Today, I ran into two sides of having become a thin person.

On the one hand, I was walking and an obese person looked at me and then immediately looked down toward the ground with a look of shame on their face. This person was embarrassed by their weight. I recognize this because it used to be me. What I never knew when I was on the other side of it is that it doesn’t feel good, cool, or awesome to be the thin person in this exchange. I felt sad for them. Not because they are overweight, but because they feel that way about themselves.

I thought I was trapped forever being a heavy person, so I would feel sad, embarrassed, and envious of thin people. I thought it was just not my lot in life to be fit and healthy. I’m glad I was able to break out of that mindset and make the changes necessary to get where I am today.

The flip side of that first encounter was being told by someone else that they’ve noticed I have lost more weight and that I look more fit. It’s true; I’ve lost about 7 lbs in the past month, but I didn’t think it was that noticeable. I felt happy that someone recognized it, and it felt good in sharp contrast to how I felt earlier in the day.

Getting healthy and fit is great. I am often asked for advice, and I readily give it. I never just push it on anyone, and I surely don’t want to make anyone feel badly about themselves. Ever. That’s not what I’m about.