Getting used to the new you

Thank goodness other people get this too!
I have lost 4 stone in weight (old school Imperial weight here in the UK!) but only joined MFP after that, so my loss scale is me maintaining.
I too have been overweight/The Fat Girl since I was 10 and am still not used to maintaining my weight loss even after almost 18 months.
I too have have had several people not recognise me, deny it is me when I'm introduced to them (again), ask if I have been or are seriously ill, ask if I am anorexic (including my own Dad) and tell me not to lose any more weight.
I feel much better than I ever have done, been 51 weeks without a cold which is a record as I regularly had 3-4 colds every year, go to 3 or 4 fitness sessions a week and have dropped from a UK size 20-22 t0 a 14-16. And drop a shoe size which no one seems to mention!
However, I am still not used to this new body that I was previously unaware was hiding under my excess weight. It is me? Pinch myself and yep, that hurts, so it must be me. Pull a funny face and the mirror reflects its, so yes, that must really be me. I think it must be because I have spent my entire life hating myself and not least what I look like so its going to take time to believe it.

Reading through this thread has been very interesting to me because I felt all or most of these things everyone describes, at one time or another since I started losing weight.

Lately I feel pretty used to my body. I have lost a total of 136 lb but "only" about 30 of that in the past year so I think I've finally slowed down enough with the changes to start to feel comfortable in my body again, and used to my reflection. I have recently begun to realize that when I see photos from even 2-3 years ago it's like it can't be real and I don't remember being heavier. It's strange.

In another way, I feel younger suddenly. I am not sure why exactly but maybe it's because I was around this size as a young teen and now in my late 30's I am actually back to it again...but it's weird. I feel drastically younger. Everyone always says "don't you feel great and have more energy?" and I didn't understand it for a long time. I mean, I didn't feel so great at 300 lb. But I was honestly the same amount of energetic/hyper/comfortable at 270 lb or 190 lb -- but now at 170 I do feel really really different/better for some reason!!

About a month.... except I still am not copacetic with the loose skin and am trying to convince myself that my doctor is not full of crap and that it will shrink back. I didn't think a 30 lb loss was enough to cause this in the first place, but I'm middle aged and short so it happened anyway. booo. I would be super hot if it weren't for those bloody bat wings.

Know how you feel. Its as much a mental and psychological journey as well as physical. I carry my day 1 before pics in my wallet and it always puts me in perspective. Still moments where i feel like it has been a dream esp' the first moments after waking up.

TheSatinPumpkin wrote: »

Know how you feel. Its as much a mental and psychological journey as well as physical. I carry my day 1 before pics in my wallet and it always puts me in perspective. Still moments where i feel like it has been a dream esp' the first moments after waking up.

Yeah I keep my ID for that too, turns out I have my heaviest picture there

After a year at my new size I'm still finding it somewhat frustrating to figure out what to wear and how to balance purchasing. I'd sure rather be buying smaller than buying larger though.

I've been in maintenance for 9 months now at 140-150 lbs and after being plus size my entire adult life and over 300lbs for a large chunk of that, I still marvel at the changes... I see old pics of myself and I look totally different...

librarysteg wrote: »

Not sure if this is the best category for this, but how long has it taken you to get used to the new you? I'm about 10 pounds away from goal, and I still don't really recognize myself when I look in the mirror. I still get a lot of comments from people who are just noticing my weight loss, and I wonder when those will stop? It's mostly a positive feeling because I love the way I look now, and I enjoy the attention, but it also doesn't feel real. I feel like the "real" me is the me that weighs over 210 pounds so who is this new person? Does this make sense? Can anyone relate?

