I'm curious to see how my weight loss compares with other people's. When I first started walking long distances, my appetite majorly dropped. I could go for a four hour hike and not eat much later that day because I simply wasn't very hungry. Then, I switched to more cardiovascular exercise, and my appetite became huge! I would try to satisfy it with lower calorie foods, go back for seconds on veggies, that sort of thing, but I just felt so hungry all the time! I would eat a large meal and still feel a bit hungry afterwards. I was never stuffed. During this time, my weight stayed the same and yet I continued to lose inches around the waist. Now, for the past two weeks, my appetite has stabilized, I can eat smaller amounts of food and feel fine -- well, mostly. I just had a large plate of spaghetti with a tomato, basil and salmon sauce, still feel a bit hungry, and so I'm eating fresh pineapple for a dessert before I go out for my exercise. The weather is gorgeous outside, it beckons.

I'm also constantly looking at how I'm losing the fat, where the fat is coming off and what my new shape is. I hope to gain a bubble butt. I think that I have the potential to be beautiful and statuesque in an amazon sort of way, I just have to continue climbing out of the fat suit.

I get that way too. I have this bad (?) habit of working out and eating right for a month or three and then something stressful happens and I quit for a couple of months. I get back on track only to have some other stressful thing happen. I always thought that the reason my appetite increased after introducing cardiovascular was because it was burning fat/glucose to provide energy. I try to eat fruits and veggies and limit the snacks so that I don't end up gaining weight. It's working so far.

Good job on the 40 lbs so far! Keep going!

Heya, firstly congrats on the weight loss! wonderful!

Also, my appetite is pretty normal.

I tend to lose in my waist first. I get a very hourglass shape when I lose, can't wait to have that back someday!

I wish I could get a butt! I have wide hips but a flat butt. argh! Can't win em' all I guess.

I remember when I was a skinny 16-year-old, and I tried on a dress at the mall. The dress was made for women of slim proportions, so it got all bunched up and tight around my hips, and it looked horrible. The sales woman actually said to me, "Don't worry, it'll be easy for you to have babies." I'm a breeding cow! I've had body image issues from a very young age, including when I was 14 and underweight. I've learned to embrace and go with what Mother Nature gives you. And we have Sir-Mix-a-Lot to thank for elevating the status of the butt! Now for more of an elevated butt...

I looked at myself about 20 pounds ago, and knew that I was overall smaller, and tried to imagine what I would look like at another 20 pounds lighter. My guess was that while I would continue to drop pants sizes, I would mostly see the change in my upper body, and I was right. Double chin and fat arms are mostly gone, my breasts are definitely smaller (*small sob*), and the fat roll above the waist has gone from something you could grab with your hands to more of a ripple that you can cup. I have a tight top that I would love to wear in a month or so, when I'm less bumpy with the wobbly bits in front. However, I still have a pot belly, and I definitely have cellulite behind, so while I feel better about wearing tank tops, I still don't want to wear shorts. I can only imagine that at another 20 pounds, I might still have some lower belly fat, but it will be much reduced.

I definitely put my fat on my hips first of all, so that will be the last to go. I've always had a defined waist. Even at my fattest, I've been told that I carry my weight very well. But I still created the impression of, you know, being very BIG.