colette_heimowitz : Embracing the New You

colette_heimowitz's Blog

Embracing the New You

There are so many positive aspects to losing weight. Not only does dropping the pounds help improve your health, it gives you more energy and helps your clothes fit better. But it also brings up some deeper body image issues. It means accepting your new body, especially if you were used to hiding behind the relative comfort of layers of clothing and fat. It means coming to terms with yourself as “thin” person instead of a “fat” person and being comfortable with the positive comments people make about your weight loss. And it also means giving yourself the time necessary to learn to live in your new body. Losing the weight and changing a lifetime of unhealthy habits is no small task. And since losing weight (and keeping it off), is not something that happens overnight, you may not notice the gradual changes that come along with that. If you were always used to hiding behind baggy clothes, it may be an entirely new concept to be able to wear more form-fitting attire (and also learning to accept the newfound attention that comes with that). It may mean becoming comfortable doing activities that your weight may have made almost impossible in the past, such as running, skiing or dancing, or even just hitting the beach in a bathing suit instead of a loose tank dress. If you still have weight to lose, you may tend to focus on the changes you still need to make or imperfections that you perceive instead of the positive changes you’ve already made. Here are some of my suggestions for ways you can learn to improve your body image and embrace the changes you’ve made so far:

A picture says a thousand words. Dig out some old photos of yourself. Take a new photo of yourself, and compare the difference. You may be surprised at how much you have changed!

Update your wardrobe. Are you still hiding in your clothes you wore before you lost the weight? Treat yourself to new clothes that actually fit. There really should be no need to hold on to those old “fat” clothes, since your goal is to never be able to fit into them again. Clean out your closet and donate your old clothes to a homeless shelter or charity.

Hold on to one reminder. While you are in the process of purging your wardrobe, hold on to one piece of clothing that truly shows how far you’ve come. If you’re ever feeling discouraged or insecure, just pull out that piece of clothing to remind yourself of how much weight you’ve really lost.

Hit the gym. You may have more energy now that you’ve lost weight. Put this extra energy to good use by adding some exercise into your routine. Lifting weights may help you firm up the excess skin you may have from the weight you lost, and a brisk walk or run will also help you tone up and feel great.

Lift your weight. Have you lost 20 pounds? Or maybe even 50 pounds? Grab a dumbbell or similar weight to get a true understanding of how much excess weight you have lost. Think about how you used to feel when you were carrying around that excess weight on a daily basis.

Start journaling. If you aren’t keeping a journal already, now is a great time to start. Use a journal to express your feelings about your weight loss. Write down how you feel now versus before you lost the weight. Make a list of all the new positive things in your life. This doesn’t have to be just about losing a few clothing sizes, but have you noticed you have more energy? Is it easy to keep up with your children? Are you sleeping better? Has your performance improved at work? Do you feel more confident? Seeing this on paper makes it easier to embrace and accept your new body and life.

The bottom line is that losing weight can be a life-changing experience that may take some time to get used to. Try some of the previous tips, and know that learning to embrace your new body image is just as crucial to your long-term success at weight loss as is counting net carbs. These are all important steps toward ensuring the changes you make are changes you can maintain for a lifetime.

Share and Share Alike

Tell me how you learned to accept your new body and weight loss. I’d love to hear! Please share your thoughts with the Atkins Community and also let me know what you’d like to hear about in the future.

Published Monday, January 23, 2012 04:01 PM by colette_heimowitz

Filed Under: Personal observations & lessons learned

Comments

reneehirzel said:

I've noticed that I have difficulties asserting myself. I am more than capable of standing up for others but I play as if I am GOOD. Instead of telling a person I don't like what they are saying to me. I act like a duck until I get home where I eat until I go to sleep. I started dieting on how many insults and insensitive statements I will EAT in a DAY. It seems to be working along with the Atkins approach fabulously.

I totally agree with the hiding behind baggy clothes. And cleaned my closet out as prep work for starting the diet. Then I cleaned out my cabinets of carbs. When starting day started I was a little uncomfortable in my tight form fitting clothing. But a week later they were fitting me comfortably.

Thank you for this informative Blog.

January 23, 2012 04:36 PM EST

kerryhov said:

I was talking to my daughter one day , I picked up a sack of cat litter, this is 25 pounds I said , I am packing around double this sack every time I get up from a chair.
Carb'd be gone, Kerry

January 23, 2012 04:37 PM EST

Liberty5 said:

Pictures definitely tell a story, especially all of the pictures that I am not in because I don't like how heavy I look. Moments in time that have me sitting behind the camera watching someone else smiling and making memories. My goal is to lose the weight, get back into the moment, and become a part of the view again.

