The Side of Weight Loss No One Talks About

losing weight, seeing the numbers go down... but thinking "oh, the tape and scale are fooling me. I actually didn't lose anything"

^this!^ I weight myself but want to add a a little to the scale reading because "it can't be right"!

everything, my obsession of counting calories, saying "I cant eat there, (even though I can, but my issue is it sets off issues with eating "bad" foods) obsessing now that I am skinny that I will wake up fat, exercising allllllllllllllllll the time! Afraid of gaining a pound, I believe I have created me somewhat of a food disorder. I am still learning how to cope with the new me, I have never been a size 3-4 my whole life, I walk 13-15 miles a day, I am addicted to my fitbit and competing on the leadership boards.......sagging skin is the worst, lost all this weight and no way I can rock a bikini or skimpy shorts..........I am not crazy although I may sound like it here it is truly a lifestyle change and by god it is hard, being surrounded by crap all the time. oh and I AM TIRED!

I feel the same way about eating out. I know where I can and can't eat...without setting off the "issues of eating bad foods".

Someone mentioned losing a size in your shoe size, which threw me off entirely when it happened. I went from a size 8 to a size 7.5 and it was very surreal at first but it's cool now!

Te overwhelming fear that i'm not doing enough! I have a hard time losing to begin with and feel like i'm working hard to get every little pound off. Also the overwhelming fear that wha i'm doing wont matter in the long run for me anyway. Its so sef defeating, but i'm not stopping!

I am kinda old, but still I didn't think this would happen to me because I wasn't that fat-- This morning I notice that the slab of fat that was covering my abdonen is less, but now the skin is unpleasantly wrinkled and I don't think that will go away. So my bikini years are over, even if I get to my goal weight.

This happened to me too. I've been told no amount of crunches is going to fix it. Surgery is the only option. Which isn't really an option.

It's hard to shave bony knees.
It's hard to sleep on your side, because of bone on bone, bony knees!
You really do NEED to buy new clothes because they look like bags on you.
Some people will resent you.
Some people will assume that your new lifestyle is temporary and that you will gain it all back and then some.
Some people will tell you that you are 'thin enough' already.
Some will say you are obsessed with exercise.
Sex is better!
You will get compliments, take them and say thank you!
Tailbone pain due to loss of my fat *kitten*. Now biking sucks..
I can no longer set my coffee mug on my stomach that was right under my boobs, or I guess I mean where my boobs used to be.
I go to bed aching every night, but it's kind of a good ache, most of the time.
You will cringe when you see other people's grocery carts filled with utter crap. Yeah it's not your business but you still feel sorry for them.
You will be shopping for food constantly because none of it is prepared, pre-packaged, frozen and already made. Fresh stuff goes bad quickly. Frozen fruits and veggies are ok though.
You will savor every single bite of food and will discover that carrots actually taste sweet and seafood tastes salty without adding salt!
You will be able to wear your seat belt on your LAP, where it belongs, instead of over your fat gut and internal organs. It's also safer and causes less injury in accidents. (former medic and FF here).
Skin will sag and you may look older. Dislike.
Some people drop a shoe size. I walked/jogged/ran/biked over 1,000 miles last year and my feet actually grew from a 7 to an 8. LOL
You will discover that workout clothes, running shoes, etc. are expensive but soo worth it!
You love to sweat.
You get depressed if you can't exercise.
You learn to plan before going out to dinner. You look up restaurants online to find a healthier choice and learn to ignore what other people think or say about your choices.
You get LOTS of advice from other 'dieters' who have not yet discovered that it is a lifestyle, not a DIET. The latest one I heard was that you should shrink your stomach so you eat less.
You will see a lot of strange things while you're out walking/running. I have had raccoons chase me, dogs, creepy people stare and yell stuff (please ignore them), I have found used condoms (yuck), peoples 'addiction' trash such as non-winning scratch off lottery tickets, Big Gulp or any fast food trash, empty liquor bottles, cigarette butts & empty packages, 'chew' in water bottles, etc. I think that road kill is the nastiest.
You will also see a lot of wonderful things while you're out and about. Enjoy those.
If someone sees you eating a 'treat' they will say that you're going to gain all of your weight back or ask if you're off your 'diet'.
You will have tons of energy and will be asked if you have ADD.
You will only get 'exercise' gifts for your birthday and Christmas. I'm loving all the under armour.
You may experience skin yeast infections, blisters, callouses, thigh chafing, plantar fasciitis and knee pain.
You'll take a LOT of showers.
You'll gain self confidence. I always thought this was bs, but I did, I think because of the extra energy I had and knowing that I looked better.
You find out that not everyone wants to hear about your weight loss, healthy foods, the 5k you signed up for, how excited you are about your HRM or new running shoes. Some people feel intimidated about it or just plain don't want to hear that from you ALL the time. Don't be offended. Remember to listen to other people. That's what friends do.
Ok, I think I've added enough. lol

