Today I asked my mom if it looked like I'd lost any weight, and she said, very bluntly, "no".

I'm disappointed in myself. I haven't been at this for long, but I told myself I'd lose 10 lbs by this Friday.

I'm in a periodical weight loss competiton with my mom (to keep us both motivated for a while). We're going shopping at the Dallas Galleria Mall this Friday and the loser (whoever lost the least amount of weight) has to buy the winner something. Honestly, I don't care if she beats me, but we've had this deadline planned for over 2 weeks and I've only lost 4 pounds.

I'm only 5'0", so a 4 lb loss should still show. So why doesn't it? I've been working so hard!

Sorry about the rant

You've done great with the 4 pound weight loss! You should be proud of yourself!! That's actually really good for only 2 weeks... I'm jealous! :P

The key to losing weight is to give it all time... the weight didn't come on overnight so it's not going to come off in a week either. Just remember, the faster you lose the weight, the faster it will come back on. Just take it slow and steady and set long-term goals for yourself, and you'll be at your goal weight in no time.

And as far as not noticing the weight loss... I've loss 30 pounds and I can barely tell I difference.

Good luck!!

4 pounds in 2 weeks is AMAZING! Congrats on your loss!
As for weight loss showing, well I am just as frustrated as you some days. I have finally noticed I lost fat from my back, not my stomach, but at 175(actually 173.4today) I should NOT still be wearing size 18 bottoms, but I am. It is SO freaking frustrating, but I am just keeping on, and hoping it shows soon where I want it too.

hang in there!

If your mom sees you every day, and if you look in the mirror every day, it's going to be tough for either of you to "see" weight loss (because you look pretty much the same today as you did yesterday).

When I was living with my parents, and mom and I would diet, even when clothes got too big, it was still hard to see the changes in ourselves and each others except by taking before and after photos (so we could compare side by side).

I've lost 80 lbs, and even now, I only really see it when I compare photographs. In the mirror, I seem to look pretty much like I did yesterday. Because the change day to day is so subtle, I think the only way for me to see it in the mirror, would be to look in no mirrors for weeks at a time (not going to happen).

Don't get discouraged, it's normal for you and people who see you every day not to be able to see the changes unless they have a photo in hand to compare it to.

She does speak the truth. I had to do side by side weight comparison photos to truly notice a difference, even at 30 pounds. I was kinda shocked when one of my friends noticed actually because I didnt feel like there was that big of a change.

I agree that 4 lbs, though it's a nice amount of weight to lose, it's just not going to be all that noticeable, not to yourself and definitely not to other people, especially if you see them often.

Your hard work IS paying off. It really is. 4 lbs gone in two weeks is amazing. BUT - you have to keep at and keep at it and keep at it. Weight loss is NOT an instant gratification type thing. You've got to take that weight off one pound at a time. It takes, patience, determination, hard work, effort, dedication, perseverance and TIME. But luckily time goes quickly. One week turns to two, turns to three, turns of four in a blink of an eye. And you will keep building and building on those losses - and EVENTUALLY it will HAVE to show up. Those rewards WILL start surfacing. But you MUST be patient and not so hard on yourself in the interim. You can't lose ALL the weight till you lose one pound, than two and so on.

Oooh and one more thing - this competition with your mom - I'm not sure, but something about it seems just *off*. The *loser* has to buy the *winner* something at the mall. This seems very depressing and discouraging to me. Certainly not a reason to stop losing, but I would re-think this. I think you should be rewarded (not with food) for your hard work, not punished for not losing *as much* as the next person. Different bodies work - different. And no two people can or should be compared to one another.

Anyway, keep up the good work, no stopping - just continuing on and on and be prepared to be blown away by all the good things that will come from this. I look forward to hearing of your continued progress.

I agree with Robin's post 100%.

J

If you must compete with your mom, consider doing so on behavior, not results: whenever one of you misses a planned exercise session or eats off plan, they have to vacuum the other person's living room, or something like that.

Thanks to all for the support! I'm keeping up the work

And the competition with my mom isn't really a competition so much as a set of deadlines for us both to reach goals by. It's not a malicious, "winner is better" thing, but I definitely see why it is "off". I like Shmead's idea much more.

Set realistic goals, planning to lose 10 pounds in 2 weeks is not realistic and unhealthy. Realistic goals should be to change your behaviors so you can maintain your new weight for life.

I want to jump in here and say hi! We're the same height and very close to the same weight (first time I've seen someone on the board that I can relate so closely to!), so when you say 4lbs makes a difference for us... I totally know where you're coming from (after all, every 5lbs we go down a full BMI value!)

That being said, for me, it usually takes about 10lbs before I start to see some difference. Keep up that pace though; 2lbs a week makes me jealous too! Honestly though, that's probably the best you're going to get unless you want to start taking an unhealthy approach.

Best of luck to you!

Oh! And I HIGHLY recommend taking some "before" photos. On days you feel bad, you can stand in front of the mirror and look at the photo and even if you've only lost a couple pounds... you'll be able to pinpoint where they came from. It really lifts the mood on those bad days.

Thanks QuilterinVA, you're right, my main goal is to improve my overall health, so 10 lbs in 2 weeks is a bad idea.

Wild Vulpix, thanks for the advice! And I'm excited to meet someone with very similar weight and height!

4lbs can be noticible - but for me, 4lbs is only noticible nekid, not in clothes. So, if your mom is seeing you fully clothed, it could be hiding the visual changes. 4lbs will be subtle changes. For me, 4lbs is a decrease in the size of my upper abs and lower back fat, but no change in waist, butt or thighs. So its hard for people to notice.

Like others have said - when people see you every day its hard to notice the difference. I know for me - I lost 10lbs last winter and DH barely noticed, but I walked into the gym one day and his workout partner who hadn't seen me noticed and said something to DH.

Don't be so hard on yourself.

I'm sure it hurt when your Mom said she hadn't noticed anything because after a 4 pound loss you probably are feeling great. Also, most dieticans and doctors suggest losing 1-2 pounds a week so you are doing GREAT! Don't let anyone or anything take that away from you.

You or your Mom may not notice the weight change, but you step on the scale and it happened. You've done it. Take a moment to celebrate!

I hope this helped! Just keep going!