[YP1]

I wouldn't want to go to bed one day obese and wake up the next thin. (Can't say I don't want to wake up thin tomorrow because I'm thin today )

Why?

2 main reasons. The first is that I wouldn't have the keys to maintain. If weight loss was that easy, and that instant, what would stop me carrying on with my old habits and putting the weight back on again. Why would it matter? One day I'd just wake up thin again when I took another magic pill? What incentive would there be to improve my lifestyle or my health?

I've taken time to realise that this is my life now. This isn't just my life while I'm trying to lose, this is what I need to do. Forever. If I hadn't needed to do it in the first place, how would I know what I needed to do to keep it off?

The second is the mental adjustments I've had to make along this journey. Losing weight has, in some respects, been the easy part. A simple equation of calories in and calories burned. OK, it doesn't always seem so simple when you're doing it, but that's all it's been. What has been hard has been coming to terms with being thin. There have been times when I've felt vulnerable because I don't have my fat to protect me and hide me away from the world. There have been times when I've really questionned my attitude to size, health and life. Emotionally that was tough enough losing one or two pounds a week. But losing 100lb overnight I think that after the initial euphoria I'd find myself curling up in a ball trying to work out what the **** had gone on.

Plus I'd have nothing to wear

[Jayde]

Originally Posted by Charles78

I can honestly say now that even if it were possible to wake up thin - I would not want to. The journey to fitness is one without end. It is a skill set we have to learn and make a part of who we are. If I woke up with Adonises body - without going through the process, I would not know how to keep it.

I absolutely agree...

If I didn't go through the very painful and humilating process of attempting to quit smoking more than 20 years ago.. I'd still be smoking. I think for me a magic solution without the pain would not be enough to keep me straight.. as even now.. every once in awhile I get an urge. Its sick.. but true.. fortunatley I have my memory to smack some sense into me.

If I didn't go through difficult times with my husband we wouldn't be as strong a couple as we are now. Had we gone down easy street with no bumps we probably wouldn't even appreciate the strength and beauty that we have.

If I woke up thin tomorrow.. I still wouldn't know how to eat.. how to respond to triggers, how to keep myself exercising. I wouldn't even have a clue as to how I am supposed to stay in touch with myself.. mindfully and physically. I'd feel like someone who was dropped into another planet.. with no map or compass. I know I couldn't survive and would wake up one morning heavier than ever.

Originally Posted by thistoo

Granted, the feeling doesn't always last long (sometimes not even a few hours), but it's great while it does, and gives me motivation to keep going on the days when I'm not feeling so great, like today. So maybe we don't ever 'wake up thin', but sometimes we get a little preview of waking up healthy and fit, and that's awesome.

Thistoo, I know what you mean. Some days I feel incredible and even look different to myself in the mirror. I love these "previews" as you call them. I think they are necessary to being able to handle the feature film.

Originally Posted by thistoo

I have a long way to go and some days it seems like I will never get where I'm going. But this thread has reminded me that the word 'goal' shouldn't be my focus, because this is just the start of the rest of my life, and there's no real final destination. So thanks for the reminder, and the incentive to go work out even though I don't really feel like it.

If we are looking at pounds... I don't have as far to go as you.. but yet we have the same distance to go in the sense that this is for keeps.. regardless of weight, eating healthy and exercising will not end. Since the journey is unique for everyone, no one can really know or understand someone else's road.. but the distance is the same.

[Jayde]

Originally Posted by YP1

Plus I'd have nothing to wear

I always love your humor!

[Charles78]

Originally Posted by NoLifeWithoutHorses

OK, I'm going to be totally unpopular and say "Yes." If I could wake up rich tomorrow, I would. If I could wake up single tomorrow, I would. And if I could wake up thin tomorrow, I would.

Rich: There is nothing in my life which is made better by being deeper in debt every single day. The $$ would allow me to buy my way out of the prison I live in that keeps m hundreds of miles from my family, friends and all that is dear to me. I've always worked for everything and earned it, but when literally every cent earned is taken away just as quickly, what's the point, other than to pay daily for the mistakes I've made?

Single: There is nothing in my life that would be enriched (except perhaps my bank acct) by going through a divorce. In no way would I be a better person for having to go through that ****, so I live in that isolated cage and pay daily for the mistakes I've made.

