My weight loss journey so far (size 20 - size 14)

Let's talk about weight loss, shall we? I apologise for the quality of the comparison photos in this post, the majority of them were taken on my phone and I couldn't really find any full body images between then and now!

I was at my heaviest (15.7 stone) in 2014 and I felt so uncomfortable in my own skin, I wasn't confident at all in my appearance and it really affected my view on myself. I'm by no means saying that if you're plus size you're an unhappy person or should be, you should be body positive regardless of your size, but that's something I really struggled with. If a friend or family member mentioned my weight to me, 99% of the time I would get upset to the point of tears, which then meant I would comfort eat and I found it really hard to break the cycle of using food for comfort, I remember always thinking that I was the "fat friend" in my friendship group and that people saw me differently because of my weight.

(left: October 2014, Right: July 2015)

(Left: July 2014, Right: August 2015)

Around September 2014 I was a size 20 and at my heaviest due to an unhealthy lifestyle of no exercise and plenty of takeaways. By May 2015 I went down a size to an 18 and that was when I really decided that I needed a boot up the backside and to lose some weight. I shifted the majority of my weight from going to the gym regularly and cutting my portion sizes down, I wasn't on a diet by any means, I just wasn't eating as much takeaway or chocolate and substituting some foods for healthier options.

One thing that has stuck with me during this weight loss journey is how my body actually feels, I found that my sex life was unpleasant (I apologise if this is too much information) because I remember I used to lay down and the feel of the celulite/fat bulging at the sides of my legs would make me so self conscious of my body image that the thought of someone else seeing me naked repulsed me. It wasn't just the look of this, but the feel of my body... it's hard to describe but I felt as if my legs were tight and restricted due to the size of them, since losing weight I no longer have that feeling in my legs which makes me so, so happy.

(August 2015)

I'm now 13.1 stone and a size 14 and I feel so much more positive about my body image, I can't say that i'm completely happy with how my body looks, but when comparing how I look and feel right now compared to last year, I couldn't be happier. I find it so rewarding buying new clothes in a smaller size and I have cleared out my wardrobe of any size 20 clothing, hurrah! I have 2.1 more stone to lose until i'm at my goal weight, maybe I will do more weight loss posts in the future following my journey to keep my motivated. If anyone has any tips or words of wisdom to help, please feel free to share, i'd love to hear what you have to say!