January 23, 2012 05:26 PM EST

turtlewinks said:

Colette - You are right on. I have done many of the things you mentioned. Cleaned out the closet...Time to do it again:-) When I carry my kids to bed, ...it is hard!...I used to carry that with me everywhere...don't know how my body has done that. I did post some pics up for my "groupies"...thinking about having the courage to just leave them there. Sigh...that's a hard one for me. Going to hawaii....yes the dreaded swimsuit...was going to buy surfer shorts....still might or might not:-) Now working out on the wii fit....One of the hardest has been shopping...I still want to head to the women's section. Now I'm in a size 12 and can fit in the "regular" clothes...seems weird. Your minds eye (at least mine) makes me think I am skinnier when I am fat, and fatter when I am ...well...not so fat anymore. What's up with that! LOL An adjustment for sure.

Great post. I'm sure it will help many. I'm referring someone to it today:-) ttfn

January 23, 2012 08:16 PM EST

jasbar7 said:

So far, I have lost 70 pounds in just over one year. I went from a really tight size 18 to a kinda loose size 10. I have been able to work out the whole time and have been building lots of muscle. Every time I see a recent (or fairly recent) photo of my self, I am SHOCKED that it is me! Accepting my self as a "normal" sized person is what I hope to gain as I loose the last 60 pounds. Thanks for the wonderful suggestions!

January 23, 2012 09:00 PM EST

elleng98 said:

Colette, You are so right. I have lost 65 lbs so far, and have over 40 yet to go. I seem to have a problem with people asking how much weight i've lost. On the one hand, I'm proud to have lost so much, on the other, I'm embarrassed to have needed to lose that much, plus more to go! Any suggestions on how to handle the questions?

January 24, 2012 12:56 PM EST

petpal said:

I just entered Phase 1- After spending 12 years trying to lose weight and too long to write my Profile so pls ck it out and give me some advise why I can't lose weight but only inches.? Never was over weight till I relocated and doctors messed me up bad.......
Have Atkins doctors ever had a customer/patient that can't lose weight?

January 24, 2012 06:31 PM EST

Momily56 said:

I've lost 65 pounds (still have 35 to go) and recently had to go shopping for an outfit to wear to a wedding. I felt like a fraud bypassing the Women's section and going into the Petite section. I kept expecting a saleslady to come tell me I didn't belong there. I caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror and saw a "normal" size woman. So I kept repeating in my head that I did belong there. Sure enough I ended up with size 12 petite pants that fit. Now. Not in some hypothetical future time. I am working on accepting myself at this new size. I look at old pictures of me to gauge the difference but like Liberty5 said, I am not in very many. I am making it a point to have pictures taken now. The great thing is that I am now much more in the moment. I can get down on the floor with my Granddaughter, can run after my Grandson, and have the energy to do so much more than the restricted life I was living.

January 25, 2012 02:54 AM EST

colette_heimowitz said:

to elleng98 , you need to take ownership of your accomplishment! Be proud of what you have done. There is NOTHING to be embarrassed about. Shout it from the roof top.

January 28, 2012 11:30 AM EST

colette_heimowitz said:

to petpal.... if you are losing inches it is an indication that your fat cells are shrinking. You need to be patient , the scale is bound to catch up as long as you stay focused and don't get discouraged. Atkins is a corrective diet but sometimes the damage takes time to fix.

January 28, 2012 11:33 AM EST

jlhank80 said:

I have been overweight almost all of my life, even as a child. I dont even know what it is like to be "thin". I have lost about 30 lbs on Atkins and I still have a long way to go but these little fears have been popping up because I feel it is a very real possibility that I will be able to lose all of this weight because of Atkins...anyway...back to the fears. I am afraid of the attention from men, I have been hiding behind my weight. I kind of like the invisibility my weight affords me. Also, I feel like I can more easily tell who is superficial and who isnt because of my weight. Maybe someone else can relate?

January 29, 2012 12:43 PM EST

@kinsinLA said:

I got a lot out of this post. It's easy to hide behind the layers and the fat - little is expected of me then. My boyfriend thinks he's seen me thin ... and yet when we met, I was already 20 lbs overweight. Now, I'm 35 lbs overweight and I'm noticing it, he's noticing it, and I feel paralyzed. Maybe I fear that being thin = intimacy and that more will be expected of me in the bedroom. Perhaps it's like that in life too. That if I'm thin, attractive and empowered - more is expected. Perhaps my fear is that I'll be revealed as a 'fraud' if I try to be successful. I think these fears are very common and very seductive. Recently, I came across a pearl that I've been starting to apply in my life:

"I need to embrace my life with my NEW SELF and not my old fears".

Anyone else on board?

January 31, 2012 07:01 PM EST

@kinsinLA said:

@ Liberty5:

I can't tell you how many photos I've 'opted out' of. Disappointing really ... but when I see my photos, I don't recognize myself and it's painful. So looking forward to induction. I've been away for far too long.

January 31, 2012 07:11 PM EST

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