What nobody tells you about losing weight

How much people ask for advice. They always frown when I tell them my secret was a food diary MFP and exercise.

SKIM wrote:

How the effort and mindset of the act of losing weight becomes a blueprint for other things in life you want to achieve.

I keep hoping this will happen to me... I really need a kick in the butt to clean the house, and I _know_ that if I approach it like I have weight loss it will eventually show great improvement.
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palwithme wrote:

You realize you don't need to go into the handicap stall in the bathroom any more to feel like you have enough room

cakegoddess wrote:

Being ACTUALLY handicapped, I get really annoyed when large girls take the handicapped stall. It's NOT for you... it's for us who really need it

chandra wrote:

they are not reserved for the exclusive use of disabled people... It's common courtesy, not entitlement

The larger space is for whoever needs it.
If you don't fit in the smaller stall, you need it.
What do you want the fatties to do, pee in the sink??
Yes, if there's someone who can't use the smaller stall they should have first dibs.
Otherwise, whoever gets there first is perfectly fine.
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yalith wrote:

when people offer you seconds or say you "deserve" a treat

O.M.G. yes...
I went with a friend to pick up his new car, and they had fresh-baked cookies. I had a couple, and the salesman tried to push more on me, even wrapped one in a napkin & put it in the hood of my coat!! I put it in the trash & told him that I've lost a lot of weight, am trying to lose more, and already had more cookies than I probably really should.
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Katarina wrote:

no matter what I do there will be someone to tell me it is not right

The only people whose opinions matter are yours, your doctor, and _maybe_ your significant other.
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cblue wrote:

I understand that the boobs would get smaller. In a way that was a relief. But why do they have to look so awful! There really is no discernible shape to them unless I have a bra on.

If I ever have the money for cosmetic surgery, that's one thing I'd change. I don't expect to look 18 again, but removing the excess skin & putting them at least _near_ where they belong would be nice.
(The other 2 things would be the bingo wings & lower belly excess.)
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fireheart wrote:

how bad you actually felt before... when you lose weight you realize what it actually means to feel good

Oh, yes. Yes, yes, yes. I feel _SO_ much better (and I'm still about 40 lb from goal).
I wish I had realized this & either not gained weight or started losing it 10 years ago, so I wouldn't have to suffer so much!
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michael wrote:

I am getting a little bit judgmental about people who doesn't care about their bodies

Yep, me too. At least it's only in my head, and I realize I'm doing it.
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debra wrote:

How silently frustrated I will get with others who claim to be trying to lose weight but are doing it in a completely unhealthy way

There are 2 gals at my gym who wrap their abdomens in plastic wrap before working out. I've never said anything to them, but I so very much want to.
And one of the employees (!) said something about doing a "detox". Again, I didn't say anything.
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chris wrote:

I was not prepared for the extremely nosey questions.
I don't mind the how did you loose it, what's your secret - what diet are following. These are to be expected.
But how much weight did you loose (sic)

I actually don't mind that. I'm proud of it. And it's not like people who knew me "before" didn't see how fat I was. Nobody has asked me what I weigh, though I did explain to a couple people that dying my hair was my reward for getting below 200.
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jknox wrote:

Healthy food is more expensive than junk

No, it's not. I wish people would stop spreading this myth.
2 lb of carrots is $1.80 (IIRC... just bought some today).
That's less than (or maybe about equal to) a 7-oz container of pringles.
Go look at rice, beans, fresh produce, less-expensive cuts of meats...

debrakgoogins wrote: »

What no one told me about being on MFP is how I would trade a food addiction for a forum addiction. I find myself checking in on the threads waaaaay too much during my work day!

I feel you.

I'm still pretty much at the start of my long-term journey (I'm making small and measured changes instead of yo-yoing for the rest of my life) but I can remember when I was a lot thinner (read: ill) the cold thing was oh-so very true! Fat is an effective insulator!

The best bits about my loss so far using MFP...

- has to be that I feel so much more free with my food choices. Like, if I eat/drink something more calorific one evening I can readjust and it doesn't mean any feelings of 'deprivation'. From someone who has spent their life obsessing about food - what's good and specifically what's bad - this is a big deal!
- being more empowered to make those choices around food and drink. I know where my calories are coming from. It's in my power to minimise them whenever I want.
- actually enjoying exercise, specifically cycling. I hadn't ridden in nearly 20 years this time last year, absolutely never thought I would like riding in my lifetime and now I'm planning a 60 mile ride in September raising money for MacMillan Cancer care!

That you might start focusing on other flaws on yourself
That laying on your stomach in bed is actually ridiculously uncomfortable (ouch on the hipbones)
People can be annoying with the "are you done yet?" comments
Some people won't know how to hang out with you anymore (some people are uncomfortable that I stay sober while they're drinking)
That you will love yourself that much more
Confidence, confidence, confidence!!

That you have to change how you think when you reach your goal weight. The compliments of how great you look stop coming, the thrill of losing another pound is gone, and you have to learn how to maintain what you've achieved. You have to decide to be proud of and happy with who you've become.

Vanity rears it's ugly head and you start noticing yourself in all reflective surfaces.

How good it feels to feel good in your skin.

That you don't lose weight evenly. I have 9kg to go (of 35 total) and it's pretty much all on my belly and hips - the place where I most want to lose it from!

Sparklething2325 wrote: »

wearing a dress and not having to worry about your inner thighs rubbing together and stinging like hell!!! Summer is so much more enjoyable without the extra weight making you extra hot

This almost made me cry. I remember how I used to get back from school and treating my sore thighs because the friction made my skin bleed. Although my thighs are still huge, the pain is gone and the skin itself is turning into the same colour as the rest of my body. I cannot wait to reach goal weight.

awhitley wrote: »

That you have to change how you think when you reach your goal weight. The compliments of how great you look stop coming, the thrill of losing another pound is gone, and you have to learn how to maintain what you've achieved. You have to decide to be proud of and happy with who you've become.

So those kudos are still coming for me. I am down 109 pounds. They ask me if I am "done" when I tell people I still have 40 to go they say "From Where" I get offended. I have to change this around somehow and just stop this conversation. I know where it has to come from. I do not need to point out where I am still hiding my fat in plain sight.

SilverRose89 wrote: »

I never really realised how much of an issue people can have when you say you are trying to lose some weight.

Nearly all of them have told me I don't need to lose any weight and that I'm just being silly. Especially friends who are bigger than me, sometimes from their response you'd think that I'd just called them a fatty and that they need to be at the gym instead of the pub. But I don't think this at all, I very much think that it comes down to your happiness and if you are happy, brilliant. I was not happy with my weight.

People always think others' successes reflect poorly on themselves. They are reluctant to congratulate others on achieving their goals, because they perceive that it somehow implies failure on their part. They just HAVE to compare themselves to others, even when the situation has NOTHING to do with them.

It's a basic lack of self confidence. And it's a personal journey to fix that.

stormyview wrote: »

How irritating it would be to see overweight and obese people insist that being overweight has nothing to do with food choices, CICO, and activity levels. It drives me nuts to see folks online or in person insist that CICO isn't true because they're overweight despite not eating too much.

I understand what you are saying. But there is so much bogus information out there...can you blame them?

_SKIM_ wrote: »

How the effort and mindset of the act of losing weight becomes a blueprint for other things in life you want to achieve.

The application itself is what's life changing, more so than the actual loss.

Brilliant insight and so true @_SKIM_‌