Is this normal regarding weight loss?
 

So I've been "good" lately - for about a month now anyway. I'm counting every calorie (using my fitness pal) working out regularly, and I lost 7 pounds! The problem is that aside from that nothing has really changed body-wise. I should have been doing measurements - I realize that now - but my clothes fit exactly the same. Shouldn't I notice a difference of some type? I think today I'll do some measurements...maybe I'm just not noticing it, but 7 pounds seems like it should be showing in my clothes.

As a little background I'm 5'9", 49 years old, and went from 165 down to 158 as of today. I put my goal weight in as 155 but I think I'm going to have to change it to lower in order to get down to a size 10 which is what I wanted (8 would be great, but I want to be realistic).

Hi Malia,

When I lose weight, I tend to lose everywhere first, my waist last. This year I lost about the same weight as you and didn't notice cos my clothes felt the same. people kept telling me I looked like I had lost weight. When I finally stepped on a scale - voila! down about 7 pounds with no change in my waist. I am 49 years old too. menopause? muscle build? I dunno.

In my experience the body change takes a little while to catch up to the scale.

This is good to know. I've lost weight and am happy with the number on the scale, but not what I see in the mirror. I'm almost at what I thought was my goal weight but, based on what my body looks like, I think I need to lose more than I thought I did.

Erica

I haven't been on the scales in over 30 years, but I do know that people will tell me I look thinner--a number of people will comment that I've lost weight, yet my clothing still fits.

In the past, when I lost weight, I would wear the same size for several months, yet people would consistently comment on my weight loss. I have been told that an hourglass figure must lose a great deal before dropping a dress size, and this is true of me.

That's good to know - I am an hourglass figure too. Thank you for the replies!

Most clothing sizes have "ease" built into them. That means that they're a little larger than the measurements they're made for. Your clothing may be a bit looser, but you don't notice because the amount of ease hasn't changed that much yet.

Remember that weight loss is microscopic. Such a tiny amount goes away every day that you can hardly tell, but it builds up over time. Also each body seems to shed weight in its own way. I'm sure you'll see results soon.

Good luck!

Malia, you're also fairly tall so it also takes some time for you to "see" the weight. I know for me and my fellow shorties (5'5" and shorter) even 5 pounds looks different, either up or down. One of my best friends is 5'11" but still looked slender at 160. Just a little bit of belly. Put 160 pounds on me and I'm looking "juicy". Still awesome, but definitely juicy :D.

Oh me too! I'm always amazed when people post that they lost 7 lbs and dropped a size...I'm like, WHAT? :eek: It's more like 20 lbs for me.

I think it also depends on your height. I am 5'3" ½ and if I lost 5 lbs, it is definitely at least a size. If you are taller, I am thinking it may take more to see a size drop.