Why do people keep asking if I've lost weight?

[exdieter]

First of all, I have finished my first four weeks of no-s-ing!! I love love love (almost) everything about it. I don't feel deprived, I am not obsessing about food, my habits are changing.... I've had a couple red days but have shouldered on.

So, I haven't weighed in to end my fourth week yet (but I sneaked a peek yesterday), and I haven't really shown a weight loss since the 1.5lb my first week (maybe another half pound at most). (While of course I wish it were as fast a "diet," I understand that this is the beauty of No-S, and am committed to sticking with it for the long haul because of the freedom I now have from dieting!)

Anyhow, four or five people this week have stopped me to ask if I'm losing weight. How is that possible if I haven't lost any in weeks? Has anybody else experienced this? What's going on??

I'm certainly not complaining, just curious.

[NoelFigart]

Are you doing any strength training? Muscle takes up less volume than fat, so you may have lost padding without having lost anything scale-wise.

Thing is, you'd have to be lifting pretty heavy to have that show up visibly.

Are you wearing new clothes that fit properly? That gives the appearance of weight loss.

Has your stance altered? Are you feeling better about yourself, carrying yourself taller, or improving your posture? All those things can translate into an appearance of a small weight loss.

You may find that in the next couple of weeks, you'll see a significant weight loss. It's not unusual to retain fluid for awhile when losing fat, then for it to all go away.

[BrightAngel]

How is that possible if I haven't lost any in weeks?
Has anybody else experienced this? What's going on??
I'm certainly not complaining, just curious.

ex-dieter,
Your check-in Thread shows that as of 6 days ago, Your weight loss was 2.2 lbs.

If you haven't gained any weight since then,
that means that this month, you lost a total of 2.2 lbs,
which is an average weight-loss of about 1/2 lb per week.

Assuming you are around average height, 5'4",
your weight of 155 would put you in the "overweight" category,
rather than "obese".
This means you have less weight to lose than many people,
and, ordinarily, the closer to your normal weight you are,
the harder it is to drop pounds.

So, based on my above-assumptions,
you appear to be doing very well at weight-loss at this point
while following "vanilla" No S. ...
My opinion is that Congratulations are in order.

[Sienna]

Weight loss is a tricky thing. I think how noticeable it is depends a lot on where you lost the ~2 lbs from and on how much you had to lose.

2 lbs that come primarily of the face and/or waist will probably make a lot more of an impact than 2 lbs coming primarily of the hands and feet (I always tend to lose fat around my fingers, wrists and ankles first)

Also if you are 100 lbs overweight, 2 lbs won't show up as much as if you are only 10 lbs overweight. Because when you are smaller, 2lbs is a greater percentage of your overall weight.

So just enjoy that people think you are looking thinner - whether it's because you actually are or because you are walking taller and dressing more awesome. You are making wonderful progress!

[Starla]

I would say people are asking you if you've lost weight because you look like you've lost weight. Congratulations! I've found too that sometimes I get comments about weight loss that aren't reflected on the scale. I don't know why this is, but I've learned to just enjoy it. The opposite will happen too - the scale will show I've lost weight, but nobody will notice. It helps put the scale in proper perspective. Yes, it's a useful tool of measurement, but there's a lot more going on than is shown in a scale reading.

[Blithe Morning]

Maybe the weight loss is showing up in your face first. Maybe you have lost the puffiness that comes with eating lots of snacks high in sodium. Maybe the little bit of weight you lost was in places that previously bulged under clothes.

[Kevin]

I don't think there is any question that getting on a moderate diet will make you look like you've lost weight before you have. Maybe Blithe is right and it's just a redistribution of water weight or something.

But don't you feel a little lighter too? I have really only lost a couple of pounds, but I'm almost at the point where I'm moving to the next belt hole. Should that be the case? No, not really.

But in any event, you should feel good if people are asking. Keep it up!

Oh, and about that "maybe only an extra half pound... measuring weight loss is very tricky. Day to day, hour to hour, your weight can change by a couple of pounds. I measure once a week or so, only in the morning after an N day, and only after, uhm, emptying everything that is full . Before eating. Otherwise, the normal daily variation can make you crazy. Being a woman probably adds a monthly variation you should take into account, too.

[exdieter]

@Kevin, hahaha. Love your delicate explanation of the weight fluctuations. I think the most accurate for us women is probably to only look once monthly, and certainly never the last week of our, ahem, cycles. I was a compulsive weigher for the past several years, so trying to decrease that bit by bit. It's really hard to walk by that scale, however!

To everybody else, looking at myself in the mirror, I think the weight is coming off of my gut first. And I suppose 2lb is a while lot when you think about it in terms of something physical, like, say, butter. Which is 8 sticks of butter off my body.

So yeah...I dunno why people have noticed this week, but I'll take it! Onward and downward!