Body image after weight loss

ohtheveganity

Hi everyone

I've lost a good deal of weight (24 pounds) in 4 months and I'm worried because I'm still have a load of issues with my body image. 24 pounds was pretty big for me because I wasn't huge to begin with (I've gone from 163-139 at 5'3.5".)

A lot of people around me are noticing the changes in my body, and I feel like I'm the only person who doesn't really see them myself. Some days I wake up and look at myself and really think "dang, I look so much better!" but the majority of the time I still see the excess weight around my belly, my flabby arms, and jiggly thighs. I've heard people talk about dropping 5 pounds and seeing a huge difference. 24 pounds has gotten me into my old dresses from 2 years ago (though they're tight and I look bad, they zipped!) and I dropped 2 jean sizes (11 in juniors-9) but I feel like it should be showing more.

My mom says I'm too hard on myself. I know I should be proud for coming so far (130 is my original goal weight, 9 pounds away) but at this rate I feel like at 130 I still won't be happy. I'm just worried that I'll end up always needing to be smaller and smaller and develop an eating disorder or something.

Does anyone have any tips on how to feel more comfortable with the weight I've lost and stop being so hard on myself?

thescrumisfun

Give yourself some time to adjust to the new-looking you - 24 lbs is still a big loss and it does take getting used to! I've lost 30 (started at 195 at 5'3") and it took me some time. Appreciate all of the hard work you have been doing and enjoy it! I have learned to focus more on how I feel and how my fitness is coming along rather than go by a number.

twinketta

24lbs in 4 months is a huge drop in weight.

Well done for being so dedicated, maybe now it is time to stop focusing on the weight and go with toning and strengthening to get the shape to go with your body frame?

139lbs at your height is a good ratio

sometimes we can feel that it is necessary to keep on losing when in fact it can just be shaping that helps?

Alsha1999

This!

24lbs in 4 months is a huge drop in weight.

Well done for being so dedicated, maybe now it is time to stop focusing on the weight and go with toning and strengthening to get the shape to go with your body frame?

139lbs at your height is a good ratio

sometimes we can feel that it is necessary to keep on losing when in fact it can just be shaping that helps?

bgelliott

I know that I am my own worst critic and I'm so hard on myself. It took me a long time to look in the mirror and NOT see that fat girl looking back at me. Give it time, you will adjust. :-)

sars_68

It took me ages to actually 'see' the difference in myself. I can remember posting a similar thread! Everyone around me commented on how much I'd lost, but I couldn't see it and felt really stupid because of it.

Hang in there, with time you will see it too. You're doing great. Keep up the good work.

:drinker:

kelseyhere

look at pictures of how you used to look, that should jump start something in your brain. also it's just not about how you look, think about how much better you FEEL.

juniperleaves

Love your body now! If you don't, there's no amount of weight you can lose that will make you love it. Learn to appreciate the good things about your body now. Instead of looking for the bad things, look for the things you actually like.

Also take pictures! It's hard to look at yourself in the mirror and remember what you used to look like so sometimes it seems like there's no difference at all. Take lots of pictures and when you get discouraged, look back at them.

LaurenAOK

You sound just like me. I posted a topic just like this a while back, after I reached my first goal weight. My brain knew I'd lost weight, but when I looked in the mirror all I saw was fat and things I still wanted to fix about myself. I wasn't happy at all.

I never found a magical solution, but through continuing to work out and eat healthy I've grown to love my body more. I love my body because it can run and swim and lift weights. I love my body because if I eat healthy most of the time, I can have a total junk day without it backfiring. I love that my legs are strong now. I even love my slightly manly shoulders.

I still have some days when I look in the mirror and feel disgusting, but I'm working on it. One thing I do that seems kind of silly, but really helps, is before I get in the shower, I look at my body in the mirror and say to myself "I am beautiful." Then I name a couple of things I really like about myself. The more often I do this the more comfortable I feel about myself.

I'm back here on MFP to lose 10 more pounds and hopefully achieve my dream body, but I think having a "dream body" is just as much mental as it is physical. You could have the most perfect body in the world, but if you're mentally messed up, you won't be able to see it. Just remind yourself that you are working hard, your body IS changing and you ARE beautiful.

amandamotley

If you don't already lift weights, I highly suggest it! That's the only thing that's helped me love my body. Before I started lifting, if I lost 10 lbs, I just had a 10 lb smaller version of the exact same body. But definitely look at your "before" pics and try to point out the positive changes in your body. It's hard work to love ourselves but worth it!

ohtheveganity

Ah, weights. The bane of my existence. I've actually suffered 3 whiplashes from car accidents/falls in the last year so basically anything upper body is off the charts for me, as well as anything too strenuous on the lower body because it's all connected -_-