About a month ago, I mentioned starting a “DietBet” in order to give me the added motivation of losing weight. The way that it works, you join a game for $25 or $35, betting that you can lose 4% of your body weight in 4 weeks. If you win, you are guaranteed that much, along with splitting the pot with the rest of the winners (minus DietBet’s 20% cut). I completed three games, wagering $95 that I could do it. In the end, I walked away with $120.49, making my total winnings $25.49. Not a huge profit, but more than if I hadn’t competed!
When you have a lot of weight to lose, it can be discouraging going week to week, month to month, without seeing a big difference in the mirror or in your clothes. I’ve learned that the bigger you are, often the longer it takes to lose a pant or shirt size. At the same time, pictures are what always seem to help me the most in maintaining motivation.
After having my weightloss surgery, I had my husband take pictures of me every month, documenting my progress. I tried to wear form-fitted clothing, as it’s easy to hide in the looser clothes. Each month, I would pop the pictures in my PicCollage app, comparing them side by side, and then I would compare to my starting photos. I know it sounds vain, but I can’t tell you how much time I spent doing this, as well as what it did for my motivation.
I recently saw a post in one of my fitness groups of a girl’s before and after photos. She indicated that the scale only moved 4 pounds, but there was a dramatic difference in her physique. My weight can fluctuate 4 pounds in a couple of days, or even from the evening to the morning. The scale is simply not the best tool of measuring weight loss and progress.
I also used to loathe seeing pictures of myself after gaining weight, feeling ashamed. I’d avoid being included in photos, or at least photos showing my body, due to that shame. As a result, I don’t have many pictures of me with my son when he was little.
As hard as it is, I am slowly learning to love the pictures of all of my different sizes, seeing past the scale. I had some amazing experiences when I weighed over 300 pounds, and I had amazing experiences at my lowest weight. The time in my life that I have weighed the least is such a small percentage, that if those were the only pictures I shared or treasured, I’d miss out on memories for the other 99% of my time.
If you find yourself loathing having your picture taken because of that extra weight you put on from Covid, childbirth, or just life, try taking a step back. We only have so much time in each phase of our lives, and the joy of having cameras on our phones gives us the opportunities to look back and remember them. Photos help trigger those memories in a way few other things can, and those memories should bring you joy.
Just remember, life is an amazing journey, whether you weigh 135 pounds or 335 pounds. After all, we are all just works in progress.
A Work in Progress 