If you've never done this, take an ice cube out of the fridge and watch it melt. No, I'm not asking you to do this as a way to combat total boredom. I want you to do it so you can notice that the way it melts isn't consistent or even. Thinner parts will melt away first. Thicker parts will take longer, although, not always. Sometimes it just depends on other factors, like where the ice cube is placed, if you have light on it, etc.
Once you're done with that, start watching other ice cubes. I don't mean sit there and watch more melt. Just, you know, pay attention to them when they're in your glass. Again, you'll see there is a lack of consistency. You'll also notice none of them melt in the same way.
When you start to lose weight, especially if you are losing a lot of weight, the same will hold true. It's never going to be even. Places with less fat, like wrists and ankles, will usually start looking thinner first. Places where you are carrying a lot of weight will take longer. It's also not going to be symmetrical. I currently have one arm bigger than the other, one smaller boob, and one leg that looks probably 85% better than the other leg.
It's annoying. I not someone who enjoys asymmetry, especially in my body. On an emotional level, I'm a tad self-conscious about it. Being fat was one thing. Being inconsistently fat makes me feel freakish and strange. I know it's going to eventually even out, but right now, it's noticeable enough to cause me a little bit of disquiet.
On a physical level, it requires me to make a lot of adjustments, sometimes on a daily basis. My gate changes, depending on how my legs have shrunk, and where. Sometimes my thighs lose a bit, throwing my balance off just enough to make me stumble. The other day, I almost threw myself off my step workout because I misjudged how my thigh was setting. That probably sounds confusing, but trust me, it can happen. I've also missed seats a couple of times because my butt wasn't quite in the place I thought it would be.
Weight loss is a process. It is a gradual change, a transformation. I think one of the problems we make when we're losing weight is that we think about things in terms of starting point and ending point. This is an active, ever altering process. It is constant change. And while you're in the weight loss process, one of the things you have to keep in mind is that, for a while, things might be a bit ugly and awkward.
Don't let that get you down though. Any time I feel discontent with how my left leg looks compared to my right leg or how my right arm is functioning so much better than my left arm, I try to remind myself that this is just temporary. I am in a long term process that will eventually lead to a body that is strong, healthy, and, best of all, consistent.
So, every morning when I wake up to look at the changes, if I find them to be strange or off-putting, I try not to let that get me down. It's just how I look today. Tomorrow, things will be different. And over time, things will be a lot better.
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