Unexpected downsides of losing weight
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lalalacroix wrote: »My only real issue so far is that my fabulously fat butt is diminishing.
Squats! Keep that poppin' bootie without the fat.5 -
MelanieCN77 wrote: »seltzermint555 wrote: »...but sometimes I still reach for my old standbys and they do not work.
When I was bustier, I loved the look of empire line or the high waist Edwardian sort of silhouette, now it looks ridiculous on me. Same to short drop waist dresses, used to be an good option, and now I look like a 9 year old in them. I'm skinny jeans and t-shirts all the time now. Been two years and I haven't really tried to find new things, because instinctually I look past a lot of stuff still.
I understand. I am still figuring out what works for me, too. I used to really love wearing scoop neck tops and they were very flattering when I was plus-sized, but now I cannot wear them because they almost always show my bra or cleavage and make my neck & collarbone look bony in a bad way. I also feel like I was the exact person that plus size stores were making their clothing for. I am 5'8" and fairly hourglass and when I wore sizes 20-22 in particular, it seemed like every single thing I tried on fit well on me. While I'm much happier now, I have to try a lot of different brands, cuts, etc, to find the right size 10-12 items that fit my body, especially because I still have wide hips but am honestly a bit small-boned elsewhere (to my surprise). Lots of trial and error.6 -
seltzermint555 wrote: »I developed Raynaud's so my fingers look scary when they get cold and have poor circulation. Mine's not too bad, but when the weather's cold it is inconvenient and makes me very self-conscious when other people notice. Two different doctors have told me this is extremely common in patients who have lost large amounts of weight (especially over 100 lb). I feel lucky that it's not super bad and am relieved that it doesn't seem to be in conjunction with a more serious condition (as it sometimes is) but it's still a bummer.
I have never really had the cold issue or low energy.
Most of the other stuff in this thread, though, I can relate to for sure!
One thing I hate is thin/average men and women making disparaging comments to me about heavier folks. This happens so much more than I ever would have expected it to, and I find it so hurtful and disappointing. I didn't realize just how hateful and judgmental people were. You would think I would realize it after 20 years of being a very plus-sized woman, but I really didn't. I find that sometimes I prefer being around those who knew me as a larger person because they don't say these things to me.
As for clothes that flatter at one weight not working on your "new" body that is definitely true for me. I used to swear by cardigans to hide my excess weight and now there's nothing that adds weight faster than a cardigan on my smaller body. Cannot wear tunics. Have to find pretty much cropped/waist length tops to flatter my figure which is a good problem to have and 6 years in, I'm getting used to my new figure finally...but sometimes I still reach for my old standbys and they do not work.
Oh this is completely true. I was at a funeral on Thursday and people kept expressing that I had lost weight, while simultaneously chastising a couple of my cousins that had put on some. Granted the weight gain was somewhat jarring, but poor life circumstances caused it and we really shouldn't be crapping on people, less so at a funeral. It was in such poor taste and I said so.23 -
Spadesheart, I was absolutely sickened at my grandfather's funeral a few years ago when people commented on my weight loss right and left. So I definitely get it. So rude and bizarre.6
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I'd say this one is probably true for everyone. Don't expect the weight loss to fix all your other problems too. People who were jerks to you before will probably still be a jerk to you once you hit goal. TBH if someone who was mean to you when you were overweight starts being nice just because you are thinner, they are probably very shallow and not worth your time anyway.
Also, I thinks lots of people picture themselves walking around on the beach in a swimsuit and no longer feeling insecure about their bodies, but for most people those insecurities aren't going to just magically go away. The "fat mentality" probably takes longer to work through than the weight loss for most of us.23 -
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They refuse to give me a new ID until my old one runs out, But im 110 pounds lighter and look nothing like my ID. Luckily due for a new one in july but been really annoying getting ID'd for the past year5
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I'd been rowing (on water) regularly for over a decade, while still obese. I routinely help out with our Rowing Club's learn-to-row classes. Students range from teenagers to retirees, but the majority are 30s/40s-ish.
