50 pounds lighter why do I feel 100 pounds heavier?

There was a point in my life when I was super depressed, I stopped looking at the scale when I hit 155 pounds...SO I was probably 160 by the time I decided enough was enough....Im not really sure how I lost the first 30 pounds, sorta just came off...Then I went on a high fiber diet and restricted my self from any junk.  I am 109 now...and I eat very healthy...blah blah blah.....now my pants are all tooooo big, my shirts too lose...SO tell me, please why do i feel so fat and chubby? My stomach still has a layer of annoying chub that a bit of exercise will take care of, when I have more time..( I work about 15 hours a day now)...but Y IN HECK DO I FEEL and LOOK FATTER?

Maybe it's because you need a new set of clothes? If you are still wearing the old clothes, and your pants are too big and shirts too loose, you are going to look heavy. Time to treat yourself to a new wardrobe, to celebrate your successes.

I'm sure you look wonderful, Penny!  A lot of things can contribute to feeling like crap and feeling bad about yourself.  Have you discussed your weight loss with a doctor at all?  It may be that you've been trying so hard to lose weight that you've lost sight of the goal, and won't feel right unless you continue to lose at the same speed. 

Treat yourself to some time off from work if you can.  Being busy all the time is so stressful.

You probably feel icky cause you are tired and stressed.  No matter how hot you are if you are totally stressed and exhausted you are going to feel gross.  What you need is some solid RandR.  I have noticed to when I where clothes that don't fit me either to large or too small I am not comfortable in my own skin.  Go shopping and relax!!!!!  Plus that little bit of pudge on the stomach is what a woman should have....its how we are built and such.  I find that guys love a little bit softer tummy then rock hard abs anyway.  Its makes appear softer and more feminine.  But it you don't like it then by all means work it off.  You gotta make yourself happy.

Most important is make some time for you and chill.  Chill time is very very important.

Chances are, your self-perceptions haven't caught up to your current reality.  This could be a problem, also, like the onset of anorexia/bulemia.  It couldn't hurt to talk to someone trained - a therapist, maybe - about exercises (of the mental variety) that might help  you see yourself as you are. 

109 sounds very slender to me, but if you are a very short person (emphasis on very short, like four-foot something), it might be just the right weight to make you seem a bit chubby... a pound of fat after all is a lot of fat, and it's especially noticeable when you're slender, whether or not you need to lose a few more.

What are your stats?

FUnny you say take time off work..I am, I work on a construction site and the job is wrapping up.  I had options to transfer over to another job, but decided that I would take a month or so off.  I made some insane money on this job, sooo I will go shopping....(I hate spending money) ...and I do want rock hard abs, So I am gonna go hard at the gym...=)  I am usually pretty motivated, but after seeing myself looking chubby, I get so pissed and lose that drive.  I dont think i could go back to eating the way I did, ever again, its wierd I think i would take will power to eat a chocolatebar......I havent indugled inforever, which is fine, I dont feel lost without that crap, but its like the foods I eat I should be TINY....at 109, I feel like I could lose another10 pounds...yikes!  Im 5 2and a half....But if i lose the flab the scale will go down...I dunno I just needed to vent...thanks all....!

Sounds like a self image problem.  You're seeing flab where there is none.  At 109, you can't possibly have any fat on your body. 

Toning and exercise should improve your body shape, but most of this is mental.  Be nice to yourself.  Don't be so self critical.  You are worth it.

Theres def flab, i can grab it....and its gross.  I hate it. More than anything.  I would even get a tummy tuck if it didnt leave a scar....Lipo does too...I guess I just have to work my arse off at the gym.  Ill post pics of my gut..ull...see! =)

My mother worked in a high school & there was this one girl who, she insists, was dieting to lose what she could grab - and it was all skin.  5'2" is not *that* short.  Maybe you have a few little lbs of fat on your tummy - no pics so I can't see - but you're probably the only one that can see that, unless you walk around in belly shirts.

Exercise sounds like the name of the game here.

I think you did an amazing fabulous job on losing 50 lbs to begin with - good for you!!!

Good luck.

you are short so you can probably still lose if you're seeing fat so i'd say just keep focusing on your goal and how you can safely reach it, rather than obsessing about not being there at the moment because obsessing can sometimes lead to self-sabotage. youll get there eventually.

My wife and I have had 3 kids... she currently weights about 106 and is around 5'4".   She still has a little fat on her thighs... and though her stomach has some extra stuff it's ALL SKIN.   So it may just be skin.

