Do you still feel fat?

[not2late]

Originally Posted by LittleLinda

I was trying to imagine what it would feel like to be slim, and then it hit me. What I still think and FEEL fat after I've lost all this weight??

So, I was wondering, you folks who have lost all, or most, of your weight. Do you still think and feel like a fat person? Does your mindset change along with your measurements, or do you still struggle with fat feelings?

I think weight loss is more than just losing weight. I'm starting to wonder if it's as much of a psychological change as a lifestyle change.

Sometimes I do feel fat, sometimes I don't.

When I can do stuff I wasn't able to do at my heaviest, like sit in the middle seat of a train or plane----and have "plenty" of room, I don't feel fat.

But there are times, when I get the feeling that I haven't lost any weight because I still look the same. That is when I do my reality checks---like put on my pre-Atkins clothes and see how they look like on me.

But I've found that I HAVE to think like I'm still fat/losing weight, when I go to parties. If not, I find myself thinking "go ahead and take a larger portion of that food, you can afford it now." The reality is, I can't afford it.

[saoirse]

I have lost 108 pounds so far and am still surprised when I look in the mirror or see a reflection of myself. It's hard to believe it's me looking back, though I too was in denial about how big I was. Definitely a psychological switch. The complements are great but I too almost instinctively reach for bigger clothes. That is changing slowly so one day it really will be me and not that other much bigger person looking out.

[rosie321]

I feel fat very often actually. Self-perception is crazy, isn't it? When I was a size 28 I thought that a size 6 was teeny tiny. Having reached that size now though, I still feel too big. In fact sometimes I think I'm even more self-conscious now because I feel like there's more attention placed on me physically. It's weird though, I find that when I look in the mirror I'm dissatisfied but when I look at pictures of myself I'm happy with what I see.

[jmzieg82]

A couple years ago I lost 100lbs on Atkins - went from a size 24 to a comfortable 12 and still felt horrible about myself. Despite constant compliments, I still felt too fat. I made the mistake of letting it get to me... if I was still going to be "fat" then I might as well eat whatever I wanted.

There's a disorder out there call body dysmorphia or something where what you see in the mirror doesn't match reality. I remember hearing that it takes about a year for your brain to catch up with your new body.