The activity works for anyone with normal mobility, no major fitness needed, but quite a few new people struggle with getting into single shells when they reach that point. The college rowers (who are among the usual coaches/helpers) put one foot on the deck of the shell, then use basically a one-legged squat to get into the seat (at dock level, around 4" off the water). A lot of older people can't do it that way (less balance, flexibility).
So, one thing I've done is demonstrate alternate ways to get in (there are a few; simplest to explain is sitting on the dock, hoisting one's butt into the shell's seat, then swinging the legs into the shell).
When I was fat, and demo-ed this, I would see the relief on people's faces, and usually confidence that if I could do it (obese woman in her 50s), they could do it, too. So they'd go cheerfully make a good effort.
The first year I helped after losing weight (to low-normal BMI 20), the difference was significant. When I demo-ed the easier ways to get in a boat, I mostly saw the same "that's all very well for you" looks that the collegiate folks got when they demo-ed the one-legged squat, and much more tentativeness when most people would try it themselves.
This was a huge, unexpected, negative surprise to me.
Also, I had to replace pretty much all my clothes. I hate to clothes shop: It was really annoying. (I dress about the same, but for some reason I wear more lace tops over tanks in the summer, something I never wore before.) No idea why the lace.)15 -
@seltzermint555 I developed Reynauds too. They say it’s rare, but I know several others that have it. It even happens when I eat something really cold. Last winter I found some gloves on amazon that are heated with little rechargeable batteries. The brand is Savior. It’s was a big help.8
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1) Finding clothes that fit as you decline without spending too much
2) Skin irritations
3) You are suddenly the diet expert and everyone asks you for weight loss advice even at funerals
4) You may have "fat brain" and continue to think you are heavier than you are or make decisions based on the heavier version of yourself.
5) Food repetition - I can't be the only one that gets into easy to fix and easy to log routines.
6) Grieving for the the loss of carefree eating - this one I am mostly over but it took a long time
7) Low energy days
A version of #6 hits home for me, I miss the convenience of drive thrus, I don't like to cook and I loved being able to just get instant dinner, but once you start looking at what those meals contain it's a whole new ball game, lol.3 -
Mine are the same as others. I hate shopping for clothes and have been putting it off since I want to lose more weight, but I can pull my Jean's down buttoned and zipped! I dislike spending money on temporary clothes, but with summer, it's time to shop.
It's painful to sit for long, my butt gets sore!
I spend more money on groceries than I used to. I rarely ate protein and meat is expensive! I didn't go out to eat often before, but used to heat up food. Now I enjoy my food a lot more making it myself.5 -
Mine are the same as others. I hate shopping for clothes and have been putting it off since I want to lose more weight, but I can pull my Jean's down buttoned and zipped! I dislike spending money on temporary clothes, but with summer, it's time to shop.
It's painful to sit for long, my butt gets sore!
I spend more money on groceries than I used to. I rarely ate protein and meat is expensive! I didn't go out to eat often before, but used to heat up food. Now I enjoy my food a lot more making it myself.
OOOOOO yeah that's a another big one! I'm losing weight while building muscle, but right now that means like half my diet is protein rich, low calorie foods. There are only so many protein shakes, cottage cheese, cans of tuna, egg white omelettes, or dry poultry breast you can have before it just gets old. Luckily I can have a little more freedom at maintenance.1 -
Sunshine_And_Sand wrote: »I thinks lots of people picture themselves walking around on the beach in a swimsuit and no longer feeling insecure about their bodies, but for most people those insecurities aren't going to just magically go away. The "fat mentality" probably takes longer to work through than the weight loss for most of us.
This was definitely true for me, I bought a bikini last summer and went to the beach and pool for the first time since I was in middle school, without wearing shorts or a skirt with my swimsuit. But it’s not because I lost weight, by that point I had gotten to my goal, then put 10lbs back on. Even at my lowest weight I still wasn’t magazine cover material, and I never will be.
