What nobody tells you about losing weight

I owned and ran a fine dining restaurant for 11 years, loved entertaining friends there. After I sold it, I still loved to eat out, always have. I told myself that I earned it because I worked so hard for all those years, 70-80 hours a week.
I have always been fat, but reached 250lbs on my 5'6 frame, making me morbidly obese.
I finally got it through my head that I deserved to take time for myself and stopped the excessive eating and drinking and began exercising.
I am now at 160ish and have maintained for a couple of years.
No one told me that 9 times out of 10, I would rather stay in and cook, rather than go out just because I want to.

That your "fat" clothes still fit after you've lost 20 lbs. So I'm still wearing my size 14/XL, but they fit now instead of being stretched out to the max. It'll still be awhile before I go down a size but at least my clothes look a little better on me now

Eating grapes. One grape fell, and knees instinctively snapped together HARD, hoping to catch the grape on lap. Grape, of course, fell through the thigh gap and rolled... yup, under the couch. While crouched on all fours, searching for the grape, I also found the two bruises on the inside of both knees where I cracked the now unpadded knee bones together. Knee bone castanets... fun times!

Wouldn't change it for the world, lol

Morganbennett1 wrote: »

So after losing 50lbs, I started to feel great! Every time I saw my reflection, I was like "wow", I look great! That lasted for a few months, then everything changed. To put into perspective, I still have about 30lbs to go before I'm in the "normal" weight range for my 5'2" frame. With the initial weight loss, I thought, this is the greatest, I don't have to keep losing, I look great.

The thing is though, your brain takes a little while to adjust to your "new" body. It took me about 3 months before I adjusted and started to realize that I am still overweight and have a long way to go still. Now, when I look in the mirror, I see a person that is 30+ lbs overweight, not the perfect skinny person I was seeing for the last 3 months.

It's a little disappointing...

That's life though, here goes 30 more lbs!

wow this is spot on. I have lost 60 pounds with about 40 to go and had been feeling great about the changes until lately and while I am still losing it has slowed down considerably. Last year lost 40 in 4 months and in the last year since I have lost 20. I went bra shopping and the band size went down but the cup size went up - so can't figure that one out. And clothes shopping has become more of a chore because I am between the Womens sizes and Misses sizes. But I just keep on working toward the goal because quitting is not an option!!

I'm not really fat anymore and I don't really know how to deal with that.

I was overweight/obese for so long it had really become a part of my identity. It was how I thought of myself. Not necessarily bad or good. It was just a fact. I was fat.

I'm not ready to think of myself as skinny and I don't think I am yet, but I can't really call myself fat anymore either.

Oddly enough even though I don't think of myself as skinny I feel like I'm already dealing with skinny woman problems.

For example, I went out the other night and got a "light" option that I feel is just as tasty as the full calorie option, but I just felt like I was that woman you know? The one who isn't overweight, but is getting the low calorie option and you're wondering why because it's not like she's fat.

I just struggle with going out to eat in general now. I really have little to no desire to do so. I can make the same dishes at home for a fraction of the cost and calories. A lot of my friends are overweight/obese and I feel bad when we do go out and I'm over here getting a salad with dressing on the side and a water. It feels snooty even though it's just what I want.

Yet another problem is clothing. I've never really gotten the complaints about vanity sizing before, but the other day I realized a dress I was wearing was too big now only to realize that it was a medium which meant I needed a small. I'm still a few pounds over the healthy BMI weight for my height (six if you want to be technical). I shouldn't need size small clothing. Then, I realized if I needed a small now what would I wear once I lose this vanity weight I want to lose? I might end up naked before this is over.

Life is still wonderful and being smaller is wonderful, but man, it is a head trip.

everher wrote: »

I'm not really fat anymore and I don't really know how to deal with that.

I was overweight/obese for so long it had really become a part of my identity. It was how I thought of myself. Not necessarily bad or good. It was just a fact. I was fat.

I'm not ready to think of myself as skinny and I don't think I am yet, but I can't really call myself fat anymore either.

Oddly enough even though I don't think of myself as skinny I feel like I'm already dealing with skinny woman problems.

For example, I went out the other night and got a "light" option that I feel is just as tasty as the full calorie option, but I just felt like I was that woman you know? The one who isn't overweight, but is getting the low calorie option and you're wondering why because it's not like she's fat.

I just struggle with going out to eat in general now. I really have little to no desire to do so. I can make the same dishes at home for a fraction of the cost and calories. A lot of my friends are overweight/obese and I feel bad when we do go out and I'm over here getting a salad with dressing on the side and a water. It feels snooty even though it's just what I want.

Yet another problem is clothing. I've never really gotten the complaints about vanity sizing before, but the other day I realized a dress I was wearing was too big now only to realize that it was a medium which meant I needed a small. I'm still a few pounds over the healthy BMI weight for my height (six if you want to be technical). I shouldn't need size small clothing. Then, I realized if I needed a small now what would I wear once I lose this vanity weight I want to lose? I might end up naked before this is over.

Life is still wonderful and being smaller is wonderful, but man, it is a head trip.

Oh dear yes, all of this. Ordering a salad, because I want a salad and get looks of "why are you ordering a salad, you can eat whatever you want, you're not fat". Clothing, well, they do make most things in an extra small. Or we could just shop in the children's section, it's cheaper anyways. And who knows, you'll just have to find a way to rock that Dora the Explorer t-shirt!

I was going through my closet today purging some sizes that are now too big. Yah! I had to smile when I put on a stretchie skirt and it was too big. My 15 year old daughter and I could both fit in it lol. It's these small things that mean so much!

1TheQueenB wrote: »

What's vanity sizing??

Over time, the makers of women's clothing put the same size labels larger garments.

It's either a real thing or it's a river in Egypt.

@JeromeBarry1 Oh no--I don't think THAT's what it is! Well, unless all those times I googled what a 5'6" hourglass figure looks like at various weights is catching up with me!