I weigh more than I look

OP, I'm 5'5" too. Was 166.2 when I started, but I have very skinny legs, so could often disguise my big belly. Nobody knew I weighed that much and I almost had myself fooled as well. My initial goal was to get below 150 - so 149. Once I got there I could see that I needed to lose still more, so 145 became the new goal. Now I can see where the excess weight is and I believe that 138 would be pretty decent weight for me. I think 130 might look great, but at my age it's probably not realistic to think I could a) get there or b) maintain that. That said, I think you will know where you should be as you get closer to it. Good luck!

Has anyone noticed that EVERYONE says they weigh more than people think??

Perhaps this just means that either
1. We have a distorted image of what is a normal weight. And/Or
2. People are just being nice.

I have never heard anyone say, "people think I weigh more than I really do"

I think in general, people are just very bad at guessing weigh, particularly for the opposite gender. I believe men tend to think women weigh less than they do. I also do believe that there is a wide range of weight that can look different on people of the same size though.

In my line of work we often have to guess people's weight and/or ask them. It isn't the type of situation where you are being polite about it. I notice the guys very often lowball women. While I am really good at guessing women, I have a hard time guessing men. Most people also don't have the opportunity to see people and know their weight to get a good idea of what people really look like at different weights.

I am also one of those people who's goal weight is higher than a lot of people of the same size, not because they want to look thinner or anything, but because I carry my weight different. 130 for me would be far too lean but looks really good on others of the same height. I had abs at 140.

ETA - I also think it is a "nice" thing. No one wants to overshoot the weight guess.

I always carried my weight well. So did my mother. Even at my largest I looked more like a big football player, definitely overweight, but still visually smaller than my scale weight. Most people would be shocked that I topped out at 320. Part of this was my ability to dress well for my size, and part of it was fat distribution; I gain weight over my entire body so I never had that huge gut/pot belly look that most guys get.

This is the reason why I alway assumed I was just a large framed guy, or "big boned" back in the day before I learned that such a state is a myth. When I first lost weight and got down to the weight/size that many large framed men would consider optimal, I was surprised at how much fat I had left. And I wasn't lacking in a decent amount of lean muscle either. I discovered eventually that I'm a medium framed guy who needs to be a lot lower in weight to achieve the look I want than I ever imagined when I was younger.

I learned that carrying your weight "well" visually absolutely does NOT always mean that you're a larger framed, "big boned" person. I've learned that fat is just way, way more deceptive visually than some of us imagine. I, as a 5'11" male, finally arrived in my 180s I was shocked at how much fat was left. I always assumed all the BMI and height/weight charts were off, or didn't apply to me, because the weights just seemed absurdly low.

Nope. For me, they were dead on. I discovered over the years that a ton of people, especially people in the US, are totally warped about body weight. Weights that seemed normal 50 years ago seem too low to many of us, especially if, like me, you've been fat since childhood.

I don't know how to post a pic on here, but check out this photo. This is a pic I've seen a number of times online. Each of these women weigh 154 lbs.... they are all different sizes, shapes, heights, etc. I would have guessed their weight quite a bit differently.

put [ img ] at the start and [/ img ] (remove the spaces)

Wow! The only one I would have been close with guessing is the center one.

I'm 5'11" and I have long arms and legs (33 inch inseam), a tiny ribcage, and narrow hips, so I'm comfortable with saying my frame is small. Or at least narrow. My body does not carry extra weight attractively. When I gained 40 pounds, it was in the form of 7 inches on my hips, 8 on my waist, 3 on my bust, an inch on each thigh, and nothing on my arms. I went from a size 6 to a 14.

Still, because I have long, thin arms and legs and dress strategically to hide my belly, even at my heaviest, I would get the side eye when I talked about being overweight. I stopped discussing my weight loss goals with anyone outside of a few people because I got tired of being told that I was already skinny and would become anorexic. I wasn't about to strip to my skivvies just to prove ignorant people wrong.

I'm now 25 pounds away from my starting weight of 155 and am a size 10. I look fabulous from the front and good from the back with the exception of my waist folds. However, from the side, I still look like a bowling pin with legs. My waist is currently 31.5 inches, which is down from 34, but still a ways from my goal of 26. My hips are now 40 inches, which is down from 42, but not at the 35-36 that I started from.

Last week, my coworkers were discussing their weight loss goals and exercise plans. I got caught up in the moment, forgot my rule, and said that I had lost about 15 pounds and was still about 20 pounds overweight. I won't make that mistake again.

Body shape has a lot to do with it. I'm morbidly obese but a lot of people don't think I'm anywhere near as heavy as I am, because I have huge boobs, then carry my weight on hips and legs, and so have a defined waist. Makes me look a LOT smaller size than I am.

^this

I carry weight on my BACK too. I did not realize this until I saw some pics of me performing in a bedlah (bellydance costume - matching bra and belt with a long skirt) the picture was taken from behind and I have rolls of back fat I was previously unaware of I looked like Rita Sue on "Carnivale"... Rolls everywhere...