At what point did the weight loss become visible to you? 54 lbs gone, but where?

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jaguar

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To those who started out with a lot of weight to drop: did it ever seem to drag on endlessly before you could truly see any change?

I ask because 5 months have passed and I'm down 54 pounds, yet honestly the difference isn't obvious to me. My starting point was around 165 pounds to lose (and yes, I realize that's A LOT), so perhaps that's simply how it goes when there's a bigger amount to shed. I also wonder whether people with less to lose — maybe ~80-50 pounds or fewer — pick up on changes much earlier.

It just strikes me as so strange. Every piece of clothing I own still fits (nothing is dropping off me), my rings aren't loose (okay, looser, but I've been expecting that big moment when one slips off while I'm washing my hair.....still waiting), and in the mirror I could swear I look almost identical to how I did 54 pounds ago.

I'm doing weight training, sticking to a fairly strict calorie deficit, putting protein first, keeping carbs down...and I don't feel like I'm seeing much body recomp either. You'd think dropping 54 lbs would change everything! I have absolutely no clue where those 54 lbs went...because it sure doesn't seem to be leaving my body.

Don't misunderstand — I know 54 lbs in 5 months is a massive accomplishment, and logically I understand my body has changed. The biggest difference is that I can move around more easily; walking no longer makes my heart pound the way it used to, and ordinary activities don't leave me so wiped out. My brain gets that on some level. But my heart is sitting here like...what the hell? Is this what body dysmorphia feels like? I don't think I've ever had it; but I know I'm not crazy, there haven't been many changes or my clothes would be loose and my rings would be falling off.. so it can't be my mind tricking me when I look in the mirror.

Has anyone else been through this? When did that "Whoa...I actually look different" moment finally arrive for you? Were there small signs I should be watching for beyond clothes fitting differently or rings getting loose?

Maybe once I hit the 65 lbs mark I'll begin to notice changes in my body.
 
jaguar said:

To those who started out with a lot of weight to drop: did it ever seem to drag on endlessly before you could truly see any change?

I ask because 5 months have passed and I'm down 54 pounds, yet honestly the difference isn't obvious to me. My starting point was around 165 pounds to lose (and yes, I realize that's A LOT), so perhaps that's simply how it goes when there's a bigger amount to shed. I also wonder whether people with less to lose — maybe ~80-50 pounds or fewer — pick up on changes much earlier.

It just strikes me as so strange. Every piece of clothing I own still fits (nothing is dropping off me), my rings aren't loose (okay, looser, but I've been expecting that big moment when one slips off while I'm washing my hair.....still waiting), and in the mirror I could swear I look almost identical to how I did 54 pounds ago.

I'm doing weight training, sticking to a fairly strict calorie deficit, putting protein first, keeping carbs down...and I don't feel like I'm seeing much body recomp either. You'd think dropping 54 lbs would change everything! I have absolutely no clue where those 54 lbs went...because it sure doesn't seem to be leaving my body.

Don't misunderstand — I know 54 lbs in 5 months is a massive accomplishment, and logically I understand my body has changed. The biggest difference is that I can move around more easily; walking no longer makes my heart pound the way it used to, and ordinary activities don't leave me so wiped out. My brain gets that on some level. But my heart is sitting here like...what the hell? Is this what body dysmorphia feels like? I don't think I've ever had it; but I know I'm not crazy, there haven't been many changes or my clothes would be loose and my rings would be falling off.. so it can't be my mind tricking me when I look in the mirror.

Has anyone else been through this? When did that "Whoa...I actually look different" moment finally arrive for you? Were there small signs I should be watching for beyond clothes fitting differently or rings getting loose?

Maybe once I hit the 65 lbs mark I'll begin to notice changes in my body.
Click to expand...
Awesome progress!

For me, once I'd dropped 27% and reached my goal weight, it honestly took someone else pointing out that my shirts looked way too big before I realized I needed to go shopping for new ones.

Since we see ourselves daily, those shifts are tough to notice.

What I did pick up on was this:

After a 3rd plate of spaghetti, I no longer felt awful

Those afternoon crashes from food stopped happening

Walking got less difficult for me.

In time, the changes really became visible, especially when I looked back at older photos.. you know, the kind that sparked my desire to start this journey!

A measuring tape could be useful if you want something concrete.