This year I got to wear my first bikini ever, and I learned that I look good in a bikini. I have some extra skin but it's well hidden in my bikini bottom...
until I get into a pool/sea...

because the extra skin/fat bits layer FLOATS!

I'm glad because I don't have much extra skin (actually it's minimal, I'm lucky) but my stomach looks very wobbly in the water now. I have to be careful when I get out of the pool and re-accomodate my bikini to make sure everything stays in place.

So if anyone reading this is in for a dramatic huge weightloss and is hoping to use a bikini while avoiding a costly tummy tuck... have this in mind before choosing a bikini model. Specially if the bikini is intended to be used in a public pool :P

I get that. It is difficult to stop old habits and force myself to deal with things differently.

Its pretty trivial but my online gaming friends are pi$$ed at me because I would rather exercise than stay up all night playing video games eating potato chips.

I've lost 40 pounds total over a few years. One thing that really surprised me is that my body shape/proportion is exactly the same, pretty much no matter what weight. Another surprise is that I started indoor cycling as opposed to running, and I finally look forward to workouts. They're no longer painful or dreadful and time flies. I never thought I would say that. One thing that surprised me when I started eating healthy was what a huge volume of vegetables a person needs. I get so full from vegetables that I don't eat the gross stuff that I used to. Also, I was surprised how different I feel just from changing my diet. I eat paleo and feel great. Hemp seed is now a diet staple. I also have been really amazed at how much herbs and supplements can make a difference. Aloe, coconut, tea, ginger, and more have all been really helpful for me, because I developed some serious digestive issues from the weight gain. I roughly count calories, and I am surprised at how little I need. I always assumed 2000 calories was what I needed, but then I got a fancy BMR test at a weight loss clinic which said my BMR was 1300.

How much ongoing work and diligence it takes to maintain your weight loss.

Everyone is always happy/excited to hit their goal weight. I was no exception. But, I had a hard time stopping the 'weight loss' mentality. It was scary to up my calories and eat at maintenance levels. And it's been very hard work over the past 16 months to keep my weight at 135 (+/- 5 lbs). Focusing on maintenance will probably be a lifelong commitment for me.

I am "shrinking" into clothes I "grew out" of..
Downside is, sometimes it's that inbetween size, too big for size X jeans, and too small for Y size jeans..

I was thinking of raiding goodwill for inbeweeny stuff, because I dont plan on being at any size for long/

Oh and the one thing I dont think anyones mentioned yet, my girls are shrinking Not that there was much before, now theres less..

For me- shrinking down into old outdated UGLY stuff! Yeah it has been that long!!

Feeling uncomfortable in a bikini because you're now the "skinny b*tch" among your friends. And dealing with backhanded compliments from said friends because of your weight loss.

I still see my belly as flabby even though my hubby says its smaller. The body issues I had are still there and I work hard on them but I don't think that will go away.

It's hard to shave bony knees.
It's hard to sleep on your side, because of bone on bone, bony knees!
You really do NEED to buy news clothes because they look like bags on you.
Some people will resent you.
Some people will assume that your new lifestyle is temporary and that you will gain it all back and then some.
Some people will tell you that you are 'thin enough' already.
Some will say you are obsessed with exercise.
Sex is better!
You will get compliments, take them and say thank you!

This.

Coworkers and even family/friends will have the strangest backhanded compliments.