I was able to do it because I had gotten into therapy and worked through some of my insecurities. Taking off the swimsuit cover and walking down the beach with my mid drift and all of my legs, stretch marks, cellulite and all, exposed was terrifying and so freeing. I still have that bikini, but I usually stick to one piece suits when I’m with my kids, I’ve permanently ditched shorts though, my weight be damned!!! I still have to psych myself up a bit when I take my kids to the pool, but it helps to look around and realize that bodies are just bodies, and cellulite, fat and stretch marks are just part of the human experience. No one is looking away in horror, and if they are, it says more about them than it says about me.21 -
1) Finding clothes that fit as you decline without spending too much
2) Skin irritations
3) You are suddenly the diet expert and everyone asks you for weight loss advice even at funerals
4) You may have "fat brain" and continue to think you are heavier than you are or make decisions based on the heavier version of yourself.
5) Food repetition - I can't be the only one that gets into easy to fix and easy to log routines.
6) Grieving for the the loss of carefree eating - this one I am mostly over but it took a long time
7) Low energy days
True on 30 -
@seltzermint555 I developed Reynauds too. They say it’s rare, but I know several others that have it. It even happens when I eat something really cold. Last winter I found some gloves on amazon that are heated with little rechargeable batteries. The brand is Savior. It’s was a big help.
I think it's weird they say it's rare but I knew 2 other women LONG before I'd lost weight, who had developed it after losing lots of weight, too.
Thanks for the heated gloves tip! So far it's not been too much of a problem for me but I am glad to know about potential solutions. Mostly I find myself wearing gloves a lot in the fall/winter months, I'm sure it would be worse if I lived in a colder climate (I'm in south-central US where it's fairly moderate). The worst to me is just when dining w/ others and I drink a lot of cold water and they ask why some of my fingers are yellow/white, ugh.0 -
I am surprised by the number that have developed Reynauds since losing weight. I have too but never put it down to losing weight. Last winter was so bad that my fingers were swollen and covered in chilblains to the point that I couldn't hold a pen without pain. It wasn't a case of many shades of grey, but many shades of red and purple. I am in Australia and about to approach another winter. I have stopped walking in the mornings when it is cold and don't go anywhere without gloves and hand warmers. Fingers crossed I can still cross my fingers throughout this winter.7
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The craziest negative thing that happened after losing 100+ lb. was what happened to my hiatal hernia. I have had one for 20 years with the occasional flare-up (genetic. dad had one as well as his mother). It was always the sliding kind where the full stomach would bulge through the hiatus, then slide back down when it emptied. The problem came after losing weight. There was so much extra space in my abdomen without all the fat pressing on my innards that almost the entire stomach slid up into my chest cavity. I had to have surgery to move it back down and make sure it didn't move upwards again.24
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Is there redness and a burning sensation at times or mainly really cold hands?
I would urge all of us who at some point of time developed cold hands to examine our size and length of deficit and consider adaptive thermogenesis which is sometimes partially expressed by lower core temperature and lower resting heart rate.... and cold limbs.
Re-feeds and diet breaks while on a deficit and extended maintenance at calories high enough to almost be at the point of causing weight gain (as opposed to almost low enough to cause weight loss) MAY help mitigate.
Generally speaking my hands are no longer as cold as they were when losing and when I first started maintaining, and no longer a problem or concern.
But if I remain inactive for unusually long, or hit a large enough deficit, I start feeling cold and this includes freezing hands!4 -
Is there redness and a burning sensation at times or mainly really cold hands?
I would urge all of us who at some point of time developed cold hands to examine our size and length of deficit and consider adaptive thermogenesis which is sometimes partially expressed by lower core temperature and lower resting heart rate.... and cold limbs.
Re-feeds and diet breaks while on a deficit and extended maintenance at calories high enough to almost be at the point of causing weight gain (as opposed to almost low enough to cause weight loss) MAY help mitigate.
Generally speaking my hands are no longer as cold as they were when losing and when I first started maintaining, and no longer a problem or concern.
But if I remain inactive for unusually long, or hit a large enough deficit, I start feeling cold and this includes freezing hands!
@PAV8888 I've been in maintenance for almost 2 years and last winter was worse than when I was losing. Even in summer, they can be cold as they can be when I am active. Then again I have the worst case of Raynaud's that my doctor has seen because I'm special like that.9
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