Tartelette:
One of the most striking differences in feel is how parts of my body that used to be separate now easily touch. I used to have a slight thigh gap, but now my thighs are always touching at their top 6”. I sleep on my side, and I used to have to carefully position my legs for sleeping so that my bony knees and ankles wouldn’t knock into each other, but I haven’t worried about that in quite a while as my knees are now well-cushioned
Ontlme:
Same.
While I am not "fat" at 5'6 and ~140lb, I have lost a lot of muscle and gained a lot of fat in the last year, for a net increase of 25lb or so. (For context, a few years ago, I was 115 lb, had visible abs, v-lines, and clear vascularity in my arms and calves, all due to an endocrine disorder. I am a woman and have never worked out or taken steroids lol).
My inner knees used to bump together uncomfortably when sleeping on my side, but now that my thighs are much fuller, the bones don't bump anymore. In general there is more flesh squishing other flesh, rather than bone bumping on bone. And the jiggle definitely favors certain body parts, namely ass and thighs.
There used to be far more tension in my muscles, so that my abs remained mildly flexed all the time, holding me in like a corset. Now, I have to remind myself to hold my belly in, and it is doughy rather than hard.
I once had an MRI of my abdomen, and the radiology report indicated that my lack of visceral fat had caused the scan to render poorly, and that I would need a CT instead. These days, the MRI would have no trouble.
While my weight gain was not extreme, I am significantly "larger" all around due to the replacement of muscle with more voluminous fat. Occasionally my ass/hips bump into things that I assumed were farther away lol.
Since I am carrying a higher ratio of inert weight, I feel heavier on my feet, have less stamina, get out of breath more easily etc.
My skin feels tighter. Sometimes, I can tell exactly when I've gotten a bit fatter because the skin on my cheeks, jawline, and upper arms tingles with stretching. That is a cue to weigh myself. Cheekbones and masseters used to define the contour of my face; now my cheeks are full. My jawline has become fuller/rounder and I have a slight double chin.
In general, I feel like i'm made out of heavy, expanding dough rather than airy sinew and bone. Less freedom and control of movement, more impotently filling up space.
I'm still hiding my body and don't want to face family or friends lol. I'm sure they'd notice.
The more confident in your body you become, the less you’ll want to hide it