But honestly, just keep pushing forward, the transformed version of you is on its way out 🙂
 
Skidude said:

jaguar said:

To those who started out with a lot of weight to drop: did it ever seem to drag on endlessly before you could truly see any change?

I ask because 5 months have passed and I'm down 54 pounds, yet honestly the difference isn't obvious to me. My starting point was around 165 pounds to lose (and yes, I realize that's A LOT), so perhaps that's simply how it goes when there's a bigger amount to shed. I also wonder whether people with less to lose — maybe ~80-50 pounds or fewer — pick up on changes much earlier.

It just strikes me as so strange. Every piece of clothing I own still fits (nothing is dropping off me), my rings aren't loose (okay, looser, but I've been expecting that big moment when one slips off while I'm washing my hair.....still waiting), and in the mirror I could swear I look almost identical to how I did 54 pounds ago.

I'm doing weight training, sticking to a fairly strict calorie deficit, putting protein first, keeping carbs down...and I don't feel like I'm seeing much body recomp either. You'd think dropping 54 lbs would change everything! I have absolutely no clue where those 54 lbs went...because it sure doesn't seem to be leaving my body.

Don't misunderstand — I know 54 lbs in 5 months is a massive accomplishment, and logically I understand my body has changed. The biggest difference is that I can move around more easily; walking no longer makes my heart pound the way it used to, and ordinary activities don't leave me so wiped out. My brain gets that on some level. But my heart is sitting here like...what the hell? Is this what body dysmorphia feels like? I don't think I've ever had it; but I know I'm not crazy, there haven't been many changes or my clothes would be loose and my rings would be falling off.. so it can't be my mind tricking me when I look in the mirror.

Has anyone else been through this? When did that "Whoa...I actually look different" moment finally arrive for you? Were there small signs I should be watching for beyond clothes fitting differently or rings getting loose?

Maybe once I hit the 65 lbs mark I'll begin to notice changes in my body.
Click to expand...
Awesome progress!

For me, once I'd dropped 27% and reached my goal weight, it honestly took someone else pointing out that my shirts looked way too big before I realized I needed to go shopping for new ones.

Since we see ourselves daily, those shifts are tough to notice.

What I did pick up on was this:

After a 3rd plate of spaghetti, I no longer felt awful

Those afternoon crashes from food stopped happening

Walking got less difficult for me.

In time, the changes really became visible, especially when I looked back at older photos.. you know, the kind that sparked my desire to start this journey!

A measuring tape could be useful if you want something concrete.

But honestly, just keep pushing forward, the transformed version of you is on its way out 🙂
Click to expand...
Huh, that's a curious point. Well, unless somebody points out pretty soon that my clothes are hanging off me, I might just lose it ..lol just kidding. Appreciate the input, man, and nice work on your own weight loss as well!
 
My situation is nearly identical to yours. Altogether, I need to shed 167 lbs, and I'll hit 3 months on Tirz in 2 weeks. As of now, I've dropped 45 lbs. On May 7th, when I began this journey, I picked up 4 identical T-shirts.

1 = my weight back on May 7th - 4xl Tall

1 = snug but not crazy snug - 3xl Tall

1 = obviously a lot of weight is gone - 2xl Tall

1 = damn right, no longer fat, just a large dude - xl Tall

Right now I'm fitting into the 3xl with extra room. Give this a shot! It'll show you precisely what you need to know to feel like you're succeeding the whole way through.
 
Got a soft tape measure lying around — the kind for sewing? Try wrapping it around your middle right at the belly button. With gLP-1 agonists, that number tends to drop quicker than anything else.
 
As others have mentioned, a measuring tape will confirm the effort you're putting in. But the toilet roll comparison fits well here: when you pull off 1 or 2 sheets from a full roll, its overall size barely looks different, and that stays true until you're down to far fewer sheets—at which point each sheet you remove changes its size noticeably. For a good number of pounds lost, my size didn't drop, and that lasted over 3 months at the start of my weight loss, +60lbs, but these days it seems like I'm dropping a size every 5-6 weeks. About 10-15lbs left to go.
 
Absolutely, yes! And wow, congratulations on how far you've come!

My starting point was roughly 200 lbs, and at 5 feet tall I need to drop at least 80. Since beginning tirz in March, I've shed close to 50 lbs. There was a time when I wasn't obese at all—years back I weighed about 115 and was lifting frequently, and my clothing size bounced around between a few different numbers. As the weight crept on over the years, I realized that the larger the size, the more pounds sit between each size. Take right now: moving from a 14 down to a 12 has meant roughly a 30+ lb gap for me, yet that gap shrinks as my sizes get smaller. Years ago, two adjacent small sizes might have been separated by just 5 pounds.

