This is fun! What have you lost? I lost 2 bloodhounds :-)

On the message boards and in social media, WLS'ers sometimes get frustrated that they have "only lost (some number) of pounds." From years of yo-yo dieting, sometimes the numbers of pounds we've dropped have lost their meaning. That is until this list from ObesityHelp member Bette B puts the number of pounds lost into perspective. Bette's list takes the pounds out of weight lost and made them into items that are equivalent to those numbers of pounds gone from your body.

What Have You Lost?

If you've lost 50 pounds, you are no longer carrying the equivalent of a small bale of hay around with you 24/7. Or, you've lost 75 pounds? Congratulations - you've lost an Irish Setter dog and a Chihuahua from your body.

NUMBER OF POUNDS LOST WEIGHT EQUIVALENT

1 pound	a Guinea Pig
1.5 pounds	a dozen Krispy Kreme glazed donuts
2 pounds	a rack of baby back ribs
3 pounds	an average human brain
4 pounds	an ostrich egg
5 pounds	a Chihuahua
6 pounds	a human's skin
7.5 pounds	an average newborn
8 pounds	a human head
10 pounds	amount of chemical additives an American consumes each year
11 pounds	an average housecat
12 pounds	a Bald Eagle
15 pounds	10 dozen large eggs
16 pounds	a sperm whale's brain
20 pounds	an automobile tire
23 pounds	amount of pizza an average American eats in a year
24 pounds	a 3-gallon tub of super premium ice cream
25 pounds	an average 2 year old
30 pounds	amount of cheese an average American eats in a year
33 pounds	a cinder block
36 pounds	a mid-size microwave
40 pounds	a 5-gallon bottle of water or an average human leg
44 pounds	an elephant's heart
50 pounds	a small bale of hay
55 pounds	a 5000 BTU air conditioner
60 pounds	an elephant's penis (yep, weights more than his heart!)
66 pounds	amount of fats and oils an average American eats in a year
70 pounds	an Irish Setter
77 pounds	a gold brick
80 pounds	the World's Largest Ball of Tape
90 pounds	a newborn calf
100 pounds	a 2 month old horse
111 pounds	amount of red meat an average American eats in a year
117 pounds	an average fashion model
118 pounds	the complete set of Encyclopedia Britannica
120 pounds	amount of trash you throw away in a month
130 pounds	a newborn giraffe
138 pounds	amount of potatoes an average American eats in a year
140 pounds	amount of refined sugar an average American eats in a year
144 pounds	an average adult woman (and she's 5'4")
150 pounds	the complete Oxford English Dictionary
187 pounds	an average adult man
200 pounds	2 Bloodhounds
235 pounds	Arnold Schwarzenegger
300 pounds	an average football lineman
400 pounds	a Welsh pony

The next time you tell someone how much weight you've lost, let them know the pounds equivalent. Rather than say you've lost (for example), 90 pounds, you can say that you've lost a newborn calf! If you get frustrated with a slow weight loss or plateau, remember what you used to carry around on your body that you no longer do!

Pre op and post op I've lost a bail of hay!!!

I also like to think of turkeys. I've lost three 16 pound turkeys. That's huge!

It really puts things in perspective when you can visualize something like that. Great job!

You want a better measure? Go to the local home center and pick up a bag of concrete mix. Carry it around. See how you like it.

When you have a visual it's shocking what we carried around on our backs all these years isn't it?

Yeah, really. I didn't have a monkey on my back. I had an entire ape!

I've lost more than an average adult woman. Neat! No wonder moving and just living is so much easier.

As light as a beautiful butterfly

Between the world's largest ball of tape and a newborn calf!!!

I have lost....

A grown man, holding a guinea pig...

or

A 2 month old horse, holding the world's largest ball of tape, with a human head stuck to it