Need an outside view of my body shape

[Daisypod]

This isn’t meant as a brag in any way. I have lost 8 stone on WLI after being overweight all my life (since 10 years old) I think my brain is struggling to see the real me now. I was out at the weekend and a few people commented saying I should stop loosing weight now and even my mum said the same (after spending my whole life telling me I need to loose weight)
Anyway I’m still a little way off my goal weight, I have a bmi of 26.9 so still overweight category and I was aiming to get to a bmi of 23/24. I am now wearing size 12 clothes in next and M&S but 14 in primark. Just to give full context.
I still think I look overweight. Am I not seeing what others see or are they just thinking I look like I shouldn’t loose anymore as they have only ever known me overweight?
Ive taken some pictures in clothes I usually wear
I would like some honest genuine opinions.
My aim has always been to be healthy which is why I’m aiming for middle range healthy bmi. I’m happy with how I look now but can see how loosing a bit more would be nice.

I think you look normal. If you keep going you will end up skinny of course, but no one will look at you and think you are overweight. It is very hard to appreciate the progress you've made, so do whatever you feel happy with yourself.

It’s worth getting a tape measure and looking at your waist to hip ratio, that’s apparently a good measure for health.

You look like you're a healthy weight to me. Congrats on the weight loss! If you feel like you want to lose more then why not since your BMI is over 25. It must be tough dealing with the comments, but it's your body and you have to do what makes you happy

Yep agree you look like a really ‘normal’ weight, you definitely wouldn’t register as overweight or underweight to me.

I don’t think you look too thin. You look nice. People who know you will be sensitive to change in you but strangers are more objective. My dad lost quite a bit of weight and my sibling thinks he is now too thin, but he’s very comfortably within a healthy BMI range and my sibling is just used to him being bigger - people get emotionally tied to how those close to them look.

You’re probably aware, but BMI should be used with caution as if you’re an athletic build and have a lot of muscle, you can have a higher BMI than what’s supposedly healthy and be absolutely fine. However, you don’t look too slim or at all skinny to me and I think it’s sensible to want to dip into the healthy BMI range with maybe a few pounds of leeway, as weight does tend to fluctuate.

You look totally normal i.e. I wouldn’t register you as overweight or underweight.
I wonder if people are saying you have lost too much because the weight has come off your face first. My SIL is on weight loss injections and because she has lost weight so quickly her face does look a little gaunt to me, but the rest of her body isn’t if you know what I mean.

i think as we get older weight loss starts from
the top down so my boobs shrink way before my dratted menopause tummy or huge arse.

Congratulations. I'd say you look average size, not big and not skinny. Maybe keep going until you get to your ideal bmi. Could be your mums shocked by the quick transformation and you're the skinniest she's ever seen you. So naturally she's concerned about you.

I’m in a similar situation( I won’t post pics lol )but my BMI is now 24.8 , so I’m just in healthy for the first time in my adult life , I’m 46.
i feel fabulous however I now have some loose skin around my tummy and thighs that never had before , menopause hasn’t helped , and friends are telling me not to lose anymore , I’m not intending to , but do need to start some exercise that will sort these problem areas .
im also very aware that my face is thinner and i don’t want to start looking gaunt … its always seemed to me that very thin women ( of which im not ) look older .
it’s so hard when all you’ve ever wanted is to be slim isn’t it !
in answer to your pics I would day you look ‘ normal ‘,
as previous poster said not thin , not fat at all but you’re not drawing any attention to your figure in those clothes , in a posh dress you’d prob look cracking !
Congrats on the loss x

People are saying the same to me after 3 stone loss. I’m a size 14 (and that’s tight) and more than 11 stone.

im not stopping yet. But if I was a 12 I might.

I was going to say similar, but first of all op WELL DONE!! And ignore the highly rude curtain comment! I don't know why some people bother posting on here if they only feel like being catty.

You look lovely. I'm actually surprised you say your BMI is still a bit overweight, as to me you look sort of top end of healthy.

Like the poster above, I think BMI has to be used with a bit of discretion, and depending on age, low end of overweight isn't the big deal some would have you believe it is - in fact it has been linked to longevity.

One of the things I notice is that past 45ish - and I don't know your age, but wonder if this might be why your mum is saying stop - some women just look better with a bit more weight because of their face shape.

But no one would look at you and think you were either fat or too thin.

Well done to you too!

I'm supposed to be working and had to attend to something while I was partway through my post above, and in the interim you posted something very similar. I totally agree with your comments around older women and a slight BMI shift being flattering. Top end of healthy/low end of overweight is not a high risk area healthwise.

I think that you have to remember that your friend's brains also haven't caught up.

Someone you have known as fat always looks thinner after weight loss than someone who has always been average sized. Like you say, it takes time to adjust mentally.

I would be cautious about getting your BMI much lower, IF you have quit a bit of excess skin.
If you do (I know at my slimmest my extra skin weighs a good few pounds), or even if you dont, I would work on maintaining this weight for a few months and then see how you feel about it.

It is common for it to take a while for people to catch up with how you look now.

Your mum and friends are being really really silly. I think you could stop losing weight right now and it would be fine. I also think you could continue to lose a bit more and that would be fine too. You are definitely not too thin - you just look normal.

I think, even with good intentions, when you lose weight on your face and you're a certain age, it can look a bit aging at first to friends and family - let's face it, a bit of padding helps to keep wrinkles etc at bay. And this can make them think you're losing too much weight.

DH has quite a craggy face at the best of times, so when he gets quite thin, people start to comment and it is really annoying.

I am about to start WLI and I have quite a long face so I know that when I start losing, there will be comments in due course becuase in some ways, my face IS more attractive a bit plumper. The rest of me though... definitely not. And my health definitely doesn't agree.

Amazing weight loss. You look great. But equally if you wanted to lose a little more that’s also ok.

Personally I wanted to get my BMI closer to 21/22, def possible to healthily lose a little more. But waist measurement a better gauge of health than BMI .

I’d say if you wanted to lose more then it’s probably totally safe for you to do so (based on info you’ve given)…at the same time, you don’t look overweight at all, I’d say very average size. If you’re happy where you’re at, then stick with it, you look great!

Congrats on the weight loss as well, that’s amazing! 🙌

To be honest - no one can see your figure. Your jeans look quite loose/baggy with those creases and you’re in a hoody, so it’s impossible to say for sure. But generally speaking, I don’t look at you and think “thin” let alone “too thin”, you look average sized.

In fact; I’d say you look like your BMI ie slightly overweight. The only reason I say that is I was always slim, then gained weight, and then lost the weight - but my legs always stayed toned. Plus my legs were the last area to gain weight too. That’s why it’s a more accurate indicator to see your torso too. I can’t tell if that’s your stomach protruding or just the fabric of your hoody.

You look at the larger end of healthy weight to me, you don’t look too thin but you also don’t look overweight.

i am in the same boat, also been obese since primary school and never made it below obese, although have hit the heady heights of morbidly obese a few times. First signed up to weight watchers when I was 11 years old back in the 90s and I currently weigh less than I did then which is very strange to think about. I suspect it will be a while before my brain truly catches up and I stop picking up xxl clothes in the shop.

I’m posting a couple of pics taken today by my reluctant and moody 11 yr old who seemed to think I was asking her to do some sort of extreme manual labour rather than pressing a button on a phone twice. I’m 5ft 8 and have a BMI of 21 currently.