It had been building for a while but one of the things that really struck me was this past June when I went on a wonderful family vacation in Florida. It was a family reunion and my mother wanted us to take a picture of the whole family on the beach. We did and I was wearing an outfit that I thought I looked really good in - until we got the pictures back! Standing next to my family - none of whom are exactly sticks anyway - I was so obviously the biggest person in the pictures. Looking at it made me realize how big I had actually gotten.
My dad had a heart attack last year due in part to his poor diet. He also has type 2 diabetes and had been overweight for years. I have already had doctors tell me I have slightly high blood pressure and I would really like to avoid the health complications of overweight!
I don't think I've responded in here yet. I'm not really sure what got me finally motivated enough to get this weight off. Maybe it was just a combination of all the things I couldn't do combined with all the things I couldn't wear combined with feeling ugly. Maybe I just got sick of it all? I don't really think I had one "lightbulb" moment. This whole thing has been very enlightening, really!
I'm so glad Tricia said she didn't know so I don't feel stupid saying I don't know. I think in the last six months I've had six "life" events which should have sent me to the cookie aisle. Each one of those things by itself would have sent me there any other time in my life. I stress and eat. But for some reason, this time is different. Whole mind different. Don't know why. Just grateful it happened.
My moment was gaining 10# the first month after stopping breastfeeding my youngest. That was the 'we're not going down that path again' moment. I had lost 38# in the first 2 weeks after birth and felt great. I kept it off for 6 months while BF then that first month was reality. It was finally a moment that I realized it's all me. I'm eating it and choosing to eat it. Nobody else is to blame and I'm the only one who can change it. Motivation is 100% mental and so hard when things aren't going well. It really is empowering when the pounds do start to go away. Hang in there!
Originally Posted by mmacaskill
I guess what I am asking is what was the final straw that made you say THAT'S IT??
What did it for me is being denied health insurance because of my weight. That was really hard, as my hubby and I want to try for another baby and well you need insurance for that. It was a real I opener
Pita and Hope: Wow! I didn't know that someone could be denied insurance because of their weight.
My final straw was that I was tired of SAYING what I was going to do. I decided to just do it. Fat was the main thing standing in the way of my happiness. It was effecting my life on so many levels. I won't go into the "woe is me" details....but I am much happier now!
My brother got married in May, so I was at the store shopping for clothes to wear to the wedding. I had been going up a dress size each year since my daughter was born (Today is her fourth birthday), so when I was shopping, I thought to myself, I should buy a size 20 so I have room to grow into it (I was a solid size 18 at the time). I did buy a size 20, but at home that night, I thought about the idea that I would be gaining another dress size each year and didn't want to do that anymore, and I started making smart choices for the next week or two before the wedding, and started making nutritional and lifestyle changes in full force as soon as I got home from the wedding.
Oh, and I wore that dress to the wedding, and it is now sitting at the back of my closet collecting dust, because it is WAY too big for me! I'm now a size 12/14! I'm hoping to go back to my pre-pregnancy size!
The last straw for me was breaking my leg. I was non-weight bearing for weeks and lots of PT after that I even months later could barely walk around the mall. Enough was enough!!!
As for how to get started, I agree with lots of the stuff you've already seen here. My two big pieces of advice are:
1. Get rid of all the junk or trigger foods in the house. I've got two kids and a DH with no weight problems but they understand we're not keeping chips/cookies/junk around that is what they do to help me.
2. Pick one goal (drink more water, walk 15 mins, eat more veggies) and really work hard on that one thing. All the things that need to happen can be overwhelming but I can do ONE thing.
I think its pretty safe to say that most of the people here have every imaginable "tool" to help us lose weight. And many (myself included) have dieted - gotten thin - and gained it all back and then some!
My biggest piece of advice is to deal with the real issues that are causing you to overeat. And in the meantime - if you're not motivated - try the old "fake it till you make it" philosophy!
That's where I am right now. And hopefully, at some point, the motivation will kick in - and I'll feel really good about doing it....
I do have to agree with checking in here - and often! For the past few months - when I was eating badly, I stopped checking in. But that's when I needed it the most!!
I'm so happy that you have the unconditional love of someone I know that it makes the journey so much easier!! And maybe it will help you do it for yourself.
I wish you all the best!! See you around the "nest"
I think the major reality check I had was late last year when I went to Walmart shopping for jeans. They had a couple pairs of 24’s and I think maybe 1 pair of 26’s. I idioticly tried on a pair of 22’s cause the last time I went shopping, that was what I wore. I couldnt get them up on me. I had to go back, get a 24, and do the whole thing over again. I could get the 24s on but I couldnt breathe. I looked like a muffin. So I ended up buying the one pair of 26s that they had. They were ugly, but you cant go around naked, right? Thats when reality set in that I HAD to do something about my weight.
Well, we all know what we have to do to stay in shape. And we don't do it. And there's something different for me between last year and this year. I'm not really sure what it is, why this is working, and I'm constantly worrying that whatever it is will go away.
I haven't been a yoyo dieter, I have just gradually gained lots of weight over the years. And while I always wanted to get rid of it, but never enough to do anything about it. I quit weighing and had convinced myself that I had reached my top weight, and I was okay with it and could accept and live with being heavy. But I guess what made me decide to finally do something and has kept me doing it are these things:
1. I realized that weight was starting to keep me from doing things. I always felt before that even if I was fat, I could still do everything I wanted to, and that just wasn't true anymore.
2. I realized I was still gaining weight; I realized this because my jeans were getting very tight and I was going to have to move up another size. I just couldn't see letting it go on forever.
3. I found a healthy plan I could live with and that seemed very do-able.
4. I found 3fc, where I got lots of good advice and help in getting over the bumps.
And one day I woke up and decided to just do it. So far it's working great and I'm crossing my fingers that I can keep it up. Hope you find your way also!
I'm hoping to go back to my pre-pregnancy size!
I know that it makes the journey so much easier!! And maybe it will help you do it for yourself.
