I get excited if someone notices.

Like the others, I will usually say something like "Thank you for noticing!" with a big smile.

If people ask me how I'm doing it, I will say, "Hard work." It's sometimes funny to see their look of disappointment. As JayEll mentioned: once someone finds out I don't have a magic pill or an "easy" solution to dropping weight then their interest wanes.

Yup. It's funny to see how we all react differently to this. I think there's another recent thread here where someone was talking about how disappointed they were that no one had said anything to them!

I'm with Jen - I've busted my butt and I want people to notice. When someone does say something, I just smile and respond "Thanks! I've worked hard to do it!"

I do agree that there is an element of disappointment from everyone who learns that I haven't done it magically - I've just eaten less and exercised more.

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No one's noticed yet But I bet I'll be thrilled when someone does.

I have a mixed reaction when someone notices. Recently, I've kicked it up a notch and lost about 3 lbs since January, and many people have commented. Over 3 measly little pounds (and these are not people who would have had ANY idea that I was eating less, etc).

I say thank you, and I try to enjoy the compliment--but at the same time it's like, was I that heavy 3 pounds ago???

I dunno, it's stupid, but I kind of wish people wouldn't say anything.

Jelly - You may have "only" lost 3 pounds, but maybe you've changed your whole body around because of it. Perhaps you've lost a few inches here & there.

I'm still waiting for the compliments..haven't lost enough yet (although previously I was 220 so I lost a good five pounds before I found this wonderful place )

I'll just be thrilled if my boyfriend can take his eyes away from his gaming obsession long enough to notice. I can't wait for the compliments to come in! Just keeps me motivated thinking about how people will react (especially my grandfather, who tends to be my biggest critic in regard to my weight)

For the most part, I'm pleased. My crew at my cafe & those close to me, have seen the weight gain over the years & know that my dr told me to lose 10lbs by May (my goal is 15). So when someone said recently that they can already see a change in my face, I looked incredulous & thanked them.

Unfortunately for me, someone I'm with everyday at work, has been making sly snide comments, so it makes it a little harder for me to enjoy the complements.

For me a lot of it depends on who is commenting. When it is people I don't know well (i.e. through work) that is when I feel awkward. I just give this sort of smile and say yeh I've lost a bit thanks. When it is someone I know well then I feel great, I smile and feel... bouncy!

But what I find hard is other friends who are over-weight, I don't want to talk about my weight loss around them because I know how I felt when people talked about it round me. Yet I am just about to hit my half way point (about 66 pounds, 30kg) and I feel like telling everyone!! But I don't want to make them feel bad/awkward.

I have to admit I do enjoy when someone notices my weight loss. I usually just say thank you, I've been working on it or something like that. Its always really motivating to get a compliment like that especially when I cant seem to notice a difference myself.

Gosh, I'm pleased. I'm just starting to get a few comments. I just say thank you with a big smile on my face. Then if they ask more, I tell them.

Over the past few years, several people at work have lost large quantities of weight - mostly through exercise and eating less and a couple via surgery. So maybe the novelty has worn off in general. I do know, though, that at least one good friend will be concerned that I'm losing too much and she'll probably express that before I even reach the top of the normal range. She does that for everyone. Since I'm working with my doctor, that will just be my answer to that.

I think that when folks have only seen you overweight, when your bones start showing up they're afraid you're going to become a skeleton.

I'm thrilled when people comment on my weight loss. I usually just say thank you. If it is someone close to me, I might add something like "I hope so, I work hard enough at it." If they ask, I'm happy to tell them how I've done it, but they do lose interest pretty quick when the find out.

It's also made me realize how motivating these comments are. When I see someone else that has lost weight, I always try to tell them how great they look because I know what these comments have meant to me. I have some very supportive friends who knew I was trying to lose weight before the loss really showed and, bless their hearts, they would comment about how great I looked every time they saw me (even though I'm sure I looked exactly the same). Even though I knew they were just being nice, it was still encouraging.

Thanks Faerie, that does help put it in perspective. As we all know, pounds don't necessarily translate in inches.

It really depends on who comments on my weight.

When it's my family and I know they're being sincere, I say thanks and leave it because they know that I'm trying to be healthier.

If a friend or acquaintance says "have you lost weight? You're looking really healthy" I'm really pleased and I love it. I've gotten that a few times. However, if they ask if I've lost weight and say stuff like "you've lost SO MUCH weight" and then ask what size I am now or say that I look "hotter" I get quite annoyed. To me, that implies that they thought I was a blob or something before because I still feel and look fat at my weight now. I never know what to say to them.

As long as they don't really comment on my appearance other than mentioning that I look healthier then I quite like the compliments and I am getting more comfortable with comments.

I say "thank you". I live in a small community and I hear compliments every day, especially from people who haven't seen me in a while. The only time I feel uncomfortable is when someone is "raving" about my weight loss to a coworker who is trying to lose weight as well, but having a lot of trouble doing it.

Gosh, I'm surprised! I've never been uncomfortable with the compliments, I love it! I actually get most annoyed when I see someone who I haven't met in a very long time and they don't say anything. Obviously it's silly to be annoyed about such things, after all it is a difficult and touchy subject to bring up, particularly with people who have never commented on my looks in any other fashion. But yea, I really really love it. I have also changed my hair and how I dress, which is helpful to people I think because they sometimes just tell me I look fabulous/really really good, without having to comment specifically on 'gee, you used to be quite a blob'. Also though, I do feel that I was unattractive before, and I don't feel any kind of empathy with my former self, ie I don't want them to be like 'oh, of course you were always beautiful', because I don't agree and it seems fake to me.
Probably the weirdest or most uncomfortable is the following:
* people who I don't know that well, who have already commented on it extensively. It is really weird to run into them a few weeks later and...you still look the same. You are now a normal weight and not expected to lose more (though I still plan to), but it is still impressive. It's funny and uncomfortable, they can't really say it again, they already commented on it and yet, they are still totally thinking about it.
* people who get really obsessive about it. One lady repeatedly refers to me now as 'skinny girl' which does actually annoy me because it reminds me that I am not yet skinny in my own eyes. It is quite strange though, people to whom all you have become in their eyes is 'that girl who lost all that weight'. That is frustrating, because much as I wouldn't want to be thought of as 'that fat girl', well, really, could we not think about my stomach at all thanks?!
* Boys who never fancied you before who suddenly do. haha this one is a real kicker, and very strange. It's a bit weird because I can kind of see it from both perspectives, I can see that to me aesthetics and taking care of yourself is important and I can see why they were attracted to me before (in my opinion, being thinner is not merely about health or looks, it speaks to a deeper motivation, ambition and upward mobility - in other words, it says, I have my life together and am in control). But on the other hand, I cannot help but feel that they are a shallow ***. It must be a very strange situation for them actually!
* People who have noticed your weight loss, but remained fat themselves throughout your transformation. This is quite an interesting one, I have noted some larger women I knew around town who were very involved and interested in my weight loss. Very friendly with me, and yet I notice the more I lose the more they pull away as the clearer it becomes they have not made an effort themselves. Basically, I have become a living, breathing reminder to them of the fact that they have been lazy and not done what quite clearly is not impossible.

Naturally, I echo everyone else about the 'magic pill' thing, it is absolutely hilarious. Not once have I seen someone last more than 2 sentences into my description of the process before their eyes glaze over. hehe