These shifts sneak up on us. I genuinely thought nothing was showing until I reached the point where every single shirt was sliding off my shoulders. I'd also returned to the gym close to a year ago, and it seemed like I was making zero progress—then suddenly, a few months back, I realized it was taking me at least 15 minutes before I even felt warm. In the beginning, I'd be drenched in seconds! So many tiny changes appear out of nowhere, and tirz keeps me from getting discouraged the way I always did during every past attempt to lose weight, when it was a constant mental battle. It helps us simply keep moving forward.

The toilet paper comparison fits well: at first the roll still looks full, but toward the end it's suddenly gone 😄
 
FLglpguy said:

My situation is nearly identical to yours. Altogether, I need to shed 167 lbs, and I'll hit 3 months on Tirz in 2 weeks. As of now, I've dropped 45 lbs. On May 7th, when I began this journey, I picked up 4 identical T-shirts.

1 = my weight back on May 7th - 4xl Tall

1 = snug but not crazy snug - 3xl Tall

1 = obviously a lot of weight is gone - 2xl Tall

1 = damn right, no longer fat, just a large dude - xl Tall

Right now I'm fitting into the 3xl with extra room. Give this a shot! It'll show you precisely what you need to know to feel like you're succeeding the whole way through.
Click to expand...
Absolutely! That's pretty cool. I wish this idea had come to me when I first started.
 
Angelique said:

Absolutely, yes! And wow, congratulations on how far you've come!

My starting point was roughly 200 lbs, and at 5 feet tall I need to drop at least 80. Since beginning tirz in March, I've shed close to 50 lbs. There was a time when I wasn't obese at all—years back I weighed about 115 and was lifting frequently, and my clothing size bounced around between a few different numbers. As the weight crept on over the years, I realized that the larger the size, the more pounds sit between each size. Take right now: moving from a 14 down to a 12 has meant roughly a 30+ lb gap for me, yet that gap shrinks as my sizes get smaller. Years ago, two adjacent small sizes might have been separated by just 5 pounds.

These shifts sneak up on us. I genuinely thought nothing was showing until I reached the point where every single shirt was sliding off my shoulders. I'd also returned to the gym close to a year ago, and it seemed like I was making zero progress—then suddenly, a few months back, I realized it was taking me at least 15 minutes before I even felt warm. In the beginning, I'd be drenched in seconds! So many tiny changes appear out of nowhere, and tirz keeps me from getting discouraged the way I always did during every past attempt to lose weight, when it was a constant mental battle. It helps us simply keep moving forward.

The toilet paper comparison fits well: at first the roll still looks full, but toward the end it's suddenly gone 😄
Click to expand...
I appreciate your response—it's making me feel more hopeful!
 
TacoLifter420 said:

Snap a monthly photo, plus measure your waist. Both the mirror and the tape will show progress before long.
Click to expand...
I really ought to have kept up with this more often. Still, it's probably not too late to begin. So far I've snapped pictures just 2 times: 1 at the very start, and another roughly halfway into the 5 months I've been at this. When I put them side by side, my eyes tell me there's no change, yet my husband insists, "are you crazy?! you can see a huge difference!" Maybe it's all in my head. Thanks to you, I'm motivated to snap more photos! Tomorrow morning I'll get started👏 Measuring is something I should have been doing as well
 
A photo is what did it for me. I had gotten heavy and somehow never clocked it until I came across a picture of myself. My honest reaction was: who is that? Hold on—what? That's me?

Once I'd dropped 32 lbs—starting from 258 lbs—I could see my waist again. 🫣 Honestly, if that photo had never crossed my path, I doubt I'd have realized just how large I'd become.
 
moodymama76 said:

A photo is what did it for me. I had gotten heavy and somehow never clocked it until I came across a picture of myself. My honest reaction was: who is that? Hold on—what? That's me?

Once I'd dropped 32 lbs—starting from 258 lbs—I could see my waist again. 🫣 Honestly, if that photo had never crossed my path, I doubt I'd have realized just how large I'd become.
Click to expand...
😭 honestly, that's exactly how it goes. people joke that a camera puts on an extra 10 pounds... nope, that's not a joke, it's real, lol
 
jaguar said:

To those who started out with a lot of weight to drop: did it ever seem to drag on endlessly before you could truly see any change?

