How important are 'Before' photos to those who've succeeded?

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Replies

  • aldousmom
    aldousmom Posts: 382 Member
    I have a few pics of my "before" and really I prefer to not look at them. Seeing them brings back the overwhelming embarrassment of looking like that, and I don't want to relive that, ever. I don't do much comparison, even tho I can see a huge difference in race and running pics.
  • twixlepennie
    twixlepennie Posts: 1,074 Member
    I didn't take any before I started losing weight and have no regrets. I know where I've come from-going from a size 14 jean to a size 2 jean is all the 'before/after' I need :bigsmile:
  • impemberstar
    impemberstar Posts: 23 Member
    I think your motivation is really great. Mind if i frend you and we can motivate eachother?
  • amcsouth
    amcsouth Posts: 283 Member
    I kinda think they are important especially if you are looking to lose alot of fat. Lots of people complain that they don't see any difference in their bodies after however many months but they are eye-opening. Lets you know how far you've come :smile:

    I personally HATE looking at them! I feel so embarrassed that I let myself get like that but its a little reminder of where you started. :smile:
  • garber6th
    garber6th Posts: 1,890 Member
    For me the pictures are a must, especially because my brain seems to take longer to catch up with my weight loss than my body does. I sometimes think I look the same as I did 100 pounds ago and the pictures help snap me back to reality and show me how far I have come.
  • brookielaw
    brookielaw Posts: 814 Member
    I wish I had done it. The problem is that I frequently see myself as the "old" me. The icon I have now is the closest to a "before" pic that I have but it's not really representative of my worst. It sure is great though to be able to see the two side-by side, both for the "WTG brookie!" feeling and the "SEE! YOU'RE NOT THAT GIRL ANYMORE!!" It seems like your brain takes a long time to adjust to seeing what is really there now versus what you saw before, if that makes any sense.

    I am not overly embarassed of the old pictures* that I'm willing to share. I worked with what I had in the best ways I could. I wish I had some full-body shots for comparison purposes.

    *You'll never see the really bad ones. They hang on my fridge.
  • happycauseIride
    happycauseIride Posts: 536 Member
    Yep, do it. I hated having my picture taken, but now I am thankful for the few I had. In my mind I still see the fat person I was every time I look in the mirror. I have dropped 4 jean sizes and I still don't see it. The pictures help to give me a visual that I am actually making progress when I feel like I'm not.
  • Followingsea
    Followingsea Posts: 407 Member
    I hated them at the time, but I am so grateful now that I have photos of myself at my highest weight. I find it particularly useful since it's harder to see gradual change in the mirror day-by-day, so if I'm feeling down about lack of recent progress I can pull out a picture from [whenever] and really SEE the difference.
  • woodml1
    woodml1 Posts: 199 Member
    Earlier this year I lost a lot of weight for my first figure competition (pics posted on my profile if you want to look)! The post show rebound hit me hard and I gained back ALOT of weight between then and now. I'm really happy that I took the progress pics training for the show because it's a reminder that I CAN do this and I have done it before. (I'd bold the 'I' in those phrases if I could.) For me, it's been even more powerful than other people's transformation photos!
  • tlcarolinagirl
    tlcarolinagirl Posts: 1,700 Member
    So important. I took my "before" shots last night and if that wasn't a swift kick to the rear, I don't know what is. I can't believe I look like that!! If I hadn't taken the pictures myself, I would've throat punched anyone who said that was me and swear they photoshopped it.

    Anyhoo, I am totally and completely motivated now!
  • EDollah
    EDollah Posts: 464 Member
    I can't think of a reason not to. If you don't find the pics motivational, then they're just bytes of data on a computer somewhere. No harm done. On the other hand plenty of people on this thread have already given good reason to do so.
  • milkandtea
    milkandtea Posts: 116 Member
    For me the pictures are a must, especially because my brain seems to take longer to catch up with my weight loss than my body does. I sometimes think I look the same as I did 100 pounds ago and the pictures help snap me back to reality and show me how far I have come.

