Do You Appreciate Comments About Your Weight or Figure?

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Do You Appreciate Comments About Your Weight or Figure?

July 23, 2009

You've been exercising regularly and eating right, and now it's starting to show. The weight you're trying to lose is beginning to melt off and your muscles are leaner and more defined. So if someone notices and says something like, "Hey, have you lost weight?" or "Wow, you must be working out!" how does it make you feel? Is the comment appreciated or obnoxious?

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54 Comments

Anne26 3 years 19 weeks

Yeah, but now I get is how can I be so thin and still have a but and chest. I really havn't figured that out yet. I eat healthy now but I have issues finding pants that actually fit and not so baggy. "Yeah the you look really thin. Are you okay? comment has been said by my friends lately" I still have the curves so that makes me proportional. ;-)

3 years 43 weeks

I hate it, even if it's a nice remark

3 years 43 weeks

I would much rather get a compliment on how I am dressed or on my hair than on my weight. Recently, I lost about 40 pounds and I constantly got compliments on my weight. I work at a restaurant, and regular customers started commenting! One said "You are the most beautiful woman in the world now that you lost weight." It actually just made me think "What were they thinking before? I am a fat pig?!" I lost weight because I wanted to improve my health as well, not just my appearance. I think people should avoid commenting on this because it's such a sensitive topic.

3 years 43 weeks

I hate when people comment about my weight and figure. From someone who has struggled with disorded eating her entire life, I always have people bullying me about my weight or saying that I am too thin. Most of the time I think they are just jealous (which is usually the case with peers). I have been really hurt by womens comments because of my size and wish they would just talk about something else. Sometimes I just feel like screaming at the top of my lungs when women talk about weight and appearance. By the way I am 6ft and 144 lbs so I wouldn't call myself anorexic thin, just thin.

Sugasuga29 3 years 43 weeks

My witchy sister-in-law, whom I had not seen for awhile before my wedding, said this to me the day before the wedding: "Oh my God, you have lost SO MUCH WEIGHT, I can't believe it! I mean, not that you were fat or anything before...." Riiiight. That's what you meant. Considering that I was 5'8" and 145 lbs. before and only lost 10 lbs...

Zulkey 3 years 43 weeks

I love it, although once somebody said loudly "Oh look, Zulkey FINALLY lost weight." He apologized later but I was kind of amazed that somebody could turn my accomplishment of losing weight into an insult.

mcfolly 3 years 43 weeks

I figure that you wouldn't say something if someone gained weight, so why would it be appropriate to say something about someone losing weight? I try to be very diplomatic about it all and flatter an outfit, and how it compliments them, or that they look healthier. If I know they are going to the gym, I try to encourage them as best I can. Baby steps!

hiptobesquare 3 years 43 weeks

I'm really small in general, so people often think I'm crazy for loosing weight ("But hiptobesquare, you're so tiny!"), because people only see often only see a number, not what is probably the correct proportion for your height.

dani17731 3 years 43 weeks

iheartkerning- There are a lot of people who DO have image issues, which is why they "can't take the compliment". It's great that you are at peace with your body, but a lot of people aren't.

dani17731 3 years 43 weeks

I voted sometimes, but it usually makes me uncomfortable. When I first lost 53 pounds, people were really nice about it, but then a few of those people (guys) got lewd about it. It was just awful and made me feel like my body was just always on display. When my mom tells me I look like I've lost weight, it makes me happy because she knows I've been working hard and will actually be honest with me.

3 years 43 weeks

So far, a lot of people have said that family and friends are okay to get the compliments from... for me, if I a get a compliment from them about my weight, its sounds more like "its about time you lost the weight", "so, you're not the fat friend/relative anymore then...". That's something I've gotten most of my life so far from a lot of people, to the point where I felt embarrassed if I was "caught" working out or eating properly. Now, if I get a comment about my weight, regardless if its a compliment or negative observation or who its from, I ignore it or respond with a vague, "well, you know...". People have been easing off the comments since, and now when I work out, I finally feel like I'm doing it for myself and not for anyone else, regardless of who it is.

amandaaa 3 years 43 weeks

i love it. but you can't help but wonder "how bad did i look before?" i don't think people mean it that way, necessarily...but of course it depends on who is saying it and how it's said!

Sugar_Rush 3 years 43 weeks

I think I could write a book on my thoughts/opinions on this one. I've spent over two years losing over 8 stone, had a tummy tuck, working out like a demon and now i'm applying to join the army. The other day @ work a colleague goes 'gosh Sugar_Rush you've lost an awful lot of weight recently, you're wasting away' and another one says 'oh she won't listen to you' when I looked at them disbelieving. I find the biggest problem - people compare me to how I was. I compare me to where I want to be. Just because I'm better than I was? Doesn't mean I'm where I should be.

Nadia24gv 3 years 43 weeks

I hate it. Once someone says something everyone turns to look at you, like they are seeing for themselves if the statement was true or not. I stay anywhere from 114-118 so I'm really small but I still hate it.

