I Lost 75lbs - And Still Saw A Fat Girl In The Mirror!

I cleaned up my diet, changed my lifestyle habits, and lost 75lbs! Go me! You think I would have been doing cartwheels and maxing out all my credit cards on a brand new wardrobe, right? Wrong. Sure, I was proud of myself. I could walk up a flight of stairs without panting like my dog and I could tie my shoes without holding my breath. But when I looked in the mirror, I wasn't happy. My reflection didn't match my expectations. Where was my perfect body? I expected to look like the before/after photos I was seeing of other big weight loss success stories. All I saw was a fat girl looking back at me in the mirror.

This is a real issue some women have when they lose a significant amount of weight. Especially if they have been heavy for a long time and then lost the weight quickly. It is a condition called "Phantom Fat" and it means they don't see themselves at the size they really are. I still occasionally buy clothes for my former size rather than my current size. And I am still surprised when I put them on and find they are too big! It took some time for my internal image to see my real external image.

How do you deal with phantom fat? Best advice: be patient with yourself. You didn't gain the weight overnight, and you probably became accustomed to seeing yourself a certain way. Imagine if you were a brunette for a long time and then cut off all your hair and became a platinum blonde. Weeks later you still do a double take when you catch a glimpse of your reflection. In the case of drastic weight loss, your mind needs time to adjust to seeing the smaller, more fit version of you. Give it some time.

You can also help retrain your brain by taking photos of yourself- and often! I know, you have probably been camera shy up until this point. Seeing photos of my heavier self on vacations or at family gatherings made me want to delete all evidence that I even existed! I felt embarrassed and defeated. I refused to be in pictures, or I would hide behind someone else. It took some time to recognize my new image in photos. I lost 75lbs! That is a lot of weight! It is the equivalent to almost 300 apples or 3.5 car tires! Seeing my image more often helped me to recognize my new body. It will help you too. So put your gorgeous little self in those family photos- front and center- and stop focusing so much on the image you used to be!

Also, doing  things you were not able to do so easily before will help you realize how far you have come! Take a dance class, go on a long hike, go clothes shopping with the intention of only trying them on. My daughter used her lunch hour once a week just to try on new clothes. She called it her "w

Weekly Weight Watchers appointment" and it gave her visual confirmation on her progress.

Again, just know that weight loss brings both physical and mental changes. The work doesn't stop when you hit your target weight. Be patient and give yourself time to adjust- and celebrate the healthy new YOU!