I know most folks here can relate - I'm well over a year out and these last 10lbs to my "real" goal are just killing me. I jump back on the bandwagon for a week or so and lose 2-3 lbs and then gain them back for no apparent reason (other than hormones and such) which of course puts me in a mood to just give up and go back to normal maintenance... then again, lose/gain the same 2-3 lbs over the next few weeks. Particularly when everyone is commenting on how great you look and "WOW, you are killing it, you look smaller every time I see you." No dammit - I want to lose at least another 10-20 lbs...

I know what I need to do, just can't seem to get in the right headspace for more than a week or two.

Mando,

I can’t even explain how much this post means to me! Thank you for posting it!

I thought I was the only one in this very rocky annoying boat.

7 months out for me - I’ve lost 73lbs. Dropped 6 dress sizes, and yes I will even agree that I look great! However……

I am 7lbs from my end goal… since before Xmas I have been bouncing up and down the scales 2-3lbs and can’t seem to shift anything.

i have days I loose a lb - get excited and then jump back on a few days later and it’s back there again ?

I have had very supportive family and friends however they don’t understand why I’m so frustrated. Because they just see that I’m ‘skinny’ now and should just be happy.
i am happy.. but I want to reach my goal.

I have adjusted my meals. Increased my protein intake. Increased my water intake… I’ve started exercising (mainly walking and sit ups)

I can see a difference in terms of my body is changing still, I’ve lost 1/2 inch in my waist, but nothing has moved on the scale. So although I look more defined I still want that scale to change!

I think this is just the final mile and it’s a struggle when you see the scale move every week for the past 6-7 months for it to stop is a bit of an anticlimax. But it’s gotta stop at some point right?

Maybe this is the weight my body is comfortable with and I need to get used to us… the only comfort is that I haven’t ‘gained’ weight …

Keep going you will get there…

losing 10 lbs, when you're at or very near a normal BMI, is REALLY tough.

I've said this before, but I remember back when I attended Weight Watchers meetings when I weighed 300+ lbs, listening to these slightly overweight people screaming and moaning about hard it was to lose 10 lbs. I just wanted to roll my eyes at them. Now I totally get it..

Edited January 21, 20224 yr by catwoman7

Yeah, it's tough. I lost 5 pounds in 2 weeks on WW and was happy and moving forward but the last two weeks I've lost nothing/gained if you believe the scale. I followed the diet to the letter. The lady at the gym keeps saying "You get smaller every time I see you" but I'm NOT! I'm getting bigger!

18 minutes ago, eholmes89 said:

Mando,

I can’t even explain how much this post means to me! Thank you for posting it!

I thought I was the only one in this very rocky annoying boat.

7 months out for me - I’ve lost 73lbs. Dropped 6 dress sizes, and yes I will even agree that I look great! However……

I am 7lbs from my end goal… since before Xmas I have been bouncing up and down the scales 2-3lbs and can’t seem to shift anything.

i have days I loose a lb - get excited and then jump back on a few days later and it’s back there again ?

I have had very supportive family and friends however they don’t understand why I’m so frustrated. Because they just see that I’m ‘skinny’ now and should just be happy.
i am happy.. but I want to reach my goal.

I have adjusted my meals. Increased my Protein intake. Increased my Water intake… I’ve started exercising (mainly walking and sit ups)

I can see a difference in terms of my body is changing still, I’ve lost 1/2 inch in my waist, but nothing has moved on the scale. So although I look more defined I still want that scale to change!

I think this is just the final mile and it’s a struggle when you see the scale move every week for the past 6-7 months for it to stop is a bit of an anticlimax. But it’s gotta stop at some point right?

Maybe this is the weight my body is comfortable with and I need to get used to us… the only comfort is that I haven’t ‘gained’ weight …

Keep going you will get there…

if you have increased your exercise you may also have increased muscle mass which could be why the scales aren't moving even though you still could be loosing fat

3 minutes ago, GradyCat said:

Yeah, it's tough. I lost 5 pounds in 2 weeks on WW and was happy and moving forward but the last two weeks I've lost nothing/gained if you believe the scale. I followed the diet to the letter. The lady at the gym keeps saying "You get smaller every time I see you" but I'm NOT! I'm getting bigger!

