The way I feel vs. the way I look

I'm so frustrated..... For the last fews days I have been feeling really good because I am down 23 pounds, with 27 pounds to go to my ideal weight. I've been so proud of myself. Today I had my husband take pictures of me so I can track the way my weight loss. When I looked at the pictures I was so mortified. I looked horrible. It's like I don't have a good sense of what I look like and the way I feel does not match the way I look..... Does anyone else feel like this?

Dude, I lost SEVENTY pounds and when I see current pictures of myself, I always want to cry. I feel like I am as gigantic as ever, if not worse.

Seriously, it is ALL IN OUR HEADS. Do not let it get to you. Keep going towards your goal! The way you feel on the inside will reflect how others perceive you on the outside. We are our own worst critics.

I hear that. Just yesterday I realised I'd lost 22 pounds (with about 25 to go) and I do feel great about my body and the progress and I can really feel it when I put on clothes and it's all very great.

Until I look in a mirror and don't really see a big difference at all.

I'd say, pictures are good so that you can see the progress later, but you shouldn't focus on them now. Take them, but don't look at them.

The thing is, we don't see the weight loss the same way other's who might not have seen us in a while do, because we see ourselves for the most part at least once or twice a day in a mirror or otherwise reflective surface. 

We just see where we are now and now is still too big so we don't see it.

But, keep at it. You'll get there. Be proud. Feel great.  

i have similiar problems..i've lost over 38 pounds and am only slightly under 10 from my goal.  My brain realizes that at this point in time, I weigh less than I did in high school (and looking back on those pictures i always thought I was skinny).  My heart just doesn't see it yet. 

Sometimes I do...when I can fit into a size 6 at the store or I have to switch to small shirts at old navy but I still can't grasp it quite yet.  Slowly getting there...

Stay proud of yourself.  You have lost a ton of weight, and the only way to make yourself see it, is to keep pointing it out to yourself when you look in the mirror.  I found that making pictures of myself with my measurements has helped me A LOT!  I can look at old ones I made and SEE the difference on those. 

A few weeks ago, I read another thread on this site where people were discussing this issue, and I remember how it was noted that sometimes it seemed as if our brains sometimes have to catch up with our bodies -- like, you're so accustomed to one thing that it's difficult to wrap your mind around the fact that things are different now, that things are better. I have my own share of bad days, when I'm feeling low or after I mistakenly eat too much or eat the wrong thing..I'll look in the mirror and in pictures and just not see how far I've come, even if it's right in front of me. It's like jackattack07 said..we are our own worst critics. That said, I've found that you can be your own best cheerleader too, since on those days, I often make it a point to take the time to look at my reflection and vocally tell myself that I've come far, that I've accomplished more than people thought I would, and that this is an achievement I'm allowed to be proud of.

Crazy as it sounds, I stand there and I do it until I feel a little better, and it helps.

You've done fantastically and you're already halfway there. Be proud. You deserve it. I'll bet you look terrific. :) Your brain just needs to catch up with that body of yours!

I just experienced this today in fact! I saw a picture of myself online, and even though I've lost about 13 pounds, I'm still over 50lbs from my goal weight. I still look fat! The odd part to me was that a friend of mine commented on the picture about how good I look.... I wanted to believe her, but overall, I still. Look. Fat.

Anyway, Liliestosing: I think that's exactly what I needed to hear! Thank you! I'm going to try to remind myself more often!

Years ago, when I was at my thinnest, I wasn't satisfied. When I worked out at the gym, I would look at other women about my height and frame who looked terrific and think: I'll be happy when I've got a body like that. Then one time, I mustered up the courage to ask one of them: I'm on a diet and trying to determine my goal weight. You look like you're just about right. May I ask you how much you weigh?

Imagine my surprise to learn that she weighed 10 pounds more than I did! That was when I realized just how skewed my self-image is. 

Now I look back at those photos and I see that I was way too thin.

This time around, I'm going for health, not looks. If I feel great, I'll look great to others. I've accepted that I'll never look good to myself.

BTW, I'm down 13 pounds with 30 lbs to go.

Yes there was a similar post a while back and while I wont rewrite everything I posted there, I just want to say that I am really glad I am not the only one suffering from this. I have really been depressed about this lately. Please, please, please keep yourself surrounded with positive support systems as I think it is the only way to really overcome this. I know that while I have a few friends who are really supportive, I think that for the most part my friends think I am crazy, or just craving attention when I tell them I really cant see the new me. Stick in their everyone!