Non-scale victories, or NSV, is a popular term that is used to label and describe the accomplishments, progress, worthwhile milestones, etc., noted during weight loss. NSVs are all of the cool things that a not-quite-as-fat fatty like myself either notices or is able to do, thanks to losing X amount of pounds (in my case, 116 lbs.). Here are a few NSVs I’ve encountered:
- More energy. Despite being sick a few times since surgery (and once seriously ill — hello pneumonia!), and feeling fatigued a lot because of inadequate nutrition/calories and an ongoing protein deficiency (I’m doing my best to work on that, by the way!), overall I’m still feeling bouncy and hyper and in the mood to move.
- Collarbones. And holy crap were they sensitive at first. Even the pressure of the seatbelt was uncomfortable! They also get quite prominent depending on how I move, which is both mind-boggling (every single day) and kind of icky looking. How can I look almost emaciated in one area and so fat still in another?
- Bones in general. Dan has remarked on being able to see/feel them so much more easily several times — shoulder blades, shoulder bones, arm bones, hip bones, thigh bones, etc. And then there’s those funky inner thigh tendons that are suddenly noticeable… and kind of weird…
- Clutching the steering well. Well, maybe not clutching, but I’ve definitely noticed there is a lot more space between my body and the steering wheel in our cars — particularly in the Hyundai, which is the bigger of the two. In my car, the Kia, I’ve even had to move my seat up a few inches. That is a feat in and of itself, because before the tops of my thighs were right against the bottom of the steering wheel, even with the seat being farther back.
- Getting worn out from physical exercise, but not like I did before. Prior to surgery and this massive weight loss I probably would have keeled the fuck over at the five miles worth of strenuous bike riding (half of it being UPHILL!) Dan and I did last week. Now? Not a chance. I had to stop a few times for a break, but not because I was winded. No, I stopped because my weak thigh and leg muscles just refused to move any more.
- Male attention. Suddenly I’m visible (not that I was exactly invisible before, lol) and attractive. Today alone three men hit on me, including a guy who asked to sit with me in a booth at Panera Bread (note: the store was nearly empty) and an overly helpful employee at Staples. I don’t exactly mind the male attention, since it kind of affirms that hey, I’m not doing bad. But at the same time it makes me uncomfortable. Is that weird? To find most male attention to be uncomfortable? *spazz*
And on that note, I’m going to bed. I’ve been up since 7:30am and on the run all day long, and I’ve been going on a mere 4.5 hours of sleep. Ugh. I’m kind of craving some maple and brown sugar Cream of Wheat, but I think I’ll pass, as it made me dump last night. It must have been the carbs (27g), because there was only 10g of sugar in the mixture. I’m telling you, there’s nothing like experiencing heart palpitations, a sudden drop in blood pressure, and general shakiness and lightheadedness while sitting in bed folding laundry. I’m out of shape, but not so out of shape that I can’t manage to fold a basket or two worth of clothes and watch House without breaking a sweat. Heh.
Hello! I'm Jenn, and this is Jenn.nu, my personal blog. I'm 27 years 
My favorite part about losing weight is the clavicle being more noticable. I’m a sucker for a clavicle and have always loved when mine protruded. When I barely see it that’s when I know I need to get off my bum and work out some more. Well that and the little gobbler popping up under my chin ;).
Congrats on all the great NSVs!
Lucky you for getting male attention. I can honestly say I have never been hit on in my life. How freakin’ pathetic is that? Oh well.
Anywho, congrats on all the accomplishments so far. I do have a question for you. Do you still feel like a “fat girl”. I have lost 60+ pounds but I still feel like I am the same weight on the inside (if that makes any sense). I have heard many thin women who where once overweight make the comment that they still feel like a “fatgirl”.
NSV are definitely wonderful. Especially when you notice little things that you didn’t think twice about when you were heavier.
Have you tried staying away from real sugar and using or eating things with sugar substitutes in them, like Splenda? I don’t know if that has anything to do with dumping, but I know when my grandmother had her gastric bypass surgery years ago, she was told to stay away from anything with real sugar in it; things like Splenda were okay and ever since day one she has stayed away from it and hasn’t had any issues like you’ve experienced. I’m just curious if maybe that is attributing to it?? I just mentioned it because you mentioned what you ate only had 10g of sugar mixed in with it… some people react differently to things, of course
Congrats on the NSV! I think you are doing awesome and you look awesome as well! I keep telling myself…”see, if you’d only lose that 50 pounds, you’d look so much better!”
@Jordan: Seeing my collarbones and clavicle is pretty damn awesome. It’s neat that you use that as an indicator of where you are with your weight and whether or not you need to do more to burn calories.
@Manda: You’re beautiful, I find it hard to believe that you have never been hit on!
I’d hit that! ;)
In answer to your question, yes, most of the time I still feel like a fat girl. I still feel, inside, like I did 50, 75, 100 lbs ago. It’s really hard to catch up with where my body is at. It’s the mind-blowing moments like realizing I wear a size 16 in pants, realizing I’m almost in normal sizes, realizing I’m about 20 lbs. away from weighing what my husband does, etc., that I come back to the present and realize how far I’ve come.
@Dez: what NSVs have you noticed? You’re in the low 200s range, right? We’ll have to celebrate when you reach ONEderland!
@Ashley: TBH I am not crazy about the taste and texture of Splenda, though I do use it occasionally. From trial and error I know that I can consume up to 20g and be okay, which for the most part is fine in terms of my own cooking and baking, and that of my family’s. It’s when I go out and encounter restaurant and cafe food that the problems arise! Then it’s just a matter of being very careful and limiting myself. So far I’ve only had one serious screw-up — with the stupid mango smoothie.
That’s good to look at the positive aspects of losing weight Jenn.
Way to go !
Wow! That is quite an accomplishment! Congrats! It’s so great that you can see results, even non scale ones!
While I haven’t been losing actual weight, I have been losing inches and I’ve noticed a big rise in my energy level after consistently biking 5 miles a day. (In conjunction with my prozac I’m quite a happier lady lol)
I’m glad you posted this. There’s definitely a lot of benefits that occur with weight loss that have nothing to do with numbers. I wish not getting winded was on my list of NSVs but since the pollen count here is ridiculously high, my allergies give me a huge F.U. even despite my huge dose of meds. (Stupid plants, stop covering the earth in your spunk >_<)
That’s awesome! Congratulations on your NSVs, hun! Those are definitely some great things that go along with weight loss!