Connection between weight loss and visible body fat?
kellyjwebster1
Posts: 6 Member
Hey all you lovely people! So for starters, I am one of those ladies who has pouches of visible body fat all over: saggy arms, a big old belly, back rolls, and thunder thighs.
I'm relatively fresh into my new journey, but I've made some huge changes. I haven't had any beer or soda in over 2 weeks, I switched from drinking coffee with tons of flavored creamer and sugars to drinking it black, I started counting my calories on here and making more conscious decisions about healthy eating, and I've even started some beginner exercising a few days a week.
I'm happy to report that I'm already down 5 pounds! My doctor told me a way to feel awesome about that is to go the supermarket and hold 5 pounds of ground beef and know that that's what I've lost. That was pretty cool, except for one thing...
There is no VISIBLE change in my body: despite losing what feels like a significant amount, my rolls and pouches are as big as ever. Granted, I'm not expecting my belly to go flat! But I thought at least I could see some kind of reduction.
My main questions are these: as you lose weight through diet and exercise, are you actually losing any of that "fat" that sits and jiggles on you? Can the pouches and rolls diminish eventually? If so, at what point is there a VISIBLE change in your physical appearance? Thanks everyone!!!!
I'm relatively fresh into my new journey, but I've made some huge changes. I haven't had any beer or soda in over 2 weeks, I switched from drinking coffee with tons of flavored creamer and sugars to drinking it black, I started counting my calories on here and making more conscious decisions about healthy eating, and I've even started some beginner exercising a few days a week.
I'm happy to report that I'm already down 5 pounds! My doctor told me a way to feel awesome about that is to go the supermarket and hold 5 pounds of ground beef and know that that's what I've lost. That was pretty cool, except for one thing...
There is no VISIBLE change in my body: despite losing what feels like a significant amount, my rolls and pouches are as big as ever. Granted, I'm not expecting my belly to go flat! But I thought at least I could see some kind of reduction.
My main questions are these: as you lose weight through diet and exercise, are you actually losing any of that "fat" that sits and jiggles on you? Can the pouches and rolls diminish eventually? If so, at what point is there a VISIBLE change in your physical appearance? Thanks everyone!!!!
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Replies
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The larger you are, the longer it's gonna take to "see" it.
Take progress photos. It's easier to see it in a photo than it is in the mirror.
Keep doing the right things, and you'll get there!17 -
Sometimes our brain doesn't register the changes our body makes. This is why it is imperative FOR ME to track my measurements, both from the scale and measuring tapes, and graph it so I can visualize what has happened. Progress photos also help. For the longest time I couldn't figure out what everyone was talking about with the "you look great" or "have you lost weight" because I personally didn't see the difference.
Brains are funny this way.5 -
I started with ~70 lbs to lose. At ~20lbs I could tell because my clothes had more room. At ~40lbs my friends/family began mentioning my weight loss consistently. At closer to 50lbs loss EVERYBODY mentioned it to me. BUT, I still have wiggles and jiggles and 13 lbs to "normal" BMI, 17 lbs to goal. The thing that makes me happy, is knowing these last lbs are the ones that will be the most noticeable.10
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It can be hard to notice changes in our physique because we see ourselves all the time! And the tiny changes don't get noticed because they are so gradual!
I would suggest taking progress photos, they help you see the big step differences as well as taking body measurements instead of just weighing yourself! Maybe you can't immediately tell you look different but perhaps your waist size has actually gone down!
I didn't reeeeally start noticing a really tangible difference until I lost around 15 pounds, but before that I had lots of changes in body measurements and it is fairly reassuring and lets you know something is actually happening!
Also you don't have to give up things like soda and coffee creamer cold turkey either! Especially if you really like them! Moderation is key and you can just account for it in your tracking
Congrats on your 5 pounds!! Good luck!!
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Give it more time. Supposedly you go down a dress size for every 10 lbs or so lost (don’t know if this is true or not) in my case I definitely noticed the changes more around every 10 lbs lost. I used to do that thing at the supermarket, eventually I ended up losing 2 turkeys and a chicken!
just keep going and good luck on your journey oh and you will definitely soon notice in the way your clothes fit, sometimes that is a better gauge of progress than the mirror. 5 -
Congrats on the first 5 pounds! Everyone is going to be different in when they see a change. The more you have to lose, the less noticeable a 5 lb difference is. My favorite analogy is a paper towel roll. When the roll is full, you hardly notice taking 1 or 2 sheets. But when you are at the end, taking one sheet makes a big difference.