I ask because 5 months have passed and I'm down 54 pounds, yet honestly the difference isn't obvious to me. My starting point was around 165 pounds to lose (and yes, I realize that's A LOT), so perhaps that's simply how it goes when there's a bigger amount to shed. I also wonder whether people with less to lose — maybe ~80-50 pounds or fewer — pick up on changes much earlier.

It just strikes me as so strange. Every piece of clothing I own still fits (nothing is dropping off me), my rings aren't loose (okay, looser, but I've been expecting that big moment when one slips off while I'm washing my hair.....still waiting), and in the mirror I could swear I look almost identical to how I did 54 pounds ago.

I'm doing weight training, sticking to a fairly strict calorie deficit, putting protein first, keeping carbs down...and I don't feel like I'm seeing much body recomp either. You'd think dropping 54 lbs would change everything! I have absolutely no clue where those 54 lbs went...because it sure doesn't seem to be leaving my body.

Don't misunderstand — I know 54 lbs in 5 months is a massive accomplishment, and logically I understand my body has changed. The biggest difference is that I can move around more easily; walking no longer makes my heart pound the way it used to, and ordinary activities don't leave me so wiped out. My brain gets that on some level. But my heart is sitting here like...what the hell? Is this what body dysmorphia feels like? I don't think I've ever had it; but I know I'm not crazy, there haven't been many changes or my clothes would be loose and my rings would be falling off.. so it can't be my mind tricking me when I look in the mirror.

Has anyone else been through this? When did that "Whoa...I actually look different" moment finally arrive for you? Were there small signs I should be watching for beyond clothes fitting differently or rings getting loose?

Maybe once I hit the 65 lbs mark I'll begin to notice changes in my body.
Click to expand...
Every one of those points makes sense, and above all—way to go on sticking with yourself. You're doing amazing. Would you say you're tall or on the smaller side? For whatever reason, it seems like pounds dropping off someone tall tends to show up more clearly. Maybe it's because it's distributed across a bigger frame, but I'd figure you'd spot it sooner on someone with a petite build. I'm not sure. Weight is such a strange thing, and dysmorphia is even stranger. I've fluctuated so many times over the years, and once I'm thin, if I put weight back on, I swear I look slimmer—and I'm thinking, how does that work? The scale says more, yet I appear leaner? Our heads really play tricks on us. Still, Jaguar, don't stop—you're doing great, and I hope you can see the good changes the same way you're feeling them. Give measurements a shot; I'd bet you'll notice a difference 🙂
 
eidos said:

Got a soft tape measure lying around — the kind for sewing? Try wrapping it around your middle right at the belly button. With gLP-1 agonists, that number tends to drop quicker than anything else.
Click to expand...
Honestly, it's strange: I'm just 3 weeks in, heading into week 4, and I can already tell my face looks thinner and my waist too. Yay!!

moodymama76 said:

A photo is what did it for me. I had gotten heavy and somehow never clocked it until I came across a picture of myself. My honest reaction was: who is that? Hold on—what? That's me?

Once I'd dropped 32 lbs—starting from 258 lbs—I could see my waist again. 🫣 Honestly, if that photo had never crossed my path, I doubt I'd have realized just how large I'd become.
Click to expand...
seriously, how strange is that!
 
jaguar said:

To those who started out with a lot of weight to drop: did it ever seem to drag on endlessly before you could truly see any change?

I ask because 5 months have passed and I'm down 54 pounds, yet honestly the difference isn't obvious to me. My starting point was around 165 pounds to lose (and yes, I realize that's A LOT), so perhaps that's simply how it goes when there's a bigger amount to shed. I also wonder whether people with less to lose — maybe ~80-50 pounds or fewer — pick up on changes much earlier.

It just strikes me as so strange. Every piece of clothing I own still fits (nothing is dropping off me), my rings aren't loose (okay, looser, but I've been expecting that big moment when one slips off while I'm washing my hair.....still waiting), and in the mirror I could swear I look almost identical to how I did 54 pounds ago.

I'm doing weight training, sticking to a fairly strict calorie deficit, putting protein first, keeping carbs down...and I don't feel like I'm seeing much body recomp either. You'd think dropping 54 lbs would change everything! I have absolutely no clue where those 54 lbs went...because it sure doesn't seem to be leaving my body.