    Absolutely agree with this. I'm nearing on 95 pounds lost and I have days where I feel like I've lost nothing. They're very important, imo. Losing weight is as much a mental process as it is physical and sometimes we need that reminder of where we started.
  • traveller7
    traveller7 Posts: 11 Member
    I didn't take official before pictures but i looked at pictures of me from last xmas and I definitely look bigger face amd chest particularly. I startedtaking pics in underwear halfway through, still got a stone to lose but theres a definite change. Photos are vital I reckon!
  • Dubby83
    Dubby83 Posts: 21
    I still have one that i keep on my phone for occasional motivation. A reminder to not let myself give up and just go pig out relentlessly i guess.
  • dj59lane
    dj59lane Posts: 52 Member
    Oh I totally agree I took at my highes and now 90 lbs later I am so glad I did. If for nothing more then to show I did it. Thee progress is wonderful and they are great tools when you get the dieting blues !!!
  • JilloftheDead
    JilloftheDead Posts: 296 Member
    There have been a handful of times I've felt discouraged about not seeing a change in my body.. and then I break out my starting pictures and compare them to where I am now and I know it's all worth it to keep going. I'm really glad I have them.
  • cateyedkp
    cateyedkp Posts: 70 Member
    Very, very helpful. Especially for those times when things don't seem to be going well. You need to see how far you've come and it's hard to notice without photos.

    ^ this. Back when I started this summer (have lost quite a bit more since then) I had a "plateau". I only lost 2lbs over the course of 6 weeks. In those 6 weeks I was kicking *kitten* at my diet and working my butt off doing Body Revolution, so I had no idea why the scale wasn't moving. I felt like giving up, until I saw what "2 lbs" actually looked like side-by-side in a photo:

    9693190791_9338a88cb7_z.jpg

    And more recent before/after:
    11210310254_12a0cf4e42_z.jpg
  • mandylanerocks
    mandylanerocks Posts: 100 Member
    even though there's already so many posts about it: DO IT!!
    I wish I had taken more photos when I was at my highest. I didn't because I didn't want to remember myself that way. I felt horrible that I had gotten THAT much over weight. I have a few (in my photos) from when I had went hiking & I saw the pics & I was incredibly shocked. that was when I realized something had to change. I've taken more pics along the way but still...
  • Tbone0813
    Tbone0813 Posts: 11
    Absolutely do it. I did not take any shots when I started. When I lost my first 100 pounds I was so bummed that I didn't have a picture. I had always avoided the camera because of how I looked. Luckily I was able to find a photo that someone had taken of me at a Church function right before I started my weight loss program. It is so rewarding to see the difference.

    My before and after:

    BeforeAfter.jpg
  • GiveMeCoffee
    GiveMeCoffee Posts: 3,556 Member
    They definitely help me, I use them as another tool in ways to track my progress. I take once a month pictures, and seeing the results helps my brain realize that everything I am doing is working. Plus they help me since I was always one that hid from pictures, so doing this monthly has helped mentally get over that.
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    I am in the minority, I don't consider them important. I know I've lost weight and I know I feel physically better. I don't need pictures to remind me of the 'before' me. I just need to keep improving the current me.
    There have been times in the past when I wish I had pics of myself at a certain point of time. But overall I avoid before pics because I have enough problem with 'black or white' thinking and taking before pics is just one more way of setting it in my head that 'I am on a diet'. When you're on you go off sooner or later. When you're on, you can fall off. I need to just think of it as lifestyle changes.
  • cdanie13
    cdanie13 Posts: 108 Member
    I haven't completed my goals but taking before pictures has to be one of the best things I've ever done. Since I have such a large amount of weight to lose I don't see my results. When I look in the mirror I dont feel as if I've lost anything but when I put my starting pictures next to my current pictures I can see the loss and it makes me feel good. Makes me want to keep going! The thing I regret most is NOT taking my inches from the beginning of my journey. I haven't lost many pounds, in my opinion but I'm down 2 dress sizes so I know that had to of been the inches.
  • walkdmc
    walkdmc Posts: 529 Member
    My "before" pics mean so much more to me now that I'm close to goal than they meant at the beginning of my journey.

    My "before" pics are the most concrete link to my past filled with sadness, embarrassment and unhealthy living. They are a reminder of where I started and hope to never return.

    Plus, it's cool to show people and see their reaction. I usually get, "That's you?".
  • scparke2
    scparke2 Posts: 12 Member
    I think they help mentally. Since you see yourself in the mirror everyday, sometimes it is hard to see the changes. If you have pictures to look back on, it helps you realize how far you have come and how much the hard work has paid off. Do it for yourself!

    You are so right. I have my 202 lbs picture with me every day in my purse. I pull it out when we are out to eat to remind me that I ever want to see myself like that again. It helps pick the healthy choices and it also feels so good to see those 46 lbs gone!

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