Hey, hey you. I lost a lot of weight on keto. Where’s my attention? What do you mean that’s old news? Obviously, I’m kidding, but when you first lose weight, you get a lot of attention from it. People talk about how great you look and after a while, you get used to hearing it and it feels good. But then, it becomes your new normal and people stop talking about it. That’s when I first experienced the post weight loss blues.
What is the Post Weight Loss Blues?
To be honest, I had never lost a lot of weight – only gained it. I had no idea that this could be a thing. But, hearing how good you look is a huge motivator. Now, it sounds like a first world problem if I ever heard of one. It seems very self-centered to feel down because suddenly you’re not getting that positive reinforcement. And, in some ways, it is. But it’s still something I’m feeling, so I thought I’d talk about it.
Where once I felt embarrassed about people commenting on my weight loss, after a while, I started to crave it. I enjoy the little rush of pleasure I get from the compliments. I think that’s normal. But, once you’re around the same people, they stop complimenting you on your appearance. That’s when you start feeling like you’re in a rut.
Positive Attention is Good Attention
People say to me, “You look great,” and I always respond with, “I feel great.” To me, I want keto to be more than looks. It’s about how I have more energy and I feel healthier. Then, people ask how I did the weight loss. I tell them I did it with keto, and it starts a conversation about a topic I’m passionate about.
But once the people in my life have heard my spiel, that’s the end of it. Sure, they may ask questions now and then about what I am eating, but overall that conversation is done. And, it should be. If I am truly comfortable in my own body now, I shouldn’t crave the attention – should I?
The Reality of Post Weight Loss Blues
It can be hard when all that positive reinforcement goes away. When you reach maintenance mode, it’s only a matter of time until people just accept the new way you look. This was once a big piece of motivation, and now I need to dig a bit deeper and find my other motivations to keep going. I’m a healthy weight, so now what do I focus on? How do I stay motivated to keep this weight and not gain?
And, what happens if I do gain weight now? This is a fear I grapple with daily. Are my jeans tighter than they were? Did that shirt fit better last month? Am I still in ketosis? If people were that focused on how I lost weight, will they be just as focused on me if I gain it back?
Finding Motivation After Weight Loss
It’s easy to keep going when you are being successful, but what happens when you get to the maintenance stage? It’s all too easy to eat an extra keto treat in the evening, or order out an extra dinner each week. That’s when started finding that I was bloated from eating too much sugar alcohol. I needed to find another motivation to really stay on track.
I did a blog on trying to exercise every day. You will see from that blog that I failed magnificently the first time around. But, I’m going to try again. My goal is to look good when we go to Mexico in February. I have a bikini that I’m determined to wear with confidence! Will I get there? I’ll keep you up to date on how it goes this time.
Combating the Post Weight Loss Blues
It comes down to why we are doing this. As I’ve said before, if you are only doing keto to improve your appearance, it will be difficult to keep motivated. Remember what your goals were in the first place and why you started this journey. Those deeper motivators will what keeps you going!
Wendy
