seeing something diffrent

when I look at myself in the mirror, it seems like I see something COMPLETELY different from everyone else, im 5'5" and 125, its a healthy weight but i could be a lot skinnier, i dont really want to loose a ton of weight but it would be nice if my stomach and legs were a bit more toned, my friends and boyfriend are always telling me that I'm not fat and whatever, but I never believe them, I think they are lying or that they just can't see it. why am I like this?

Relax, honey. My daughter is the exact same way. I am always telling her that she is the prettiest girl at her school. The don't elect you homecoming queen for nothing! Why don't you try believing those that love you? They would never lie to you. I bet your mom will tell you the truth. Now, my oldest daughter. She always made up for her father's genes by studying, so even if you aren't the princess you desire to be, you can still make something of yourself.

Seriously, do you really think that everyone who loves you will tell you the truth? My husband told me for the last 10 years that I wasn't fat at 170 LOL.  However now he says - well you're not fat anymore - you can go out to eat with me.  When I asked why he never said anything ' well i love you ' - so I can't necessarily agree with that.  I wouldn't have told my daughter when she was fat - or that she needed to lose weight.

chris, we are often our harshest critics.

if toning and shaping is all you need, then hit the exercises -- do cardio to get your cardiovascular and pulmonary systems in shape, and other exercises, including weights, to get the rest of you in shape.

it's not a bad thing to want a more beautiful body -- just make sure you do what is necessary to get it, and dieting doesn't appear to be necessary.

even though you don't need to diet, you could examine your current food intake to see how you can improve it nutritionally.  go to whfoods.org and look at their world's healthiest foods list to see how many of them you are currently eating.  try to get a couple more into your diet each month. 

Well, you have a boyfriend, don't you? What is the problem?

I would be willing to bet that, in a couple years, you will look back at pictures of yourself and think and realized that you looked great after all.  :)  I feel exactly the same way as you - I am a healthy weight, but think I could look a lot better.  In hindsight, there are times I thought I looked "fat" when I actually looked pretty darn good.  It's hard to see yourself objectively.  I think a lot of people feel this way.

I do toning exercises (Bar Method) to help - it definitely makes everything firmer and makes me feel more confident in myself. 

Sounds like you have a pretty easy problem to solve.  You don't have any weight to lose.  You just want to tone up what you have.  I would do some strength training a few times a week.  I bet you look great.  We're our own worst critics.  I agree with Sashabee in that I used to think I was fat and looking back at those pictures I see I wasn't at all.  Good luck!!

Its true..people that love you WILL lie to you to spare your feelings.

But even if you aren't overweight, and you aren't happy with your appearance...you're going to be unhappy regardless of what anyone else says anyways hehe...we really are our own worst critics. I agree with the other replies...just hit the gym, do some cardio for your heart's sake, and lift weights to tone up. By doing that you'll lose fat anyways, and gain muscle(nice long lean muscle looks HOT), and more muscle= more calories burned constantly! Its a good deal all the way around!

After a few weeks of cardio/weights...look at yourself in the mirror...and re-evaluate how you feel about yourself..if you're still not happy, make adjustments to your workout/diet. Just make sure you eat enough to fuel your body for the activities you're doing..or you'll feel like poo, and could possibly gain weight if you're not eating enough.

NOBODY looks in the mirror EVERY DAY and thinks .oO(God...I look GREAT!!)...maybe we have those 2-3 good days during the week..and the other days are kinda "blah"...but we really still look the same as we do on the great days as the "blah" days...the only difference is how we feel about ourselves on different days.

Oh sweety, I feel your pain. My wife is the exact same way. But the stats you gave us aren't bad at all. You sound like you're at an awesome target-weight. But as you said, you want to tone it up. Easy stuff kiddo! Since you most likely don't have that extra fat hiding those mean abs and toned legs, try hitting the gym as others have stated. I tell you, I would much rather be able to tone up than thin down. So do them crunches and leg lifts. Envision your toned abs and legs, let it drive you. And good luck. You can do it!