Don't misunderstand — I know 54 lbs in 5 months is a massive accomplishment, and logically I understand my body has changed. The biggest difference is that I can move around more easily; walking no longer makes my heart pound the way it used to, and ordinary activities don't leave me so wiped out. My brain gets that on some level. But my heart is sitting here like...what the hell? Is this what body dysmorphia feels like? I don't think I've ever had it; but I know I'm not crazy, there haven't been many changes or my clothes would be loose and my rings would be falling off.. so it can't be my mind tricking me when I look in the mirror.

Has anyone else been through this? When did that "Whoa...I actually look different" moment finally arrive for you? Were there small signs I should be watching for beyond clothes fitting differently or rings getting loose?

Maybe once I hit the 65 lbs mark I'll begin to notice changes in my body.
Click to expand...
Every time I drop roughly 50 pounds, this same problem hits me. It should feel like a huge amount, yet because almost all my clothing is stretchy, it keeps fitting across a wide span of sizes. The single method that actually let me notice the change was snapping full-body pictures from the side, front and back, once per month. Putting the first photo next to the one taken after losing 50 pounds made the difference unmistakable. Day-to-day mirror checks...nothing registered. Give scheduled photos a shot!
 
whimsps said:

jaguar said:

To those who started out with a lot of weight to drop: did it ever seem to drag on endlessly before you could truly see any change?

I ask because 5 months have passed and I'm down 54 pounds, yet honestly the difference isn't obvious to me. My starting point was around 165 pounds to lose (and yes, I realize that's A LOT), so perhaps that's simply how it goes when there's a bigger amount to shed. I also wonder whether people with less to lose — maybe ~80-50 pounds or fewer — pick up on changes much earlier.

It just strikes me as so strange. Every piece of clothing I own still fits (nothing is dropping off me), my rings aren't loose (okay, looser, but I've been expecting that big moment when one slips off while I'm washing my hair.....still waiting), and in the mirror I could swear I look almost identical to how I did 54 pounds ago.

I'm doing weight training, sticking to a fairly strict calorie deficit, putting protein first, keeping carbs down...and I don't feel like I'm seeing much body recomp either. You'd think dropping 54 lbs would change everything! I have absolutely no clue where those 54 lbs went...because it sure doesn't seem to be leaving my body.

Don't misunderstand — I know 54 lbs in 5 months is a massive accomplishment, and logically I understand my body has changed. The biggest difference is that I can move around more easily; walking no longer makes my heart pound the way it used to, and ordinary activities don't leave me so wiped out. My brain gets that on some level. But my heart is sitting here like...what the hell? Is this what body dysmorphia feels like? I don't think I've ever had it; but I know I'm not crazy, there haven't been many changes or my clothes would be loose and my rings would be falling off.. so it can't be my mind tricking me when I look in the mirror.

Has anyone else been through this? When did that "Whoa...I actually look different" moment finally arrive for you? Were there small signs I should be watching for beyond clothes fitting differently or rings getting loose?

Maybe once I hit the 65 lbs mark I'll begin to notice changes in my body.
Click to expand...
Every time I drop roughly 50 pounds, this same problem hits me. It should feel like a huge amount, yet because almost all my clothing is stretchy, it keeps fitting across a wide span of sizes. The single method that actually let me notice the change was snapping full-body pictures from the side, front and back, once per month. Putting the first photo next to the one taken after losing 50 pounds made the difference unmistakable. Day-to-day mirror checks...nothing registered. Give scheduled photos a shot!
Click to expand...
Viewed from a different angle, it can work out as a handy way to spend less. At the start, picking up smaller-sized clothing feels thrilling, yet before long the novelty fades and the costs pile up. Still, the mental side can be tough when no reward appears to be coming. If your readings tend to run high, an inexpensive blood pressure monitor could be another source of encouraging feedback. Apart from the pictures my online prescription service required every 3 months, I barely took any, and that stopped once I switched to grey. I really ought to take more for my own records. For people wired like me, photos are something to be dodged more and more. Now is the moment to attempt to take pleasure in the progress.
 
eidos said:

Got a soft tape measure lying around — the kind for sewing? Try wrapping it around your middle right at the belly button. With gLP-1 agonists, that number tends to drop quicker than anything else.
Click to expand...
Exactly the right approach.
 
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