Thin: While I definitely agree that if I hadn't had to come this far on this journey, I would never have learned how to take care of myself, eat right and maintain my health, I don't agree that it's necessary to suffer through the next couple years to finish teaching me a lesson. If I woke up tomorrow thin, I could do the things I used to that give me joy in life. You would barely be able to get me home from the barn to eat at all. I would live on the backs of horses, coaching lessons, learning the things I don't know and sharing my passion with like minds. ****, yes! If I could wake up tomorrow thin, I would! I wouldn't waste any more years of my life sitting on the sidelines wishing I were part of real life.

But then again, I have to pay for the mistakes I've made. Broke, far from home, and still fat. At least the fat part is the one thing in my life I CAN control, and I'm working on it.

You are not unpopular at all. Everyone has an opinion and yours is a valid one. You know, while I would take the million dollars - I am not that crazy now. You know, a lot of people that win the lottery do end up broke very fast as well as have a lot of problems dealing with their sudden wealth. Now, that being said, I would still try to figure it out LOL

Other than money which I admit, I would be happy to have someone just make me wake up a millionaire - I have had my share of painful things to go through - divorce and morbid obesity to name 2 - it seems to be the human condition that we learn the most when we face and over come adversity.

I used to be someone that just wanted to get past anything unpleasant and forget about it as soon as possible. I did very little in the way of introspection. While it gets you through some rough times - there is a high price to be paid for living your life that way IMHO. The world is full of old sayings that bring up the same point over and over. Those truisms while they may be trite - hold a fundamental truth. How is it that two people can have the same adversity befall them - one is devastated and one while grieving deeply takes the time to learn and grow and comes out the other side a stronger, better and wiser person? I believe it is how we choose to view life.


Chinese proverb: The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials.

Epictetus: The greater the difficulty, the more glory in surmounting it. Skillful pilots gain their reputation from storms and tempests.

Carl Jung: The greatest and most important problems in life are all in a certain sense insoluble. They can never be solved, but only outgrown.


Nelson Mandela: The greatest glory in living lies not in never failing, but in rising every time we fail.

Elbert Hubbard: The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.

Thomas Paine: The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.

Thomas Carlyle: The idea is in thyself. The impediment, too, is in thyself.

Roger Bannister: The man who can drive himself further once the effort gets painful is the man who will win.

I wish you the very best!

[nelie]

I wouldn't want to wake up rich (although I wouldn't turn the money down, just not something I'd wish for) because it would change my situation and who I am too quickly. I wouldn't mind having a little extra money but I think I'd be overwhelmed if I woke up with a billion dollars one day. Although maybe if I did, I could start my own business that I've been thinking of without fear of having a miserable financial failure. What is life without risk though? If it is worth doing, doesn't "risking it all" make it much that more worth doing? My heart and soul would be more into it, I would think, if my butt was on the line rather than something I could easily write off.

I wouldn't want to wake up thin although I had thought about it as a fantasy in the past. My life and who I am would change too quickly and I would have no control over it.

I have control over my life and which direction I take my life. There are obstacles that I have had to face but who I am is because of how I deal with those obstacles. I am grateful for the weight I've lost because I did it. I worked on it and I made it happen.

I haven't made the best choices in life but it is all part of a learning process. Who I am tomorrow depends on what choices I make today. Life isn't easy but it is what you make of it. The journey is difficult but the journey does define who I am and who I will become.

[trishn222]

I also have been divorced and it was bitter and hard. I can honestly say that I am a better person and who I am today because I lived through that. Sometimes we can't see the forest for the trees. If we take these opportunities to learn and grow anything can make us better people.

[Jayde]

Originally Posted by Charles78

Epictetus: The greater the difficulty, the more glory in surmounting it. Skillful pilots gain their reputation from storms and tempests.

This is one I can relate to.. thanks for it.

[Merrick]

Hi,
I am a returning member from long ago... anyway, I can't believe I just read every post... you are all so great. I loved and enjoyed each and everyone. I am stuck in the middle... I know that I am the person I am today because of all that I have gone through... as for the weight.. yes I am so sick of going thru it. Every night I pray for guidance on HOW to deal with all that keeps me fat. Every morning I wake up praying forguidance on HOW to deal with all that keeps me fat. Everyday I begin my day with accepting God's will but still asking for help with my food intake... well you know that story. I know that I need to go thru all of this to appreciate and honor my eventual weight loss... as for the other side... I am tired, getting more and more unhappy each day... I find myself wanting to hide in my home instead of going out, which makes me feel worse and I am sure you know what happens next. I am not complaining about my life I am just tired or trying to work it everyday... I am completely unmotivated... I use to be addicted to exercise, that was 100lbs ago. And now if I never exercised again... I would be ok with that. I am sorry for the big purge, I really just wanted to say thank you to all of you for sharing. I really enjoyed your post.

