for 20 plus years.

Push yourself, confidence will come and go. Hopefully for us all it will come and stay. Then we can worry about 'dust on skirting boards' or 'scented draw liners??'

waldenfam2

Lol, I say this all the time. I went from a size 26 at my highest to now wearing a 6 (which is getting loose on me) and I still feel like I'm fat. I talk about this quite frequently with my friends, because I constantly check the mirror, not to see how I look necessarily, but to make sure I didn't suddenly turn into the fat me all of a sudden. I spent over 1/2 my life obese, probably more than that because I was very heavy from about 6 yrs old to 10 yrs old too, my brain does not understand that I'm now a healthy weight.

I know that I look a lot better, but when I see people on the street I constantly think that I'm about so and so's size, when in reality they are more like a size 10. I hope it get's better because I'd really like to enjoy being this size rather than be constantly plagued by my fat image of myself.

Erisad

Me too...its stronger some days than others. It's frustrating. >.<

waldenfam2

Last year my partner bought me a size 22 (uk sizing) cardigan to cover me up, This year it will be size silk 12 underwear!!!!!!
We have lost 10 stones between us but aree both still getting to grips with our actual sizes rather than our sizes in out heads.

My suggestions are:- Spend as much time in front of a full length mirror as you can. Try clothes on and get rid or alter what doesn't fit. Spend a day doing it and sorting your closet. Get your close friends involved and ask their advice on what suites. You will never go back there, to the dark place.

This week I wore a dress with leggings and boots above the knee. Felt safe and comfy and look good. Then realised when I was out and eating a meal, that my leggings actually are thin enough to look like tights. I realised that I was actually wearing a very short dress and tights, and sat with my thighs on show. Panicked a bit and then thought well I looked good when I set off from home, so must look good now. I relaxed and had a good evening. My legs that have not seen the light of day for 20 plus years.

Push yourself, confidence will come and go. Hopefully for us all it will come and stay. Then we can worry about 'dust on skirting boards' or 'scented draw liners??'

haha...I just bought a pair of leggings!! I'm still waiting for them to come in the mail and I need a longer sweater to go with them too but it's the exact same thing. I know I look good when I leave but then I start panicking when I'm out and about. That's when I find a mirror...it reassures my brain that all is still well

simplyshrinking

Yes, only because I've been over weight most of my life. After a while, being the 'fat girl' became normal to me. Now that I'm in a size 8, I still feel like people judge me for being fat. :indifferent:

PaulaPalooza

I was feeling really down on myself a few weeks ago because I hadn't been logging or eating well (and I'd gotten down to a low of 123, then gained back to about 130). But then I looked at myself in pictures recently in a flapper halloween dress and pictures from 3 years ago in the same dress and was like "oh. oh ok. I see it now." Granted the differences were small (about 143 down to 130 or so) but they were VERY visible to me. That's what it takes to snap me out of it- that half a second when I can see myself not from my own critical eyes... kinda like I have to surprise myself in a picture (hey who's tha- oh. that's me) to have a clear perspective.

txbelle01

YES!! the worst part is when someone takes your picture and you see yourself and think REALLY I still look fat! I felt that way this
Thanksgiving. I am down -35lbs and started at Size 18 and now a size 14. Major difference in face,my arms, legs, stomach. All over and I still feel fat. I am the midway point. But I really thing the mind plays tricks on you. I think it is the old you, trying to sabotage the new you. I think that is why some of us regress back to gaining weight again. Well, I decided I'm going to kick the old me's butt and
win the battle of the bulge Finally!

mhairi81

YES!! the worst part is when someone takes your picture and you see yourself and think REALLY I still look fat! I felt that way this
Thanksgiving. I am down -35lbs and started at Size 18 and now a size 14. Major difference in face,my arms, legs, stomach. All over and I still feel fat. I am the midway point. But I really thing the mind plays tricks on you. I think it is the old you, trying to sabotage the new you. I think that is why some of us regress back to gaining weight again. Well, I decided I'm going to kick the old me's butt and
win the battle of the bulge Finally!

This! I was looking at photos from a trip out this week and even though I've lost 41lbs I nearly cried as I thought I just looked the same. Had a bad day or two of emotional, 'what's the point' eating and then realised I was doing exactly what you said, sabotaging myself! So back on the wagon to get the other half off!

sarahslim100

Not now. I window shop frequently now and this has helped me choose the right sizes. Also looking at before pics helped. Self compassion exercises also helped...see www.self-compassion.com

lrose50

Keep one pair of your "Fat Pants" and try them on when you're feeling this way - get rid of all your other fat clothes and congratulations.