Does the feeling ever go away?

I was just talking with one of my amazing friends on here. We both are going through the same thing, I'm hoping to hear what people think.

My highest weight was 215 I was in a size 18/20 pants and 2X shirts, I'm now 156 pounds, I'm size 8 pants, small/med shirts.
There are so many days that I look in the mirror and see that 215 pound, unhappy woman. I also catch myself looking at bigger clothes sometimes when I'm out shopping.

I know what I've accomplished, but does that feeling that you're still as big as when you started ever go away?

Thanks

Talk to a professional. It's obvious that there are feelings that you have that are much more complicated than just how you view your body at a lower/higher weight. At least this way you can try to identify why you feel this way.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Unless you're adding psychologist/psychiatrist to your list of qualifications I don't think this advice is valid.

:laugh:

I totally sympathize with you. I look in the mirror and don't feel THAT much different. And I'll go shopping, and my ability to size what clothing I'll fit into has just flown right out the window. But when I see myself in pictures, and on video it REALLY hits home, and when I look at old clothing that falls right off I feel a lot better. Keep before and after shots/clothes. It really helps. And remember it's not your size that makes you anyway. It's your character.

It definitely takes some getting use too; I have just about lost 90lbs from an 18-20 now to a size 12 and I can get into some 10’s tightly, medium shirts & dresses. But when people say you’re so much smaller I’m thinking what you are seeing I still need to lose weight. At least now I can see it, it took awhile to stop shopping in the plus size stores too. But my mind is catching up now.

I have lost 40 and need to lose another 40, but lately I still feel fat. I measured my belly and it was 45 inches and for some reason I expected it to be smaller. Now I measured it at it's biggest point (my belly button), but it seems so far away from 32 inches.

I know I just need to keep doing what I am doing and one day I will wake up and it will be 32 inches, but sometimes that seems so hard.

Wow! Great job dropping 10 pants sizes and those extra pounds. That's impressive.

I don't personally have this problem, but my sister does. She is totally fit and healthy and skinny now, but she always sees that 220 pound woman in the mirror. You just have to conivnce yourself that's not you anymore and know that you are doing great. It's hard, but you can get over it in time. Positive self talk and having friends and family reminding you of how good you look will help. Put up some post it notes on your bedroom mirror to help boost your self confidence; "I am skinny", "I'm hot", "I love my body" etc.

I hope it goes away eventually. But not yet for me anyway. I started a hair larger than you and am about the same now, and I don't really see any difference. I don't have "before" pics, the best I have is a during (about 1/2 way) and now- and I guess I see it a little there, but never in the mirror. I put on size 6 jeans yesterday. I know I'm smaller, but I don't see it or feel it yet. At all.

I think it's hard to say. My heaviest was 208. I'm about 145 now. Some days I really see the difference and some days I still see me the old me. I think it depends on my moods

I'm about 10 months in and I KNOW that I've gotten smaller - I can see it on the scale as well as in my clothes. I went from a L/XL to a Medium in tops and from a ridiculously tight 12 in pants to a 6. I know it and I can see it. But when the clothes come off, I don't see much of a difference. If I could get the weight to come off of my waistline, I think my brain would finally catch up.

I know it is hard for a woman in this culture, but you cannot rely on how you look for your feeling of self-worth. Your looks will eventually fade--we all turn into fat little grannies or skinny little grannies, but none of us look that awesome past a certain age.

Focus on other accomplishments--are you good at your job, do you have kids you raised well, and did you turn into the kind of person that you wanted to be when you were a kid? Because those are the things that will not go away.

Interesting you mention this. I just reached my goal last weekend and next week I am going on a beach vacation. I bought myself 2 new bikinis. For the first time in my life, trying them on and looking in the mirror wasn't a horrifying experience! However.....wearing it out in public might be different. Normally when I go to the beach I wear a bikini, but I usually keep on a shirt and shorts and don't go in the water (even though I love swimming). I am wondering if I will find myself doing the same thing next week, even though I know that I look ok in a bikini now. I have never worn just a bathing suit on the beach in public.

And yes, going shopping sometimes I grab a size 12, which is what I wore for years, completely forgetting that I'm a 6 now. Sometimes I will pick up a 6, look at it, and say "ha! No way I'm ever getting into that!" but...I actually do fit into it. My brain hangs onto the overweight me just because I was overweight my whole life.