I am sure you are not, what do your measurements show ? as increasing muscle mass can cause the scales not to move or move in the wrong direction, mean while you are still loosing fat

3 minutes ago, SleeverSk said:

if you have increased your exercise you may also have increased muscle mass which could be why the scales aren't moving even though you still could be loosing fat

This is very true and in my sensible half of my brain I know this! However in that vulnerable side that needs to see the scale to believe it, it’s struggling.

?

15 minutes ago, catwoman7 said:

losing 10 lbs, when you're at or very near a normal BMI, is REALLY tough.

I've said this before, but I remember back when I attended Weight Watchers meetings when I weighed 300+ lbs, listening to these slightly overweight people screaming and moaning about hard it was to lose 10 lbs. I just wanted to roll my eyes at them. Now I totally get it..

This is exactly it… I am slap bang in the middle of the ‘green’ BMI. So in theory I’m where I need to be..but I want to hit an exact number..

I guess this where practising good mental health comes into play…

7 minutes ago, eholmes89 said:

This is exactly it… I am slap bang in the middle of the ‘green’ BMI. So in theory I’m where I need to be..but I want to hit an exact number..

I guess this where practising good mental health comes into play…

"Exact Number" - That is the perfect way of putting it. I realize intellectually that the number really doesn't matter... but it does to ME! It's about having a goal and meeting that goal. Until I do, it feels like unfinished business for lack of a better term. @catwoman7 I can completely relate to eye-rolling in the past when people have bemoaned a 10lb weight loss issue - I just wanted to say "hold my beer and watch this!" Or my favorite... "I've gained 5lbs and I just have to get it off." - My thoughts "You vain *#&$, try losing 100lbs..." Again, now I can totally relate to panic mode if there's that much of a change - Ah... skinny people problems... I consider myself beyond lucky to have them now!

It seems we aren’t alone and many of us are in the same headspace.

when I’m having a ‘positive polly’ day. I pop on some tight clothes, do my hair, put make up on and feel great and remind myself how far I have come. I look back at photos from a year ago and create comparison photos to remind me actually how lucky I am that I have managed to get through this. My health is much better. I am much happier in general….

however we all have those days where we feel a little bloated or chubby. Clothes don’t seem to feel right, we find bits of skin or something we never noticed before that now starts to annoy us and we concentrate so hard on the smaller issues such as that damn scale!! I also crave attention from others to tell me how skinny i am and how great I now look..

i guess the conclusion is —— it doesn’t matter what size you are. What the scale says… or how your clothes fit you. We will ALWAYS find flaws and bits we aren’t happy with. We looked at ‘skinny’ people and longed to be them because from the outside we assumed they were perfectly happy with their bodies.. truth is they had hang ups just like us.. maybe just not as noticeable.

but we will continue to work towards changing our minds.. we changed our bodies and now it’s about learning to live and LOVE our new us…

(can you tell I’m having a positive polly day )

3 hours ago, SleeverSk said:

I am sure you are not, what do your measurements show ? as increasing muscle mass can cause the scales not to move or move in the wrong direction, mean while you are still loosing fat

True, I wish I had taken my measurements 2 months ago when I started working out at the gym to compare. Sometimes those measurements show more than the scale alone.

@MandoGetsSleeved you’ve done so well. Congratulations.

I understand the power of the number on the scale. It can make your day or tear you down. I’m battling it now - only over a good kilo or so that won’t budge but I don’t want that number on the scale to be what it is. It’s incredible how demoralising even a single kg can be. I’m very fearful it may be the herald of more gain. (Damn 3rd year regain.)

I wonder if where you are now is the weight your body is happy at even though your mind is not. Remember unfortunately not everyone gets to their goal though you’re so close which can make it more challenging to accept. Are you satisfied with your food intake & activity levels at the moment? Does it limit or restrict you doing things you enjoy like socialising, etc? To lose more & then maintain at a lower weight will mean you will need to eat less & exercise more than you do now at your current weight.