3 years 43 weeks

I love it! Well, for the most part. I appreciate compliments that are simply positive, such as "you are so toned" or "you are very fit" versus a "you are so skinny." I hate the skinny compliment--it makes me feel as if I don't eat anything versus feeling healthy. It's also annoying when my co-workers think I'm counting calories because I don't eat fatty foods like pastries and cake. I'm trying to be healthy and they should see it as that and not as an attempt to "lose weight"

LindsayLou 3 years 43 weeks

It TOTALLY depends on who is saying it. I've recently lost 30lbs and while I worked really hard for it, I really don't feel comfortable when some people compliment me. Random coworkers that have never uttered two words to me have come up and said "Wow have you lost weight?" (One guy even said: Have you lost *a lot* of weight? Really? Did you need to say "a lot"?) While I understand their heart may be in the right place, it still makes me very uncomfortable. My close friends and family however, can compliment away!

iheartkerning 3 years 43 weeks

It surprises me that so many people can't take a compliment! I guess I don't surround myself with people who are snarky or rude so I don't worry about them being anything less than genuine with their comments. I'll be the first to admit I used to be a fat-ass, I have no image issues with myself and I'm honest about it. Why should I be offended that people noticed I'm looking smaller and hotter than ever? That's one of the reasons for losing the weight...

lindzers 3 years 43 weeks

I love it, but that's because the comments I've received have been really tasteful. I lost 26 pounds spring semester by working my ass off (I went from sedentary to using the elliptical for a good hard session every day, no excuses). Friends and acquaintances really just commented on how they thought I looked great or they could tell I'd been working out. In a university full of glamazons (and I most certainly don't fall into that category), it was nice to hear my efforts recognized.

GirlOverboard 3 years 43 weeks

I have to admit that I LOVE it when somebody comments on how good I look or when they ask if I've lost weight. In those moments I'd much rather take the high of having somebody compliment my accomplishments than to dwell on that I used to be heavier or more out of shape. The only down side is that now that I've put on weight (which I am currently trying to lose again) I do tend to dwell a little on compliments from the last time I lost a bunch of weight and feel a little embarrassed when I run into those people after not seeing them in a long time. I'm working on turning that disappointment in myself around into motivation to feel healthy and fit again. :)

RoaringSilence 3 years 43 weeks

I've pretty much been the same weight since I was a teenager, so there hasn't been any weight change that people could comment on. I happen to have kind of an hourglass figure (with too much time on my ass, though), and a lot of people comment on my flat belly and ask me what I'm doing for it. I can't really say anything but "I laugh a lot" though, because I rarely exercise :/ One very weird situation happened a couple times with a lady on my street, who randomly said to me that she is so impressed by how much weight I lost, and asked me how I did it. I am absolutely sure that she must have me confused with someone, because she made it sounds like I had lost 100 pounds or so. The first time I just said thanks, but when she brought it up again, I started wondering if I should tell her that there must be a misunderstanding. She moved away now though, so that problem solved itself.

3 years 43 weeks

It makes me feel great and is nice to know that other people have noticed my weight loss, but I never know how to respond and it does make me feel uncomfortable.

3 years 43 weeks

This is a hard one to get right. I want to compliment people when I can tell they have been making an effort to be healthy so I usually just go with "Wow, you look great today!" and stop there. It is a compliment and has no negativity associated with it. :)

lisazo 3 years 43 weeks

This is my biggest pet peeve! I've been working out and getting healthy over the past few months, and people at work won't stop commenting and asking, "how much weight have you lost," (I don't even know) or "how are you doing it?" (it's just counting calories and exercising - there is no secret weapon!). People whose names I don't even know come up to me and tell my I'm skinnier. It makes me feel like I'm on display, or that my body isn't my own. It's not their business! Plus, I'm mostly "done" losing weight, but I'm not stick thin, so now I feel like people are expecting me to keep losing, but I'm happy with my body. How do I tell people to stop commenting? I feel self-conscious snacking on carrots at work, because people have said "oh, carrots, that's how you're doing it." Umm, I just like carrots, and please don't watch what I'm eating! OK, now that I'm done venting... When they are comments by close friends and family who know I'm working hard to be healthy, then it's ok :)

hlj504 3 years 43 weeks

I would have thought I'd like it, but... I lost some weight when I went through a stressful time, and people would comment on it and ask me how I did it. I'd just say, oh, you know...trying to eat better and work out regularly - when in actuality, it was not eating much due to stress! So because of that, it does make me uncomfortable when someone brings it up....

GlowingMoon 3 years 43 weeks

It depends on how it's delivered. If it's kind and positive, that's fine, of course. When that happens, I always thank the person for their kind words. But if it's envious and resentful, naturally, that makes me uncomfortable. That's when I would excuse myself, and move across the room. :) Also, I would feel sorry for that poor, pathetic person. :) Again, it really depends on the person delivering it.

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