I started this journey knowing it was going to take awhile to reach my goal. I am prepared to fight for it every step of the way. The problem is I thought if I lost 30lbs I would see a difference in my body! My boyfriend recently lost 20lbs and I see a huge difference in him but when I look in the mirror I don't see a change in myself. I started at 177 and am now at 147, I was hoping to see something. Anything. I just..... don't. My boyfriend is constantly telling me I am much smaller then I was, them again I don't think he would have the heart to tell me there was not much of a change.

Not going to lie, its upsetting me a little bit lately. He looks so good and I just look..... fat.

have you noticed a difference in the way your clothes fit?
it takes time for our mind to catch up with our bodies. Look at old pictures to remind yourself of your former body.
another thing to do is to start paying more attention to your body. thirty pounds has to have disappeared from somewhere on your body, take time to examine your body and feel how different parts of your body are smaller.

One thing you might do is go to the market and find 30 lbs of bacon (no joke). After you hold it, it might help remind you of what you have lost. Then, put the bacon back haha

Have you taken any pictures of your progress? I'm sure at 5'5'', your boyfriend is seeing a difference. I'm sure that you don't see a difference because you see yourself in the mirror every day. Maybe you should start taking your measurements?

This was posted by someone else on the forum, and its amazing. To find it for you, I searched "paper towels" and found it. Rather than linking it, I'm pasting it. It makes a lot of sense. Maybe it will give you some perspective. However I want to add that we are our own worst critics. You see yourself every day...its hard to see the difference. Maybe you are still wearing some of your old clothes, which are too big now, but were way snug then? I know I'm wearing the same bras and I sure do need some new ones, but I don't want to spend the money. Also, the slacks I wear (elastic waisted) still fit fine in the waist, even tho the legs and butt are saggy. If I wore jeans, I would probably notice the fit difference much more than the elastic pants! So here it goes, and I hope it helps you:

Paper Towel Theory by Bob White

Let's assume you go out and buy two rolls of paper towels, each with only 84 paper towels on it (one for each day of the challenge). You put one aside, and keep it for future reference (your before/ picture).

The other one represents you (I'll call your paper towel you "Ed"). The core represents the lean Ed. The towels represent the fat that is covering the lean Ed. For sake of argument, let's say that Ed wants to lose 21 pounds of fat, so (84/21) each sheet represents a quarter-pound of fat lost. Let's also assume that Ed loses his fat equally during each day of the challenge.

Each day during the first week, you tear a sheet off of Ed, representing the fat he has lost for the day. Next, you put Ed next to the full roll ("Big Al") for comparison. No noticeable difference!!! Even at the end of the week! This can't be working for me!

But, being a good Ed, you continue to follow Body-for-LIFE. At the end of weeks two and three, you continue to compare Ed to Big Al, and still notice very little difference. That stinkin' Bill Phillips MUST be a liar!

But Ed is determined! He works hard! Three more weeks go by, the sheets peeling off day after day, before Ed gets up the courage to stand next to Big Al again. Holy Myoplex! Ed is skinny! OK, not skinny, but less huge!!!

By the end of the 12-week Body-for-LIFE program, Ed is down to his lean dream, or somewhere near it. Ed is happy. We are happy. Big Al - well he's not so happy.

The lesson to be learned is that fat, like paper towels, comes off in sheets. When you are heavy, you are big around. And when you are big around,that fat is spread over a MUCH larger area - just like that outside towel sheet. The closer you get to the lean you, the more each lost pound of fat shows, because it is spread over a smaller area.

While the outside sheet may only cover 1 layer of the roll, the inside sheet may go around 4 times. That last sheet looks like it gives you 4 times the results of the first sheet, but in reality, the results are the same - your perception is just different! And you'll never see the inside, if you aren't patient while the outside is coming off! - Bob White

Look at a picture of you as you are now. Sometimes our brains can't wrap around what we see in the mirror but they can in a picture. I see myself as fat in the mirror but look just fine in a picture.

I know the feeling. I have lost 20lbs since February (bc I go off plan for months at a time. It does work when I stick to it) and I look exactly the same.

People who I hadn't seen were like "OH! you've lost weight!" but I assume they are just being polite. I look the same to me. And do you know why? Because I AM the same. On the inside. I still feel awful about myself and my appearance. I still feel HUGE and ungainly and gross. That's the problem. No matter how much weight I lose I wont be able to see it until I start seeing myself differently.

You've lost 30lbs! That is fantastic!!!! You must have worked hard for each and every one of those lbs you lost. That's dedication and perseverance. Its commitment. It is a triumph of will. It is amazing and you need to take credit for that.

Yes, exactly this. I've lost a little more than 50lb and I have a hard time seeing the difference even though everyone swears they can see it. I know my clothes fit better but my mind just can't wrap around it because I'm still not happy with how I look. I just haven't been at this long enough to see myself differently yet.

30lb is amazing! Even if you look exactly the same (which I doubt you do) that's still 30lb less that you have to lug around all day, and that's awesome.