Keep going. Take progress pictures and measurements along the way. Just looking in the mirror can be really hard to see changes.12 -
mentally I never saw a difference. Gradually my clothes started getting looser. I picked up my 20 pound weight vest and thought of the weight Ive lost, and so weird but I don't feel different. 78 pounds down 30ish to go
Take pictures, and measurements. It does help. My stomach is my worst and it looks softer and jiggles more.4 -
Basically what everyone else said. I generally lose all over, pretty evenly, which means no one piece gets noticeably smaller all at once. Hyper aware of the places we hate the most (for me it's my stubborn calves who seem to think every weight loss opportunity is time to say 'hold my beer' and never lose inches), it's easy to ignore the places we don't think about. For me, I never noticed my neck getting smaller. Or my fingers. Or my toes. Or my feet.
While I'm busy staring at my calves like they're a pot about to boil, my neck lost half an inch last month, ninja style!
The body does as the body will do. Keep at it, and you'll see loss! Take them measurements! Take them progress photos! You'll get there!
Congrats on 5lbs!
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You're off to a great start. You sound like a smart woman so I'm sure you REALLY don't expect to see a huge body difference with 5 lbs! Progress pics are essential, as are measurements. I only did mine every 3 months because I wanted to guarantee I would see a difference, lol. Many people do monthly.
I could tell my clothes were looser after 10 lbs.2 -
Ditto all the above. Also, if you have a significant amount of weight to lose, you probably have a lot of “visceral fat” (fat around your organs) that needs to come off too. Great for your health to lose it, bummer for the mirror. Keep up the good work!3
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Another vote for pictures and measurements.
I think I was down 30 pounds before my brain finally noticed.1 -
This is kind of disgusting, but imagine that that 5 pounds of ground beef was spread out in a layer over most of your body. That wouldn't be a good fashion statement (Lady Gaga notwithstanding), but it would be quite a thin layer.
Furthermore, most of us hold some body fat internally, around our internal organs, and that can be depleting as we lose weight. Since that's particularly worrisome fat, that would be a good thing . . . but pretty darned invisible.
So, 5 pounds is hard to notice, even if our "noticing circuitry" were perfect . . . which, as others have said, is far from true. It's hard to see slow changes in ourselves. (For the longest time after losing weight, I'd look at clothes that actually fit me, and think "no way").
Yes, the pouches and rolls diminish eventually. The process is slow, so it's hard to notice as you go along. (That's why periodic photos, say monthly, can be a help. But I didn't even see a difference in photos from during weight loss, that now I can look back and see there really was quite a difference - the perception thing again.)
Even more frustratingly, some of us (me) can even look a little worse midway to goal, than at goal (the rolls and pouches can get squishier/less dense before they disappear - but they eventually shrink). . . then keep improving for months after reaching goal (as true loose skin keeps shrinking). It's a process!
What I'd suggest you might want to do is go over to the "Success Stories" part of the MFP forum, and look at some threads over there. Some particularly inspiring ones are linked in the "Most Helpful Posts" area in that topic. Here's a direct link:
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10300359/most-helpful-posts-success-stories-must-reads
I think you'll see that folks are definitely losing lots of their rolls and pouches. They're not special snowflakes, either: It can happen for you . . . it's just that it takes a while, so patience is useful.
Best wishes!10 -
Thanks everyone for the kind words and thoughtful responses. I am getting so much out of reading all of your posts, I appreciate every single one of you taking the time to respond. I feel much more comforted now and have some great tips to try out.
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I think what helped me was going shopping for new pants and having to ask the saleswoman for smaller sizes constantly.. I almost laughed her off when she brought me a Small..1
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Buy an item of clothing that’s slightly too small for you. It feels great the first time you can actually do that zip up and even better when it stops being a struggle.2
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Nice work on the 5!
Something will show up if you really pay attention. Clothes have been mentioned but there are other ways. It could be something simple like climbing stairs is just a tad easier.2 -
I was 269lbs. I lost 25lbs in 13 weeks and still didn't really see any difference and my weight is all in the belly. It takes time.
I would actually be shocked if you could physically see a difference after only 5lbs. lost. Its a good start but the physical appearance part will take some time.
Just keep going, slow and steady...remember this is a journey, not a destination.2 -
At my high weight I had about 100lbs to lose. I think family started noticing at about 30lbs. I've lost 50lbs (or half of what I need) and more people are noticing. Yesterday, I went to the dentist for my 6 month cleaning, and the first thing my hygienist asked was how much weight had I lost.
But, even after losing 1/2 of what I need to lose, I still don't "see" that much change when I look in the mirror. Pretty normal, I would say.2 -
You see yourself alot the changes will be in small incraments your best bet is to take photos at the start of your journey and at each weigh in youll be pleased with your progress2
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I didn't ever really start seeing myself at my new weight until I started dreaming of myself that way, and that was about a year and a half after reaching what's my goal range (I'm still losing, just playing with vanity pounds now). This was after losing 90 pounds. I still looked in the mirror and just couldn't see myself right.
