I don't even know if anyone will remember me from here...it was over a year ago that I posted I believe. I used to come here on a daily basis and with eating healthy and exercising every day I managed to lose 101 pounds. I let life get in the way and I gave in to bingeing and gained about 45 pounds back and I am back in the 200's I found my old mini goal success post up in the pics section and CRIED at how thin I had gotten and how big I let myself get again.
I'm trying so hard not to be disgusted and disappointed with myself but it's hard! I am day 3 back on plan (FINALLY) and I am just trying to keep my head above water.
Don't be ashamed - it's happened to the best of us. Making lifestyle changes are hard, but what you do know by doing it before is that you can DO IT!!! And you have learned from your last journey and will hopefully have picked up some new skills to help with maintaining better this time.
It's happened to many members. Happened to me, too! Keep thinking positively. You kept 60 pounds off, and a few months down the road you will be excited that you stopped the regain and you started back with your healthier habits.
Oh, my gosh, I needed to see this today! I have been SO discouraged and despondent -- not sure I even want to get back on the diet-track, yet tired of waking up every morning feeling absolutely horrible due to the binging and stuffing my face with ice cream and other sweets. Even thought about signing up under a new account name, so no one would know -- crazy, huh? THANK YOU for posting! I think I'd better go check my account info and do some editing on my current weight -- and then make plans to lose what I've regained!
Aww well welcome back! You're still inspirational 101 pounds was a huge success! Most of us have been on the weight loss/gain yo yo more than one time. You're human, stop beating yourself up.
You are not alone. I reached my goal of 125 lbs during summer of 2010 after lots of hard work. I went on vacation, feeling so great and then the gain began. I've shot straight back up ever since. Sure I've lost some lbs here and there, but have never been back to where I was.
It happens. It stinks! I'm trying to gain back control also. I try to remind myself that I've come really far, I haven't gained it all back yet, and I do have the power to stop this cycle!
I think it's really important to take the shame out of weight gain and weight loss. In our culture, we treat weight gain as if it were a crime, rather than a natural reaction to an artificial environment filled with unnaturally high-calorie food.
If you were talking abut elevated blood sugar numbers, your lipid profile, or your blood pressure, you wouldn't feel this degree of shame. It's even possible that you wouldn't feel this degree of shame if you were talking about substance abuse relapse, because our culture has more sympathy for substance abuse than for obesity.
The shame makes it really difficult to conquer weight issues, because when we don't see the success we hope for, we think "I'll never be as thin as I want to be, so what's the use of trying at all."
And therein lies another trap of weight loss. We're taught to see a weight loss stall as being every bit as bad as a weight gain. So if we step on the scale and see no loss, instead of celebrating the fact that we haven't gained (and not just in a consolation prize mentality, but rather truly celebrating the no loss), we decide that if we're not going to lose, we might as well get to eat what we want (and gain as a result).
The way we've been taught to diet, and the way we've been taught to feel about ourselves, is counterproductive to weight loss. We're taught to diet by methods that don't work, and then we're taught to blame ourselves for the failure.
You don't need shame to succeed. In fact, the shame will make it harder - because people don't spend a lot of energy helping someone they dispise (even if, and perhaps especially if that someone is themself).
Shame is hard to overcome, especially when the entire culture reinforces that shame. It's hard not to despise what most people despise, but just because it seems to be the majority opinion doesn't mean it's right.
I know I'm criticising what seems to be something you have no control over, but you do. You have to become your own best friend, defending yourself against the bullies, even when the bully is yourself. When you feel the shame, defend yourself to the bully (yes that means talking to yourself, and it's a healthy kind of talking to yourself).
You are worthy of love and respect, now - not just when you lose weight. And weight loss will be a lot easier if you have your own love and respect, and besides which you deserve it.
When I was a teen I lost about 100 lbs, and gained it all back plus some and had to start over and downward again, did that see-saw thing. Just remember, you have lots more knowledge and tools in your belt now, you really are not the same person and you kept a good chunk of the weight you lost off to boot! hang in there!!
I think it's really important to take the shame out of weight gain and weight loss. In our culture, we treat weight gain as if it were a crime, rather than a natural reaction to an artificial environment filled with unnaturally high-calorie food.
If you were talking abut elevated blood sugar numbers, your lipid profile, or your blood pressure, you wouldn't feel this degree of shame. It's even possible that you wouldn't feel this degree of shame if you were talking about substance abuse relapse, because our culture has more sympathy for substance abuse than for obesity.
The shame makes it really difficult to conquer weight issues, because when we don't see the success we hope for, we think "I'll never be as thin as I want to be, so what's the use of trying at all."
And therein lies another trap of weight loss. We're taught to see a weight loss stall as being every bit as bad as a weight gain. So if we step on the scale and see no loss, instead of celebrating the fact that we haven't gained (and not just in a consolation prize mentality, but rather truly celebrating the no loss), we decide that if we're not going to lose, we might as well get to eat what we want (and gain as a result).
The way we've been taught to diet, and the way we've been taught to feel about ourselves, is counterproductive to weight loss. We're taught to diet by methods that don't work, and then we're taught to blame ourselves for the failure.
You don't need shame to succeed. In fact, the shame will make it harder - because people don't spend a lot of energy helping someone they dispise (even if, and perhaps especially if that someone is themself).
Shame is hard to overcome, especially when the entire culture reinforces that shame. It's hard not to despise what most people despise, but just because it seems to be the majority opinion doesn't mean it's right.
I know I'm criticising what seems to be something you have no control over, but you do. You have to become your own best friend, defending yourself against the bullies, even when the bully is yourself. When you feel the shame, defend yourself to the bully (yes that means talking to yourself, and it's a healthy kind of talking to yourself).
You are worthy of love and respect, now - not just when you lose weight. And weight loss will be a lot easier if you have your own love and respect, and besides which you deserve it.
What awesome advice this is! I love every word of it!
I was kind of in the same boat - I had previously lost ~ 80lbs and afterwards stopped coming here, and over time gained more than that back. Of course, it had been 5 or 6 years (maybe more) and I hadn't been a frequent poster, so I didn't really worry about anyone remembering me, but I definitely understand where you're coming from. All of us here, though, are just glad to have you back, working on becoming a healthier you!
Last edited by 2sw33t; 09-26-2011 at 01:37 PM.
Reason: typo
Nothing to be ashamed about! Setbacks happen. Now you know what you need to do moving forward, so it doesn't happen again. Best of luck with your goals
Actually - I heard one interesting study, but in regards to quitting smoking. They said that the more times one tried to quit, then that person would eventually be successful and quit forever.
They got good at quitting and eventually they were able to succeed.
I think the same is definitely true of weight loss as well.
Welcome back! Like you, I just came back after some time away -- and I brought the 40 lbs I originally lost back with me! I let life (mostly my job) get in the way. I was extremely disappointed in myself, but now that I'm back in the swing of things (10 weeks now), I feel energized by the exercise, good food, and my feelings of being in control. I've ditched the disappointment and it feels good.
I agree with the theory that we're going to be really good at weight loss this time around because we've "been there, done that" and we know exactly what to do. I find that just KNOWING I can lose weight (because I've done it before) is a huge boost to my confidence. It WILL happen. It just takes commitment and time.
Swallowing my pride and coming back here!
I found my old mini goal success post up in the pics section and CRIED at how thin I had gotten and how big I let myself get again. 
