1 Month In and still NO Physical Progress

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valerie759
valerie759 Posts: 14 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello, i am just wondering if its normal that the scale tells me i lost 21 lbs but the pictures of my body or even when i look in the mirror I don't notice it. I cannot tell you if old jeans fit me because i have none. I stopped wearing sized pants about a year ago because I was too fat to fit in any and I have no Idea what size I was when I started this. Also I eat always under my calorie goal and have been losing between 1.5-3.5lbs each week. I just dont understand why i cant see results already. Like 20 lbs is a big amount of weight to lose and its obvious on anyone else but me. I dont understand why...
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Replies

  • bms34b
    bms34b Posts: 401 Member
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    Start taking body measurements. Measure your waist, hips, etc. weekly and see that way. That's significant weight...there are surely changes.
  • magerum
    magerum Posts: 12,589 Member
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    Just keep going. It takes awhile for it to become evident to yourself. There are a lot of factors behind this. I have been within my desired range for two years now and I still see the fat guy in the mirror (sometimes).
  • valerie759
    valerie759 Posts: 14 Member
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    I am taking measurements, Last week I lost 2 Inches off my stomach but i dont physically see it. Thats driving me insane because I dont know if its because i measured wrong or things like that. I just really wish it would come off just like that but i guess i just have to stick with it and not give up
  • Emilylind95
    Emilylind95 Posts: 9
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    The more you have to lose the longer it takes to see results, sadly. Just keep going.
  • bradXdale
    bradXdale Posts: 399
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    Listen.

    If the scale has moved that is great. That is amazing. You should be celebrating that and not worried.

    Question: Did you take before & after photos to compare (i.e. Day 1 to Day 30). This is a MUCH more accurate visual than what you will remember what you looked like 30 days ago. I ran into this yesterday before I took a 30 day progress shot. I looked at myself and said "nope, nothing..." to my surprise I took the photo and I have lost a lot around my midsection.

    Tip: Take a picture today. Take a picture 30 days from now. Trust me you will see a difference. Take these photos by yourself or have someone else snap a photo of you.

    Question: Did you take measurements before your weight loss? This is another one of those things you should do now if you haven't already done. This is great for when you stop seeing the scale numbers go down or inadvertently they start to go up for a few weeks. Instead of getting discouraged you can always cross check your progress by your measurements. Remember fat cells shrink when you start to diet and build muscle which sometimes the scale number doesn't go down but you're still changing & transforming.

    Tip: Take measurements & update them every 30 days or so. You will see a difference and sometimes a measurement number going up isn't bad especially if you're trying to gain muscle.

    Question / Tip: Have you noticed a weight loss in your arms / legs / feet / hands / face? A lot of people instantly look to their fattiest areas when they lose weight to see if they have gone down in size. Everyone loses fat in different areas first and you CAN NOT target fat loss. You can not do a bunch of ab routines & expect to see your belly fat go away. Why? Because that's not how weight loss works. You will do nothing but build the muscle underneath those fatty areas. Check your arms, hands, legs, ankles, feet and face for weight loss.

    Question: How are you FEELING? Are you more motivated, happy, feeling good, successful, enlightened? A lot of times people get caught up with the numbers and size which are perfectly okay to worry about and check on but you also need to be self aware of how you feeling. Does eating healthy & exercise bring you feelings of bliss? If so then keep going. Look at it this way even if you lost .5 pound a week you'd lose 26lbs total by next year. Small changes everyday add up to a big change in the future. Every big project starts with a step. Keep at it and do not get discouraged.

    I can not view your diary but are you eating enough calories? What are your goals? Also if the goals are set by MFP you should aim to eat at those numbers as closely as you can and not drastically under them. Ive been trying to eat within ~100 calories of my goal (2,200) unlike when I used to cringe if I even broke 2,000.

    I hope this helps.

    -BW
  • mreeves261
    mreeves261 Posts: 728 Member
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    You're losing weigh and you are losing inches? Stop looking at yourself. Take monthly photos and compare them side by side. Often times our brains will not see the reality of the loss. I lost 15 pounds and my friends though it was 30, I SAW maybe 5.
  • loconnor466
    loconnor466 Posts: 215 Member
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    2 inches off your stomach??? That is awesome! We are usually the last to see it. Our view of ourselves can be kinda warped.
    We can see ourselves bigger than we really are, and sometimes my mind plays tricks and I don't think I am as big as pictures prove to me.
    Believe me I know its frustrating to have a lot of weight to lose and feel like it is coming off too slow. I am right there with you! We didn't put this weight on overnight and we certainly can't lose it overnight, no matter what The Biggest Loser has you believe.
  • loconnor466
    loconnor466 Posts: 215 Member
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    Brad,
    I am going to print this out and keep it in my cubicle and on my mirror to remind me, thanks!

