feeling flat and feeling fat

I know that feeling all too well! Here's what a friend told me and I will pass it on to you. Ignore the charts. When you start feeling comfortable then you are there. 52 POUNDS IS AMAZING!!! You are doing an awesome job!!!! Here's a secret.. psstt.. Noone is normal. Yep nobody! So don't let a piece of paper (or computer screen) tell you that you are not

Oh you have the blues. Wallow for a time, and then get real. You have done so much already. I'm so impressed with what you have achieved. For now, your view is askew. It won't always be. You really, truly have done so well.

I wish it were me!

Hi im feeling so down I just had to post. ive been logging and losing since 6th Jan and up to now have lost 52 pounds but I don't see myself as any different. I still have a way to go - if I look at ideal weight for my height charts just to get into the "normal" range ive got another 30+ pounds to lose. all of a sudden I feel really down about it and wonder if I will ever achieve what I want to or at 45 is it not possible

So you're over half way. What can you do that you couldn't do 50 pounds ago? Fit into different clothes? walk somewhere quicker and without being out of breath? Take a step back think of all the small things that have made a difference. Think how far you've come and that you are well over half way.

Celebrate what you've achieved. Don't stress over the charts just keep doing what you're doing as you know you can

Congratulations on your achievement

I get the same feeling sometimes. I'd suggest taking progress pictures starting now, if you haven't already. It really gives you new perspective during those times when you feel like you haven't made any progress.

Hi im feeling so down I just had to post. ive been logging and losing since 6th Jan and up to now have lost 52 pounds but I don't see myself as any different. I still have a way to go - if I look at ideal weight for my height charts just to get into the "normal" range ive got another 30+ pounds to lose. all of a sudden I feel really down about it and wonder if I will ever achieve what I want to or at 45 is it not possible

I know just how you feel! I have been feeling the same way! I did so well for awhile but now I am just stuck! Problem now is because I have been stuck for so long, I have lost all motivation and I am on the verge of a major binge!
I have lost 61lbs since January. I still have another 45 to go! BTW, I am cheering for you, I am 49, I pray it is possible. I really wish I did something about this before now, but I have to stop living in the past and move on!
Four days ago I was so excited that I lost 2 lbs after a month. Then today I weighed myself and I gained a pound!
Good Luck! I hope we both can get moving forward over this hump again soon!

From Alwyn Cosgrove’s blog. A really good analogy for the rate of progress and being patient.

Let’s assume you go out and buy two rolls of paper towels, each with 112 paper towels on it. You put one aside, and keep it for future reference (your “before” picture). The other one represents you (I’ll call your paper towel “Ed”).The core represents the lean Ed. The towels represent the fat that is covering the lean Ed.

For sake of argument, let’s say that Ed wants to lose 28 pounds of fat, so (112/28) each sheet represents a quarter-pound of fat lost.

Let’s also assume that Ed loses his fat equally during each day of the program.

Each day during the first week, you tear a sheet off of Ed, representing the fat he has lost for the day. Next, you put Ed next to the full roll (“Big Ed”) for comparison.

No noticeable difference! Even at the end of the week!

“This can’t be working for me! This program sucks! ” But, you continue to follow your fat loss program. At the end of weeks two and three, you continue to compare Ed to Big Ed, and still notice very little difference.

But Ed is determined! He continues to work hard!

Three more weeks go by, the sheets peeling off day after day, before Ed gets up the courage to stand next to Big Ed again.

Now there’s a big difference!

By the end of the program (112 days), Ed is down to his lean dream, or somewhere near it. Big Ed is still – well, big.

The lesson to be learned is that fat, like paper towels, comes off in sheets. When you are heavy, you are big around. And when you are big around, that fat is spread over a MUCH larger area – just like that outside towel sheet. The closer you get to the lean you, the more each lost pound of fat shows, because it is spread over a smaller area.

While the outside sheet may only cover one layer of the roll, the inside sheet may go around 4 times. That last sheet looks like it gives you four times the results of the first sheet, but in reality, the results are the same – your perception is just different! And you’ll never see the inside, if you aren’t patient while the outside is coming off!

What you have done is really amazing and you should feel really proud!

If it helps, I dont notice any difference in my self (I was 2 1/2 stone heavier this time last year) and even from about the first 1/2 stone loss i started taking photos, now when i feel low, i look about at the photos (one every 3 months in my case) and although i feel a bit ill at the sight of me back last year in the first photo taken i can notice a difference and i know that my last mile is harder, as it does slow down towards the end, however it will be worth it, and it is do-able!