Do you ever regret not taking a before picture?
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osche731
Posts: 213 Member
Hi there,
I am just starting my weight loss journey and I'm about 15 lbs down. But I haven't noticed a difference. I'm thinking of taking a before picture so I have something to go off of. Do any of you regret not taking a before picture?
On a side note, how many pounds lost did it take for you to really become motivated?
I am just starting my weight loss journey and I'm about 15 lbs down. But I haven't noticed a difference. I'm thinking of taking a before picture so I have something to go off of. Do any of you regret not taking a before picture?
On a side note, how many pounds lost did it take for you to really become motivated?
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Replies
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Take the photos! So many people talk about how motivating it is when they compare their before pics to their current pics.3
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I do! I was pretty ashamed of my body so I didn't take any pictures period at my largest. Now I have nothing to compare my healthy weight pictures to. It wasn't pounds lost for me, it was one day where the whole thing just clicked. Weigh all food, log accurately, exercise to get more food, don't skip logging days...it really was that simple but it took that one moment where it all fell in line to really get me going. After that it really only took a couple of months to lose the weight.8
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I do! I don't have a proper before picture because I never let them be taken. The picture that I use as my before picture around these parts is actually around 20 pounds below my highest weight.2
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Nope! I never took before pictures and I don't regret it. Probably because I only needed a little over 10lbs to lose but I always let the scale and my clothes guide my progress, and I still do. I don't take measurements too often either because I suck at it.1
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Hi there,
I am just starting my weight loss journey and I'm about 15 lbs down. But I haven't noticed a difference. I'm thinking of taking a before picture so I have something to go off of. Do any of you regret not taking a before picture?
On a side note, how many pounds lost did it take for you to really become motivated?
Don't forget the tape measure too as that's pretty empowering when you can't see a change in photos! I need to update mine on MFP now they've added more than 3 you can track.
I don't even know if I had to lose a pound to become motivated. When my eating became more normalized and I cut the quantity down I began feeling a whole lot better. Or course once I began moving more I did as well. Pounds off the scale are an indicator but for me I found so many other things motivating as well. Loose clothing, moving around more easily, flexibility, sleeping better etc. Because sometimes it's inches before pounds drop off. I suppose if I had to give a number it would probably be a couple lbs. because any amount makes me feel a chance in my body. I had a lot to lose and still have a chunk to drop but now when I drop some it makes me realize as long as I'm going in the right direction all is good! lol
Oh and regarding photos along the way... I do wish I had taken photos more frequently along the way so I could do more comparisons. Nothing stopping me I suppose and I doubt I'll regret it if I start now. So I think I will start so I don't regret that I didn't later. It seems harder for ppl (from posts I've read) that don't have before photos or only a couple of them to really see the difference in their body changes. Mental changes as well... I don't want to get to a healthier place and still feel like I'm in the same body... that would be a total mind nightmare!
Your thread made me stop and think... thanks!1 -
My first "before" picture was when I was about 15 Lbs down...at that point you couldn't really tell I'd lost weight anyways because most of it came from my extremities...and I'm pretty sure nobody really could notice that my fingers were skinnier.3
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YES! Take a posed photo. I REGRET not doing it....but the mind is a powerful thing and I could not bear to see what I had done to this bod. So yes! It is said you should not look back but in this case, you will want to!2
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Not enough to go back to that shape to get one!!
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I regret not taking one. I took my 'before' pic after i lost 5 pounds. And i didnt notice any difference until 10 pounds after that! Its slow but when you notice that difference it is so amazing!2
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I wish I would have. My highest weight is 260 lbs and the only pictures of me are in a hospital bed or wheelchair (right after emergency csection).
I didn't start taking pictures until I was 210 lbs!! Can you imagine the difference I would see in before/after comparisons if I had actually taken before shots? I regret not taking pictures sooner.1 -
I take pictures regularly, it really helps focus the mind. The camera never lies yet so many are afraid of what the camera tells. I couldn't give a hoot and believe it keeps me on the straight and narrow instead of pretending to myself.
Sidenote: I became motivated when the NSV came thick and fast. I wanted more comments so I tried even more and the rest is history. I hope you keep losing steadily and never ever give up.0 -
Eh, maybe a little but while I don't have "before pictures", there are plenty of pictures from before. It amazes me to look at them and see how much I have changed in only 5 months.0
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I regret not taking a formal, posed picture. The "before" picture I use is actually about 25 pounds lighter than my highest. I still look about the same, because as @cwolfman13 already mentioned, it was all from the fingers and legs at first, but it still gives me an idea. I would do it. Even seeing my "almost before" picture gives me a lot of motivation.0
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I wish I had a better picture to use as my before picture. The one I usually use is from Facebook and the quality isn't the best. Most of my other pictures of me at my starting weight are of me in some type of costume (I do historical reenactments) so it's hard to get a sense of what I really look like. I do have better pictures from a few weeks after I started using MFP so they're probably pretty accurate, I just know I'd already lost some weight by then even if it was mostly water weight.0
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Hi there,
I am just starting my weight loss journey and I'm about 15 lbs down. But I haven't noticed a difference. I'm thinking of taking a before picture so I have something to go off of. Do any of you regret not taking a before picture?
On a side note, how many pounds lost did it take for you to really become motivated?
I personally think the idea of before, during, and after pictures is good...
But keep in mind that initial weight loss isn't always particularly noticeable...particularly if you have a lot to lose. People tend to have this image in their head of losing weight all over, all at once and that's not how it usually happens.
Our "problem" areas tend to be the most noticeable...and they tend to be where we are really looking for change...but unfortunately our "problem" areas also tend to be primary fat stores which means they are first on, last off.
I lost 40 Lbs all said and done...from 220 - 200 you couldn't really tell unless you were very keen on looking at my fingers or happened to notice that my neck shrunk a bit, etc. from 200 - 190 people (and myself) finally noticed some actual changes as my face became slimmer, I lost the extra chin, and my belly started to shrink. 190 - 180 was a pretty substantial difference in my belly which was the most noticeable of anything...but yeah, that was 40 Lbs later.1 -
Already kind of do and Im down 20-25lbs although Im not saying I want that time at my high weight documented Lol0
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Hi there,
I am just starting my weight loss journey and I'm about 15 lbs down. But I haven't noticed a difference. I'm thinking of taking a before picture so I have something to go off of. Do any of you regret not taking a before picture?
On a side note, how many pounds lost did it take for you to really become motivated?
My first set "before" picture was after about 4-5 months of lifting. I wish I had a true before picture. That is what keeps you motivated, seeing how far you've come. For me, when I started getting stronger I felt more motivated and it's continued ever since.0 -
If I had just gone by my weight as a read of progress, I would have been screwed. I started off around 100 lbs. and am now 115-118 lbs. but significantly more toned and definitely stronger.0
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I have a family picture with me at my highest weight and it's enough for me. Ugh.0
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Take the pics amd save the outfit!
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10488151/before-and-after-same-outfit/p11
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