But saying all that if you want to lose more go for it. Have a chat with your dietician to see if there’s anything else you can do - sometimes a small tweak can make a huge difference. Do check your body measurements too to allow for muscle gain or fat redistribution (it happens).

All the best.

On 1/21/2022 at 9:05 PM, Arabesque said:

I wonder if where you are now is the weight your body is happy at even though your mind is not. Remember unfortunately not everyone gets to their goal though you’re so close which can make it more challenging to accept. Are you satisfied with your food intake & activity levels at the moment? Does it limit or restrict you doing things you enjoy like socialising, etc? To lose more & then maintain at a lower weight will mean you will need to eat less & exercise more than you do now at your current weight.

I’m starting to feel this way. The scale has gone up or down 3-4 pounds for about two months now, and I think this may be the happy point for my body. It is within my surgeon’s zone of success, actually towards the lower end.

And to the original post, it is hard to get in the right headspace to lose those last few pounds, but even if it occurred, the question is, could we maintain it forever?

@Esimaintaining it forever is definitely a concern - Actually one of the reasons I want to get this last 10 in. I keep hearing about the bounce back of 10 or so lbs and want to ensure I stay in a happy zone with my weight. I'm pretty neurotic about weighing quite often (at least 4-5 times per week) and if I'm up 1-2 lbs I make sure I get back to the basics (not crash dieting,) by making sure I get in the fluids first - That keeps me fully and less snacky. @ 5lbs I start freaking out and typically do go back to real basics (tracking and measuring everything I put in my mouth). This usually happens after a vacation when I just throw caution to the wind!

On 1/21/2022 at 5:29 AM, eholmes89 said:

Mando,

I can’t even explain how much this post means to me! Thank you for posting it!

I thought I was the only one in this very rocky annoying boat.

7 months out for me - I’ve lost 73lbs. Dropped 6 dress sizes, and yes I will even agree that I look great! However……

I am 7lbs from my end goal… since before Xmas I have been bouncing up and down the scales 2-3lbs and can’t seem to shift anything.

i have days I loose a lb - get excited and then jump back on a few days later and it’s back there again ?

I have had very supportive family and friends however they don’t understand why I’m so frustrated. Because they just see that I’m ‘skinny’ now and should just be happy.
i am happy.. but I want to reach my goal.

I have adjusted my meals. Increased my Protein intake. Increased my Water intake… I’ve started exercising (mainly walking and sit ups)

I can see a difference in terms of my body is changing still, I’ve lost 1/2 inch in my waist, but nothing has moved on the scale. So although I look more defined I still want that scale to change!

I think this is just the final mile and it’s a struggle when you see the scale move every week for the past 6-7 months for it to stop is a bit of an anticlimax. But it’s gotta stop at some point right?

Maybe this is the weight my body is comfortable with and I need to get used to us… the only comfort is that I haven’t ‘gained’ weight …

Keep going you will get there…

If this helps (I know its frustrating) but muscle weighs 7 times more than fat..so if you're working out more, you're increasing muscle mass which could explain the stubborn scale... You're probably losing fat quick but replacing it with muscle so it seems like the scale isn't budging, especially if you're not going up a lot! This make sense?

@BlondePatriotinCDA, oh how I wish it was muscle! It's fat.... It's crappy diet and laziness - hence the reason I'm back to the forum for accountability. I haven't posted in about a year and funny that this was at the top of the rants and raves. Thank you for the response and personally for me, the reality check.

I'm up about 5lbs (consistently over weeks), so I definitely know it's not hormones and I KNOW I have to get back to basics. So what do we do in these situations? Log in regularly, track what you eat (so you can't rationalize poor diet), and look at pictures of yourself when you were obese. I NEVER want to go back to painful joints, embarassing pictures, and not being able to buy clothing from pretty much anywhere I wanted (Oh, and I spent a fortune on new clothes so I don't want to go through that either!).

Thanks to all here for being a sounding board and reminding me of WHY.