If I could do it over again, I'd do more progress pictures than I did. The few I did were helpful but they still didn't get past that inner block I had when I looked in the mirror!
I second the suggestion upthread to also focus on other milestones/accomplishments along the way. I did this with fitness since I had never done any sort of exercising except for a few brief flirtations with it here and there. I found reaching new goals with that along the way very motivating.
This thread is really good about finding a good head space while you're losing weight:
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10662287/the-goal-is-the-process/p14 -
Hi Kelly. Congratulations on your 5 lb loss! Just keep going. You will see results. Pic's and measurements old clothes filling up a bag for charity and the scale will show you exactly how you are progressing. Best of luck in your journey to fitness and good health.
P.S. Speaking of old clothes that no longer fit. I kept one pair of pants and a blouse. Trying them on every now and again was a great motivator to me. Having those pants fall off after fastening the button was a real victory!2 -
Congrats on your progress so far! Honestly the more you have to lose, the slower it will be to visually see it in the mirror. Take lots of progress pics & measurements. Celebrate the small victories!1
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Just for a visual. The difference between the first pic and the third one is about 28lbs You can see a difference in my legs but not much on my stomach. In the last pic the shorts are two sizes smaller than the first pic though so I had lost all over.
But the biggest difference, the one you can't see is the pain I was in on the first pic and the lack of pain in the third one. I had Osteoarthritis in my hips and knees in the first one and it got so much better with the weight loss. Losing weight isn't always about what we can see on the outside, it is also about how much healthier our bodies are on the inside.
Keep going you will see the difference in time. But you may FEEL the difference sooner.
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Great job. For many of us, the weight comes off all over and you get proportionately smaller, so it’s harder to see.2
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I understand the desire to see the weight loss and how hard it can be to notice. I have a lot to lose and have rolls too and the first place I noticed the loss was in my foot. I have one foot that was always swollen and puffy. One day I looked at it and thought it looked weird, it took me a moment to realize that my foot wasn’t all swollen and puffy. The second place I noticed the loss was in my hands and wrists. I’m probably the only one who notices all the tiny changes, not just here or there in less puffy hands and feet, but in increased energy, slowly improving sleep quality, less overall pain and a number of other little things. Look for the small changes, take photos, and soon not only will you see the difference others will too.5
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Sorry to say that you probably will not see a difference in the mirror after 5 pounds. Those 5 pounds are still important, though. They're the first step in a longer process.
I'm also sorry to say that we can't control where we lose fat from, or what order the body takes fat from what areas. Often, the areas that bother us the most--like the stomach--are the last ones to lose fat. I still have a roll of fat on my stomach even though I lost 100 pounds, am in an optimal BMI range for my height, and have been maintaining for a year and a half. That roll is a LOT smaller than it used to be, though. I could start a recomp program to try to reduce body fat without losing weight, but I just don't want to.
Depending on how much you have to lose, it may be a long time before you notice changes in how you look. This is mostly because you see yourself in the mirror multiple times every day during the weight loss process. Imagine leaving a bowl of water out for several days until it evaporates. If you look at it every few hours, you won't notice much change, if any. But in a few days, you might think that maybe the water looks a little lower. It may be hard to tell for sure. After a few more days, though, you'll finally be pretty sure that there's less water. However, someone who only looked at the bowl on the first day and then three or four days later will definitely notice that the water level changed.
I hope that analogy made some sense.
Also, many of us who lost a lot of weight still have trouble thinking about ourselves at our new weights. I look in the mirror and I know I am 100 pounds lighter than I used to be. I don't see myself as "fat" anymore. (If you are an optimal weight yet see yourself as fat, it's worth talking to a mental health professional about your body image.) But I spent almost my entire life up to this point being obese, so sometimes it's still a surprise to see a thinner person in the mirror, and sometimes I automatically start looking at clothes in my old size, things like that. Even as you lose weight, it can take the mind a while to catch up to what the body looks like.3 -
Yes, you will lose fat in those areas. You will also lose fat from different locations, internal fat around your organs etc.
The places we put fat on are governed by our gender, hormones and genetic makeup, but in essence, belly for men usually goes first, hips and bottom on ladies.
One hard fact about rapid weight loss may be lose skin, if your left with that will depend on a bunch of factors also age etc.0 -
It took me about 20lb to see a difference. Then I started lifting heavy and boxing. When I started training I started seeing more dramatic changes on my body composition with less scale movement.1
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I found my fat pouches stayed the same size, then got softer and more sqishy then next thing I knew my clothes were too big! Everyone loses differently and if you are relying on just diet the changes will be different to someone who chooses to do more cardio which will also be different to someone who lifts weights. There is no wrong way for your body to change so long as you are doing it in a healthy way. Don't be afraid to reassess goals as you go along to get yo were you are happy x0
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