Feeling fat again

Hi guys, I've been thinking the past few days that maybe I should be getting 10-15 more pounds off. I'm really good at the maintenance thing by now, but pretty sure I can remove some snacks and get the scale moving in the neg direction again if I put my mind to it. The reason I started thinking about this, though, is that I'm starting to feel fat again. The scale isn't moving up or anything, but all I seem to see these days is the flab I have left on my belly. I guess I'm really just wondering if any of you are having the same sorts of brain struggles as I am. I know I wear a size 6 jeans, but that doesn't seem to make any difference. All I see is the stuff I want gone. That may improve after PS, but at this point I'm going to have to wait until late Jan or early Feb to do that so my mom can do the half marathon race with me this coming Jan. The soonest I could even get in to have the PS would be October of this year, and that wouldn't leave me enough time to train for the race. So... Anyone in this mindset with me? Just me, thinking out loud again (on the keyboard/screen). Linn

Hi Linn, yes i feel the same way. some days i feel like my belly is way bigger than my butt! I keep wishing for winter just so i can wear long sleeves again. I hope the PS works for you, but i think our heads need to adjust to our new bodies. take care and have fun running with your mom, i thik thats awesome! kelly

Kelly, Thanks for letting me know I'm not alone in this. I don't have much of a butt anymore either, so that makes it even harder to see that the belly really isn't as big as I think it is. I'm trying to get a head adjustment, but is sure is hard when all I've seen for so long is a big woman. Linn

I am right there with you. I have lost 85lbs but I am still 15lbs away from 100 and thats where I want to be. My body seems to be happy @ this weight but I still feel fat and bloated. I tend to forget that I am still pretty bloated from my gallbladder surgery and my BF tells me all the time that he can tell that my stomach is big from being swollen and tender and not from being fat. He also tells me constantly that my butt is getting smaller and that I am fading away to nothing. (he met me when I was about 15lbs heavier). But I dont hear his words, I only see my belly sticking out and see the numbers on the scale. I wish I could let his words in!! sarah

Believe your boyfriend. He obviously likes you just the way you are, and that is a wonderful thing. My husband is like that too. He keeps telling me (well, he hasn't for a while) that I'm plenty small enough. He also tells me he loved me how I was before surgery, and why would he love me any better now? What gets me is when he tells me I'm eating too often! I wish he'd make up his mind about what he thinks I should be doing! Should I eat less and continue to lose, or should I maintain as I have been? No wonder I'm having mixed thoughts. I'm getting mixed messages from him as well as from my own mind. Linn

MAybe hes just worried that since you were so unhappy before your surgery and he doesnt want to see you that unhappy again. I hope you find a place where you are happy!! sarah

Hi Linn- I've got a hubby with the opposite reaction to my eating. I travel a lot this summer with my job and he calls me every day, asking if I'm eating enough! I've maintained the same weight now for about 6 months and think my body has found its "home." I pay attention to its signals (hiccups every time I'm full!) and eat what I need to. But he frets and fusses. He tells me I was fine before and am plenty small now too. I listen to my body and let him fret...I simply don't listen. It's my body and I am the one who has to eat or not eat. If you're happy with yourself, you're fine. I have a flabby tummy too but I can live with it...much much better than when I was fat. Cheers, Rusty 260/130 size 24/size 4

I'm right there with you, Linn. Just the other day, I was eating lunch with my daughter and telling her that I really want to lose 25 more pounds. I've been maintaining since December. She told me I look fine the way I am, but I sure would like to fit comfortably in a size 10. I too still feel big. I can remember feeling "skinny" in December... and if nothing else, my body has gotten a little smaller since. Maybe we're in the phase to where our brains are starting to catch up with our bodies. I remember thinking to myself at 256 pounds that I would LOVE to get into a size 12. Now that I'm there, I want to be in a size 10 (8 would be GREAT!). I wish you and your mom the best in your half marathon race. You are an inspiration! Wanda

Wanda, Not that I need validation, but I guess I need validation that my thoughts aren't that unusual. I can also remember feeling skinny a while back also, but I sure don't anymore. I've been where I am for quite a while now, so this feels normal, not small. I never in my wildest dreams thought I'd see a 6. I was hoping for an 8, so I'm actually pretty lucky. Just wish I could convince myself more often. Linn

Linn - Everything is relative. It takes a long time for our heads to catch up to our bodies, both on the way "up" and on the way "down" and our society of "barbie doll wannabe's" doesn't help the perception of being 'fat' any. Next time you are in the store, go over to the kitty litter or dog food aisle. Put bags totalling the amount of weight you lost into a cart or into a pile on the floor. If you can get 2 buckets or 2 bags that you could lift, then do that instead. Move around either trying to lift the bags or lifting the cart (or pushing with your body). That's what you had before this surgery. Then you can set them down and walk away (unless you need to buy some kitty litter or dog food lol), confident that you have left that weight behind you, so to speak Personally, I'm about 100 lbs down (wavering on the last 10 lbs I had lost) and would like to lose another whole 60-80, which would take more effort than I've put forth so far.. :-/ ) If you're maintaining, then that, in all truth, is enough. If you can do the extra, then great. If not, then don't beat yourself up about it... While most of us wouldn't mind losing another 10-15, look how far you've already come, and keep that in mind when the self-doubt starts nagging at the back of your mind about feeling fat