Lost 1.5 stone, feel better but look the same!

[hannah8815]

Hi all, have been trying to lose weight since end of Jan, started off at 16.7 and now at 15st. Know I still have a significant amount to lose to get to a healthy weight but feeling a bit disheartened as I've taken 'before' photos and more this weekend and still look exactly the same! Maybe a bit has come off my waist and face. Also my clothes feel a bit looser, but still can't get into a size down.

Anyone who has lost 5-6st, how long did it take you to really feel like your body was changing? How did you keep motivated at this stage? I feel like it will never all come off!

[MrsNutella]

hannah I don't have any advice re losing weight but I wanted to say well done!!

I have about three stone to loose.
I have lost some weight in the past. What I found motivating is measurements. Under the bust, hips, tummy, thigh. I've even measured a size reduction around my neck (though I can't remember what it was I remember tracking it and it lost a cm or two).
Sometimes it can be really hard to see a physical change because you look at you all the time.

[BIWI]

I read somewhere - sorry, can't remember when/where! - that the first fat to be lost is visceral fat, that's the fat that's around our internal organs.

This is really good news, as that's the dangerous fat. So even if you don't look different, you will be much healthier already.

Brilliant progress.

[readingrainbow]

Keep as you are. I tended to lose weight in a bit of a "whoosh". I would wake up one morning and feel oddly light on my feet.

Your clothes could very well have been stretched out a bit at your old weight (some of mine were) so it might take a bit longer to move down a true size.

Also, be aware that weight loss can mess with your spatial awareness, and that you may not feel any different whatsoever even when you start needing smaller clothes. It took me a very long time to come to terms with that.

[AprilLady]

Well done on your loss. I know exactly how you feel, when you have a lot to lose it does take a while to see visible results.

I started the year at a 17.2, and am now down to 14.6, so over 2 and half stone lost, but I am still in pretty much the same clothes (though they are much more comfortable!) as well as fitting into a few more that had previously become too small. I can't tell the difference in the mirror though, and so far only one person other than my lovely supportive DH has even noticed I have lost anything. I am though able to walk faster and am finding stairs and hills easier, which is one tangible benefit of carrying less weight.


For my current goal, I am focusing on losing another 2 stone, which will mean I am no longer obese. I am confident that by that point the loss will be noticeable, as I know how different I looked when I was last at that weight. I have to keep reminding myself that losing weight is a marathon not a sprint, and that every day of successful dieting is bringing me one day closer to my goal, even if I can't see much difference yet.

[hannah8815]

Thank you all so much for the info and encouragement. BIWI had never heard that about losing visceral fat first which is very encouraging. Will definitely do measurements to see if there's a more tangible change.

Have kept the weightloss attempt pretty much to myself in real life so really good to hear from others who are going through through the same thing

[Rinceoir]

OP I've lost 36lbs and only started to see a difference in last half stone. As others have said I think my clothes were stretched and I definitely had lots of stretchy fabrics. You've done brilliantly, nearly 10% reduction in body weight meaning a probable reduction in insulin resistance, cuts your risk of diabetes by a significant amount, drops blood pressure and reduces risk of inflammatory disease.

Did you take measurements? I started in January and have lost quite a few inches which is heartening- I think we just don't see it as its gradual.

[MrAliBongo]

Keep chipping away Hannah. Try not to focus on the big goal... Set smaller targets, and learn to be proud of yourself when you reach them! This time last year I weighed 16st12, and now I'm hovering about 10st 2. The first couple of stone were the least rewarding, and like you, it seemed to take forever before I hit the clothes size down. After that, though, I'd drop a dress-size for every stone or so that I lost. And visually the losses have just got proportionally more and more dramatic.

Keep your mind on the improvements you do notice. I felt fitter and stronger much more quickly than my body image improved, so I just kept reminding myself: If that's all I achieve, it's still an improvement. And as I started to enjoy walking more, I did more of it, and really relished being able to. I didn't have a back-catalogue of thin clothes to shrink into, but as soon I was comfortably in one size, I'd buy just one pair of jeans (my wardrobe staple) in the next size down, so I could test my progress against them.

[StripeyCake99]

Hi, I understand where you are coming from as just over 4 months ago I weighted 13st 3 and now I weigh 10st 13 and I still feel really big.

I still have a ways to go to hit my 10st weight target. But like you I can't see a difference in myself while everyone else can. Some of my trousers feel much looser but I'm still too big to go down to a lower trouser size.

I try to see that I've worked hard and achieved a good weight loss so far, but it sometimes feels hard to continue when everywhere you look, everyone looks slimmer than you or even the ladies who I can see are bigger than me. In my eyes they still look great and have nice and not unsightly bodies like mine.

I still have a really weird body even after losing some weight, I've still got a bit of a belly and massive legs. The only good thing is I've got 34D boobs!

Does anyone else who's lost weight feel like this or is it really just me?

x

[BlueOnePinkOne]

Do know what you mean, OP.

But looser clothes - an achievement and bliss just by itself! I hate it when all my clothes are too tight on me.

[stopfuckingshoutingatme]

I didn’t feel that different after 1.5

But after 3 loss I definitely feel it .

You have done so well ! And aside from the visual aspect think what you have achieved health wise !

Keep trucking 💪🏽