Also your posture changes your form quite a bit.  Maybe working construction you dont' stand or sit up straight enough?

Whatever it is... you need not go too crazy with it.   It's probably not as much dieting you need as body shaping.   But no amount of body shaping will take away extra skin in the stomach area.   You can lessen it's appearance through exercising your back... but it's pretty much going to be there.   Expecially if you've had some kids or at one time were around 150 or so and lost the weight TOO fast for your skin to regain it's elasticity.

Definitely see a doctor about it.

Have you been working out at all, I mean besides cardio??  If not, get into the gym and start toning your muscles.  If you haven't been weight training, a lot of the weight you lost was probably muscle tissue - the stuff you wanted to keep.  Losing weight by only restricting your food intake will never get you the type of body you want, both in the health and look categories.

Do yourself - and your bones - a favor and do some weight training if you're not already doing it.  If all that is new to you, please make sure you hire a personal trainer to get you started.  Two or three sessions to begin with would be fine, but remember to schedule a new session every six weeks or so to check progress and change up the routine.

Good luck!  Oh, and make sure you aren't dealing with body image issues.  Ask those around you who will be completely honest to eval what you think is fat.  When I was 22 and at my thinnest ever as an adult, I thought I had fat around my stomach too.  Looking back at pics now, I realize that it was all just skin.  I know that my thinking was distorted back then.  Yours might be too.

It could just be excess, stretched skin.  That will tighten up over time.

I'm also 5'2" and a half (LOL!) and weigh 108-110 and have the same problem. I'm definitely not tight or toned and still have flab, and I hit the gym HARD with weight training (3x a week for 1.5hrs) and cardio almost every day.  I eat 1300 + whatever I exercise.

I think for us it just takes time, I know my body is changing but my weight isn't, which is hard but I will keep going because I know I can't be working this hard and nothing happening.

I also think it's a bit of a mental issue - I know that when I was 140lbs i didn't think about food/weight as much and look at myself as fat as much because I had just sort of accepted it. Now that I am small and people say I am, the flab just screams fat to me. But just try to remember how far you've come, and go buy some new clothes to play up your gorgeous new figure! =)

Sugar and Spice! HUGGGGS!!!! THank god, you understand me....its like..you are me...lol.

Any suggestions!?  U ever pack protien?  whats ur ratio of carbs, pros, etc fats?

I have to add a pic!  we even look some what a like! CRZYNESS!

i would pick up some protien bars and nuts (good for the skin)
watch the cals still.

you lost so much it makes you jiggley until you skin catches up.
i felt the same way a couple times through my journey.

and OMG IT MAKES ME SOOOOOOOOO MAD.

but...get alittle more protien, take some msm and biotin, get some skin firming lotions, do some yoga...within a month you will see a difference.

also GO SHOPPING!

i was feeling so fat until i tried on clothing that actually fit..
problem...the bigger old me had stretched out clothing in my fatty areas..made it puff a bit..viually added at least 20 pounds.
even my friends were ragging on me about why i didnt dress like this in fitted clothing instead of my old baggy stuff.
(saying i look so much thinner and better in stuff that fits)

levis 514 low cuts in slim fit
totally the best jeans in the world.
plus they come in petite!

:)

I was talking to a firend who's a doctor about this the other day (not for me, I've got a long way to go before a little stomach pooch is my only problem) but for another friend who sounds like you a little. His answer was that it takes a while for skin to be reabsorbed by the body, but it shoud happen eventually. His recommendation - good cardio everyday. 20 minutes good cardio everyday is all you really need (he said that, not me).

Penny, I hope you will accept this in the spirit it's offered.  You need to work on your self image, because that's what your problem is.  Please read this.  I hope it helps.

Improving Self Image

Well right now I'm not really counting the ratios, just counting calories.  I don't really believe eating fruits veggies lean meats ALL the time and denying yourself fun food will help that much except with your bodys health, not fat loss.

I did that for about 10 days and because I was eating so much (healthy) I gained water weight and it pissed me off, so now I just try to make sure I get up near the 80-100gram range for protein and stay in my calorie range and dont worry about much else. I don't see any difference between either way of eating. I personally believe calories in / calories out is how it works for weight loss. Except for protein/muscle building. =)

I'm in college, I'm going to live, I work my ass off at the gym. LOL

clairelaine, what do you mean "At 109, you can't possibly have any fat on your body"? I'm 109, and I DEFINITELY have some extra fat. Trust me, it's not all in her head.