[jtammy]

Originally Posted by nelie

I have control over my life and which direction I take my life. There are obstacles that I have had to face but who I am is because of how I deal with those obstacles. I am grateful for the weight I've lost because I did it. I worked on it and I made it happen.

I haven't made the best choices in life but it is all part of a learning process. Who I am tomorrow depends on what choices I make today. Life isn't easy but it is what you make of it. The journey is difficult but the journey does define who I am and who I will become.

I have to agree with Nelie about the control aspect. While I would probably say "YES" to the "Wake up thin" question, one invaluable lesson I've learned in this process is that I HAVE CONTROL over my weight. For years, I've felt that getting fatter was this mysterious process that I couldn't control or change and that I was stuck with it like it was. Finally, I see that I have complete control over it. I can change it. I can manipulate how quickly I lose or gain weight (at least to some degree) . It is all something that I can CONTROL. That's a very empowering realization.

I see that realization seeping over to other aspects of my life. I'm finally setting some financial goals and some career goals. Previously, I have let those things drift along as though I couldn't really change them. I now understand that I have CONTROL of my life. I don't think I would feel that same way if I woke up thin.

My small regret is that it took 39 years to come to this understanding.

[Heather]

Originally Posted by jtammy

I have to agree with Nelie about the control aspect. While I would probably say "YES" to the "Wake up thin" question, one invaluable lesson I've learned in this process is that I HAVE CONTROL over my weight. For years, I've felt that getting fatter was this mysterious process that I couldn't control or change and that I was stuck with it like it was. Finally, I see that I have complete control over it. I can change it. I can manipulate how quickly I lose or gain weight (at least to some degree) . It is all something that I can CONTROL. That's a very empowering realization.

That is EXACTLY how I felt before I started... no control and gaining gaining gaining. I didn't think I COULD lose and keep it off. I swear if my weight had stabilized I wouldn't have tried. But now -- now I have control. Sometimes I think my eating and exercise are the only things I can control. It IS a lot of work, but worth it. And even if I lose control, I have to believe now that it is up to me to get it back!

My small regret is that it took 39 years to come to this understanding.

Exactly the same time for me!! But look at it this way, at least we got it NOW and didn't wait another 39, or run out of time!!!

[Sheila53]

Since I have 14 pounds to lose to get to my 100 lb. loss goal, I have to say that, yes, I would like to wake up thin. Since I've still got the really hard part of weight loss (maintaining it!) to go, I'd like to have that last 14 magically disappear, and I don't think I'd be missing out on anything at this point.

[Scully1280]

Hello All!
Reading this post has been very insightful for me. I have always struggled with my weight -- I have been successful and gotten thin and then here I am again, I didn't learn the lesson well enough.
I would love to wake up thin, and have to tools already in place to keep me there. But, the truth is, hard work and perseverence to continue are the only way to getting to where one wants to be. It applies in all situations that require getting something where a goal is involved. I wish I learned it the first time, but I guess I still have some learnin' to do. Glad to be here to listen to those who have paved the road for us! You are all so awesome!

[lilybelle]

If someone had asked me this question a year ago, it would have been an emphatic yes. I would have loved to wake up thin. But, now it would be NO. I worked hard for this weight loss journey and learned a lot on the way. This board has been a lifesaver for me. I had lost 90 lbs. before and thought that was the end of the journey. Now, I know better. I am better equipped to handle the changes and the upcoming maintenance for life. My health has so dramatically improved that I learned the benefit of exercise and weight loss, not just the beauty aspect of it. I definitely would not trade what I have learned for an instant gratification.
As for the lottery, I'd take it. That much money could buy me a lot of counseling when it became necessary. LOL

[Heather]

You know, I've been thinking about this thread this weekend, and it occurred to me that my fantasy skills are poor. If there's a world in which I can wake up thin one morning thin, why can't it be a world where a) I wake up thin AND b) have the tools to stay thin? Better yet, a) a world where I wake up thin, b) have the tools to stay thin, and c) still get to eat ice cream etc.

I mean, if we're gonna dream, why not go all out??

In the absence of b and c, however, my original answer still stands...

[TamiL]

I would love to wake up thin, rich and beautiful!!! But not single. I love my husband dearly and that would be awful. Thin I can handle, been there done that. Rich can buy alot of help and take away the worry over bills. Beautiful can get you through doors that aren't open for the rest of us. But single would mean alone and the thought of dating gives me shivers.