Several of us teacher types have returned or are soon returning to school. I know a lot of us have been anticipating various reactions from co-workers.

I think every single staff member in my building today approached me with compliments. Between the hair and the weight loss, people didn't know what to make of me! It was so much fun!

What caught me off guard was how many of them thought I'd lost all 70 pounds over the summer! I only wish! I had a few people specifically say "How much did you lose this summer?" and I answered "15 pounds", because really, that's all I've lost since they last saw me. They'd say, "Oh, you've lost way more than that" or similar comments. It took me a while to understand why they were all confused, but it was because they really didn't notice my losses through the school year. So I guess I got the big reveal I secretly wanted.

The other thing catching me is how most people really do not want to hear that "diet and exercise" is how I did it. They want Jenny Craig, WW, surgery...some plan.

It was a fun day.

Way to go! Glad you had a great day. You deserve the attention for all your hard work.

Hehe, that's funny and awesome as well

Congrats on your loss! It's fun when people notice. But I must mention that WW is diet and exercise!

Sounds like a fun day!

I think that when people see us day in and day out they do not notice the changes, but when they have not seen us for a while then they notice the whole thing.

Oh definitely!! I'm not ragging on any other plan, not at all. It's just that people react strangely when you say "diet and exercise" because it's no longer an accepted "plan". When I did SBD and people asked how I did it I didn't have the same reactions I'm getting this time. People didn't blow it off and say, "Oh, no, that's too hard" which is what they're doing now.

Too funny! I'm glad you had fun today! You're so inspiring!

Something interesting though, with your hair cut, is it above your shoulders? I was told by a beautician that if you have your hair cut above your shoulders it makes your posture "look" better, your shoulders "look" more pronounced, and then it also emphasizes your HEAD and your FACE (instead of your BUTT and your THIGHS!) and balances out your overall appearance as you walk toward someone in a hallway or if you're giving a presentation, so you LOOK 10-15 lbs MORE thin with just a short stylish haircut, without actually dropping that much more weight.


So just the haircut + the 15lbs might have "looked" like 30 lbs lighter than the last time they saw you?

I'm also guessing new clothes were in order? A well-fit outfit takes the appearance of lbs off too! So, maybe you even "looked" 45 lbs lighter??? ^_^

I bet you were HOT! and Professional looking? Always a fun and confident situation to be in!

That is so awesome! I bet it was really gratifying!!

I telecommute from home, but had a similar experience when I worked in my workplace for a week in July. I'm usually there a few times a month, so people had seen me, but when i was there for a solid week I had people chasing me down the hall to tell me I had lost weight It was very reaffirming! And same thing, how much have you lost? Oh, you lost it FAST! It was like, no, not really - I just hadn't lost enough for YOU to notice last time you saw me! (thought this, didn't say it )

I lost over 100 pounds between the start and the end of the school year last year. My students never said a word--I mean, I had 3 out of 180 ever say anything to me. At the time, I was convinced that they simply felt awkward about it--they didn't want to say anything that implied I was fat. That was fine.

Turns out, they just didn't notice. At all. Seriously. The ones I have seen this week (it's teacher meetings all week, but lots of kids up there) are all blurting out"'OMG, Ms Shmead, you lost WEIGHT!!!" TEENAGE BOYS are saying that. It wasn't that they were holding back before, like I thought, they just didn't see it. At all. 100+ pounds in ten months. Teens are CRAZY self absorbed!

That's so funny! I bet they got used to seeing you every day getting a little smaller at a time, but then over the summer they went back to thinking of you a certain way as they always had before - the heavier you from the beginning of last year. They 'forgot' that you had been plugging away and gradually getting littler, then all of a sudden you show up smokin'! How exciting for you!!!

I love it! Go Eliana! So great to think of you strutting down the hall looking AWESOME.

I had the same experience this summer-- I've been going to the same place since I was a little kid and these people have known me all my life. But they only see me once a year, so my image was frozen in their minds 100lbs heavier.

BOY were they surprised!

I gotta admit it is so awesome to see people you haven't been around in while to get their reactions. I hope you ate them up!!

Its funny to me the reaction on diet and exercise too. You can see it on their face that they wanted you to sale pitch a magic pill .

Think about it , you've lost 15 pounds of fat but put on alot of muscle too. You shape has changed alot with all the hard work you did this summer. I am so glad they all noticed.

what a wonderful day!

Awesome! You probably had a great new outfit on too that really showed off all your hard work. What an great accomplishment!

Woooohoooo! That is awesome! I hope you enjoyed every compliment.