I can relate. I was chubby my whole life, even in elementary school. Then in my early 20s, I lost 50 lbs over a period of 3 years. I went from plus sizes and a life of "Grrreeeat, this 14 won't fit around my butt AGAIN" to "This 4 doesn't fit, do you have this dress in a 2?" I've been maintaining for about a year and a half now. Even though I lost the weight slowly, it still took me a good while to adjust. At first, I too felt that the real me was the chubby, shy, ugly, ignored girl that I used to be. I still felt like that girl. This new young woman I saw when looking at pictures of myself seemed unreal. Who was she? There was a disconnect. She didn't feel like the me I had always known. But as the time passed, I became more and more comfortable in my new skin. I tried new things that I had always secretly wanted to do but never had to courage to try before. I took new risks, since I was feeling braver than ever after accomplishing something I never thought I'd be able to do: get to a healthy weight and maintain it easily. I found new hobbies, new interests, new passions, new dreams, and new goals. And slowly that new young woman looking back at me in the mirror started to seem more real.

Now, in retrospect, I can see clearly. This new me isn't some foreign being; she was there all along. She was always a part of who I was, she was just too scared to come out, so she hid. That old me, the shy chubby girl I used to be, that was me hiding behind my fears. Once I faced my fears and overcame them by losing the weight, this new person I've become (the true me) came out of hiding.

I feel so much happier now! I feel happy, confident, and free!

I'm on both sides. There is a part of me who really ignored exactly how much weight I gained. I used to be the skinny one who never had to worry about what I ate. I was underweight as a child, and being thin was a big part of my identity. So in some ways it feels like I am back to the 'real' me now that I hit my goal.

On the other hand, it's been over a decade since I was this size/weight so I find that I keep touching my torso for example because I can feel my ribs again, or my face because my jawline feels so different. Everything feels so much smaller and I haven't at all gotten used to it.

jgnatca wrote: »

Did I mention that my poor boobs float around in my bra like lost goldfish? I have to adjust them once in a while so they point in the same direction.

Yes yes and YES! I had this same issue. I finally broke down and got fitted for a new bra. The woman said "honey your bra is much to big for you! You have to get those girls standing up...you worked to hard for them to look like that!" I had told her how much weight I had lost so I guess she thought we bonded. She was a super cute older lady.

I am still trying to get used to my new body. I have a really hard time when looking for clothes because for so long I was getting XL or bigger. It is really hard for me to now pick up and small thinking it is going to fit. So, I always grab the medium for the "I am just going to start with this and go from here" mode. This is a total waste of time because I have to always get the smaller size. My mom told me last week "if you would just get the correct size to start you could cut down your shopping time by 1/2."

I feel the way. I've lost 43 pounds this past year and have been maintaining for almost 2 months now. My brain hasn't caught up with the changes. I have this beautiful coat that has been hanging in my closet for 4 years because I was afraid to put it on given my "old" size. I tried it out on Monday - I got a lot of compliments from co-workers which was nice. Just wish the rest of me would catch up to weight loss.

Thank you all for sharing your stories! I am new to the fitness pal and am getting really close to maintaining... I started out on June 17 at 285 and am now at 196 today... I need to get to 185 to reach my BMI goal of 24.9. A total lifestyle change has occured... diet and exercise are two things that are crucial, however there is one overarching theme to reach your goals for either of those two lifestyle changes... mental toughness. I get asked more times than I can count, "how did you do it..." honestly, you have to be ready to do it... for me it was getting the results of my blood work that did it for me... cholesterol, BP... everything was pointing that I was going to die of a heart attack... I want to live as long as I can.

Again, thank you to everyone for posting your personal anecdotes... I am not on an island... strangers brought together who share similar life struggles and downfalls...

... throughout this whole ordeal I keep running this mantra through my head... "The only thing between the possible and impossible is self determination and motivation..."

To be honest, I still feel like the girl I was before I started losing weight. I can hear people compliment me and talk about how far I've gone, but there are times where I don't feel it and want to push myself further. It's a bit freaky, but I'm trying to start accepting myself and my body now, before it might end up with me suffering from an ED.

Though I can say that I am SO proud of losing 50 + lbs! I'm still a bit on the soft side, but give it a bit of time, sweat and motivation, I'll be sure to carve out the best of me, fitness-wise. ;-)