    Question: How are you FEELING? Are you more motivated, happy, feeling good, successful, enlightened? A lot of times people get caught up with the numbers and size which are perfectly okay to worry about and check on but you also need to be self aware of how you feeling. Does eating healthy & exercise bring you feelings of bliss? If so then keep going. Look at it this way even if you lost .5 pound a week you'd lose 26lbs total by next year. Small changes everyday add up to a big change in the future. Every big project starts with a step. Keep at it and do not get discouraged.
  • dixiewhiskey
    dixiewhiskey Posts: 3,333 Member
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    Only thing that ever worked for me was progress photos and bi weekly measurements!
  • sargessexyone
    sargessexyone Posts: 494 Member
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    Some days I feel a lot thinner and then I look in the mirror and think I don't look as good as I feel. Other times I feel fat but then realize I actually look good today. It is a long hard process, not just physically but emotionally and mentally too. You're headed in the right direction Hun so don't stop now.
  • hmaddpear
    hmaddpear Posts: 610 Member
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    Sometimes it takes a long while for our brains to catch up with reality. I looked in the mirror this morning and still saw the same me - but I'm 42lb down now. Photos really work, and measuring yourself regularly is good. 20lb is a big loss and you will definitely be looking different. It just takes time for you to see it too.

    :flowerforyou:
  • sargessexyone
    sargessexyone Posts: 494 Member
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    My cousin's wife is a personal trainer and writes a blog for their local health dept. and since this one was particularly motivating, at least to me, I thought I would share.

    http://healthymesacounty.org/inspire/blogs/item/making-it-about-more-than-the-number-on-the-scale
  • mamma_nee
    mamma_nee Posts: 809 Member
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    Throw out your spandex and start buying fitted pants, Then you will notice it for sure ! :)
  • sfbaumgarten
    sfbaumgarten Posts: 912 Member
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    The more you have to lose the longer it takes to see results, sadly. Just keep going.

    Yup. I didn't really see a difference until I'd lost about 35 of my 75 lbs. It was around that point that other people were noticing and I started dropping clothing sizes like crazy. And to be totally honest, there are still weird days when I look at myself in the mirror and don't see how much my body has changed. At the end of the day, some of it is just mental rather than physical progress.
  • Mcgrawhaha
    Mcgrawhaha Posts: 1,596 Member
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    i didnt see a difference until i lost almost 40 pounds!!!
  • Mcgrawhaha
    Mcgrawhaha Posts: 1,596 Member
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    Only thing that ever worked for me was progress photos and bi weekly measurements!

    yep, photos!!! every saturday i take eight loss update pictures!!!
  • bumblebreezy91
    bumblebreezy91 Posts: 520 Member
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    It's going to take more time to see the difference, and maybe even to feel it. But keep going!
  • tlcarolinagirl
    tlcarolinagirl Posts: 1,700 Member
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    Some days I feel a lot thinner and then I look in the mirror and think I don't look as good as I feel. Other times I feel fat but then realize I actually look good today. It is a long hard process, not just physically but emotionally and mentally too. You're headed in the right direction Hun so don't stop now.

    Exactly this. I am 20 pounds down today and some days I think I see it and some I don't. I am still wearing the same exact clothes as before, although they are slightly looser. Not what I would expect 20 pounds to be like, though. Heck, I've only had 2 people even notice, which sucks anyway. But, keep working on it and chin up. We'll get there!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    1 - pictures, pictures, pictures...you look at yourself everyday...you are not going to notice those small changes day to day just looking in the mirror.

    2 - unfortunately, the more you have to lose, the longer it takes for visible results. for my, 220 Lbs - 200 Lbs there was little in the way of visible change even though I had lost 20 Lbs...from 200 - 180 (my current maintenance) was a huge physical transformation.
  • JZ_Evolution_Mark2
    JZ_Evolution_Mark2 Posts: 63 Member
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    One COMMON misconception that MANY women have is that the scale is the best tool to guage progress.... Thats the same as saying a screw driver is the ONLY tool you need to work on a car... Sure you can use it at some points BUT there are MANY other tools at your disposal which are FAR better.

    First weight has NOTHING to do with health... You can be a skinny 105 pound woman and have a heart attack or be diabetic... and you can be 160 pounds and look awesome!!!! Your health is a function of your diet, activity level, body fat percentage and state of mind... Yes you can be buff and unhealthy because of stress and lack of sleep.

    In my opinion you should start wearing pants that have sizes.. and tracking your weight loss visually and go based on how you feel... Body sculpt rather than try to be athletic... You;ll get to look and be athletic if you keep it up long enough... Rome wasn't built in a day.

    Last year at this time I was 210 pounds and a size 42 pants... now I am 198.8 and a size 34... If I was using JUST a scale I would say "OMG I have only lost 11 pounds in a year!"... BUT thats NOT the truth.. I have lost significant fat and replaced it with muscle... which is more dense than fat... hence the wieght is still around 200...

    So in short.. so long as you've made a lifestyle change and are solid with your diet and gym... you should be fine.

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