Kelly Konrad

After losing more than 30 pounds through IdealYou, my life has truly changed. I thought some of the effects of losing weight were all in my head, but I browsed some other blogs, and realized others had the same experiences when they lost weight. I realized I wasn’t alone. I’m still in the process of reaching my ideal weight, but I have been learning so much, and having so many new experiences along the way. So far, I have experienced six unexpected effects of losing weight.

1. Changing body shape: Clothes are not just loose, but they are fitting totally different now. When someone loses weight, their body shape changes, and clothes don’t fit quite right anymore.
2. Changing ring size: Along with my body changing shape, my fingers became smaller, hence the need to resize my engagement/wedding ring. Currently, I’m wearing a ring guard until I get to my goal weight.
3. Being In-Between Sizes: Between my starting weight and my goal weight, there is that annoying in-between phase. It is where a bigger size feels too loose, and a smaller size feels too small. Belts have become my best friend, as I’m constantly having to pull up my pants.
4. Parting with old clothes: I’m anticipating that day where I’ll have to part with older clothes, as they will no longer fit. I didn’t expect there to be an emotional connection to some of the clothes. I think the emotional connection is there because I wore the clothes through some precious moments in my life, like my trip to Hawaii, and meeting my online best friend in person. What I try to tell myself is that the clothes served their purpose, so it is time to let them go so someone else can enjoy them. I can always buy new clothes in my smaller size when I get to my goal weight.
5. Mind/Body Dissonance: While losing weight, I still catch myself feeling like the former version of myself with the extra weight on me. It is taking my mind longer than my body to process the fact that I have lost weight. When I look in the mirror, I sometimes expect to see the former version of myself, but then I’m surprised to see a slimmer body. At first, I thought this was all in my head, but after reading other blogs, I realized I wasn’t alone in this dissonance between my mind and body.
6. Husband is getting healthier too: With IdealYou, I’m eating in an entirely different way, a modified version of the paleo lifestyle. Because of this, my husband is inspired to eat healthier as well. Through this, I feel like we are working on this weight loss journey as a team. I’m really thankful for his love and support!

With all of these changes, I’m realizing that while yes, the unexpected can happen, I’m also learning to go with the flow, and trust the process. My body will soon be at the weight it is meant to be. It isn’t easy at times, but I know that what I’m learning, and the ways I am getting healthier make it worth it in the end.