I don't know if this belongs here, but I have a question about body image. I have this weird issue that keeps de-motivating me from time to time. I don't know if it is a negative excuse to give up as I am a big time self-saboteur or a real worry justified by my strive to be perfect.

Sometimes I think about what i may look like once i lose the weight. It can be a positive "i can look like that one day!" message or it can get into the negative side and i think to myself "i wont ever be as perfect as i want, or as skinny" which leads into the feeling of "so why even try". Like i have this fear looming, that the light I see at the end of the tunnel will go away once I reach it because I don't turn out to be who I want to be physically.

Sometimes it's easy to get out of this mind frame by either, reminding myself that it's not all about looks but health too, or even if I don't get to be 'perfect' at least I'll be a lot closer than I am now. *hmmph* I'm 22 years old, so I know part of it is getting comfortable with myself as many people my age go through. I just don't know how to let go of the perfectionism and allow myself to settle with whatever comes of my weight loss, and be happy. that's the tough one, being happy and content

I know how you feel -- at 22 I was 120 pounds lighter than I am now and still felt overweight (One of those "I wish I knew then what I know now moments ). I'm now trying to accept myself and as I inch my way towards my goal, realize that all bodies are not created equal -- when I do lose the 100 lbs, I'm sure I'll have lumps and bumps I don't like -- but I'm going to compare to my own "before/after", not anyone else and work on being happy with my accomplishments. My thinking will never be perfect, my body will never be perfect, but I want to be happy with myself as a whole, not just my appearance but to be a better person inside and out.

Being happy and content sure is a difficult thing sometimes. And it is something that all people struggle with at times--- no matter what their size.
Nobody is perfect--- not models, not you, not me. We all have flaws, some real and some perceived. You just need to focus on being the best you you can be and if that means losing weight than great, but no matter how much or little weight you lose you will still never be perfect--- you will still be who you are right now--- losing weight cannot change your mindset entirely.
Just take one step at a time, and yeah, if you get to 150, great, if not, then that should be okay too. Maybe it isn't ideal for you, but then again, life never is completely fabulous..........

You guys are so awesome always so nice and everything. Maybe through this journey I'll do some maturing and be okay by the end of it all. And yeah, I have that same "if only i would have known then what i know now" feelings about myself at 16. I thought i was so heavy, but I wasnt. lol I was 50 pounds lighter than I am now and perfectly fine. ;p oh well lesson learned!!!!!

Have a great week you guys n gals! Best of luck and thanks!

I have an idea of what I'll look like, since I've been fit as an adult before, but even so I think of weight loss sort of like a science experiment:

"Hmmm, I wonder how I'm going to look?"

Even though I kind of know what to expect, this time around I am eating better, with less "cheat meals" and I'm more educated about weight loss and maintenance. (Heck, I used to take whole weekends "off" last time. This time, I only allow myself one off-plan meal per week and sometimes I don't even have it).

So, I may drop to a lower weight than I did before. Maybe not. I may get to the same weight, but end up with a slightly different shape. Who knows?

It's the mystery of it that is kind of motivating for me. I'm intrigued enough to try to find out what will happen, and this mind-set also doesn't set me up for disappointment if I don't end up looking like how I'd imagined.

I've struggled with body image all my life and I'm old enough to be your mom. No matter what I've weighed, I never thought I looked thin enough. Ever. Right now, I'm the smallest that I've been in my adult life and I don't think I look especially "thin". I'm still not sure that I see what others do when I look in the mirror.

But this time around, I'm trying to focus on functionality, not appearance. My goals are more around strength and fitness, rather than the number on the scale or the clothing size. At my age, I see my friends lose the ability to move and they develop health issues because of their weight and inactivity. I don't want that for myself. So my priorities are different ... and I think that helps mey stay on track. If the healthy living part is working (diet and exercise), then the weight and body shape follows along naturally. At least, that's how I'm working it. Just another perspective!

Instead of focusing on appearances, how about focusing on feeling healthier and doing more?

I'm 24, so I know there's going to be some part of it that's "Oh I wonder what I'll look like?" (Dreamily) At the same time, having dropped a few pounds, I'm really noticing the difference in how I feel.

I've made exercise goals, and eating goals. Such as being able to run faster and for longer, and to get in all my water and eat my 5 servings of fruit & veg a day. I'm feeling healthier now than I think I have in my entire life.

My body may look different down at goal... but I will essentially be the same. It's something that we sometimes have to remind ourselves about. Losing weight, eating better & exercising may help us to be healthier, it will not make our legs longer, our boobs bigger and cause a beauty mark to sprout on our face.

But won't it at least be nice to be wearing a smaller size?