Does it take longer to "look" your new weight?

tanyaltrl
tanyaltrl Posts: 42 Member
edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
How can I ask this as simply as possible...

Say you lose 10% of your weight, we're talking more than the initial water loss first 1-2 weeks...this is from genuine sustained diet and exercise. You look in the mirror and go "meh, my _____ is smaller but I thought it would be More noticeable all over"

Then your weight loss slows down for one reason or another. One day you look in the mirror and think "i feel slimmer today" and people you see regularly suddenly start asking about weight loss the same week. You think, "yes I have...but haven't actually *lost* in WEEKS!"

Has this happened to anyone? This is how weight loss usually is for me. The moments I see differences is around the time others do but is often independent from the number on the scale dropping.

I wonder if there's any theories behind this?? Or anyone relate?

Replies

  • mlinci
    mlinci Posts: 402 Member
    Definitely - I've lost close to 18kg in the last 14 months with a couple of mini plateaus throughout, and I'd always feel my body would continue reorganising even when the weight would remain stable.
  • cbstewart88
    cbstewart88 Posts: 453 Member
    I agree with both of the above posts. My body seems to look AND feel differently often suddenly and unrelated to what the scales indicate. Ex: when I lost my first 20 lbs - the scales went down before my body "caught up". And now that I'm getting closer to my goal - the weight is coming off VERY slowly, but my body seems to be changing very quickly and almost daily. Maybe it is just more noticeable now that a lot of the extra fat is gone, maybe it is from working out. Don't really know....
  • sammyliftsandeats
    sammyliftsandeats Posts: 2,421 Member
    It's a mind trip...especially if you have a bit of body dysmorphia like I do. I'm still convinced I'm bigger (and relatively speaking, I was never that big) but now I'm much smaller (measurements) but I still think I'm chunky.
  • nineteentwenty
    nineteentwenty Posts: 469 Member
    ABSOLUTELY. There is lag, especially in the weigh around your face. you'll take a selfie ina few weeks and be shocked at how good you look.
  • MommyMeggo
    MommyMeggo Posts: 1,222 Member
    YES!! Me right now.

    Ive been at the same scale number for a while (after about 10lbs lost). Not really seeing much of a difference. I think its because I see and analyze myself daily, all day. lol.
    But my body seems to be changing - maybe settling into this new weight? Hell I dunno. Now others are noticing it at the same time Im starting "feel" smaller and went down a pant size. *shrug* Perception.
  • daj150
    daj150 Posts: 815 Member
    There is a big difference between losing weight and getting definition. If you are at a healthy weight already and losing, without doing exercise to tone, you will see little to not change visually. The reverse of that is true...if you lost a lot of weight and you are obese or very over weight, you will notice change more dramatically. HOWEVER, that is after a larger weight loss. An obese person might lose 30 lbs and not see anything different in the mirror. If you care about how you look in the mirror, perform exercises that promote tone and definition. Otherwise, just be happy with how you feel and fit into your clothes.
  • leanjogreen18
    leanjogreen18 Posts: 2,492 Member
    I'm the opposite sadly...

    I've lost 15% of my body weight and think I look banging...then I look in the mirror and think yikes I have a lot more to go:).
  • SiegfriedXXL
    SiegfriedXXL Posts: 219 Member
    edited December 2016
    Yes, it is definitely not a linear experience. My weight is funny. I'll go without losing for a week but my clothes continue to feel looser and I feel lighter. Then the scale plummets and I go "Oh, that feels like a good new number." Then the process starts all over again. I swear my body converts my fat weight to water weight and hangs on just to tease me for a while.
  • Mini_Medic
    Mini_Medic Posts: 343 Member
    I think it has a lot to do with how your body breaks down the fat from fat cells. Most of you who previously were at least moderately overweight and lost at least 20 lbs (just a rough example) noticed that the typically hard thick feeling fat around your belly in the front changed and felt "squishy" and perhaps lumpy but not as firm. Well I think your body will show a number on the scale but as your fat actually breaks down it changes the composition slower due to natural adjustments to your cells when there isn't as much fat to fill the fat cells anymore. Plus like everyone else says, water retention changes constantly. Some days I wake up feeling bigger and bloated after eating sodium more the last day or two. Some days I wake up with a flat stomach and feel amazing because my hydration was on point and I ate less salt.
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