I tried on a size 20 and it was too small. I have ALWAYS carried my weight well, but i didn't even realize how much weight i had gained.
in the same week i was out, walking home from a bar, and a group of teenagers started shouting out of thier car, calling me shamu and fatty fatty boom boom or something. it HURT. up until that point, i had thought i had looked GOOD that evening. apparently not through someone else's eyes, even if they were the eyes of jerks.
AND IN THE SAME WEEK i also had been for a yearly checkup and the doctor wanted to put me on statins for my cholesterol. you know what? i'm in my 20s..only 24 then... i can think of FAR better ways to abuse my liver than being on prescription medication.
this was all 4 years ago.

I was reading through old entries in my online journal recently and around the same time I made a post about being a big girl and that i absolutely swore manufacturers were making plus size clothes smaller just to make people feel bad about themselves. i took pride in being a big girl but i just couldn't stand it anymore. I did always think i was going to be a big girl
i was depressed, and i was angry. i was angry at myself for allowing myself to get so large without even noticing.
that week i joined a gym, started reading up on eating plans, and started atkins. I stayed with atkins for quite some time, and had ups and downs, and eventually stopped, and gained back about 20lbs but maintained at that 200lbs for quite some time, having fallen off the wagon i was still utilizing healthy eating habits i learned while on the diet and managed somehow to do a decent job of maintaining. but i felt like crap all the time, bloated and lethargic and depressed.
this past october I went to the doctor, and told her how i ate, told her i exercised regularly and just couldn't get the extra #s off.
She asked about family history, i admitted several aunts and uncles and one of my siblings were all obese, she ran tests, and when i got the tests in the mail she added a note that my #s (including cholesterol!! were fine) and it was possible that due to my family history i may just be genetically predispoditioned to be obese and there wasn't much i could do about it because i did eat well and overall i was more healthy than most normal weight people.
that made me SO MAD. I didn't go back on atkins, but am doing something now that is 100% sustainable for me instead of 80% as atkins was.
about a month in I started doing this for me instead of having an "i'll show that skinny you know what!" additude and i making even healthier choices and am much more active. the bloating is gone, the depression is mostly gone and i feel like a freaking ray of sunshine most days

genetically predispositioned to be obese my !!!!
yeah, i do have a larger frame than about 90% of women my height, the number on the scale depresses me sometimes, but then i remember than i am a size EIGHT now, and have around 25% body fat. the number on the scale may say that i'm 35lbs overweight, but i know how i feel now.

and uhm.. so what was the question again? my ah-hah moment? it's way up there, i guess i ran my mouth a little more than i planned. whoops. sorry, ladies.

I turned 28 last Monday and realised that I had spent years doing faddy diets and failing and I decided that I won't go into my 30's being fat and self conscious. This time next year I want to be a different person x

What's your waist measure at? When I was you weight I wore a 14. I wore a 20 when I was 220.

^ Same. I wear a 20 now and I'm 220. When I was 176 (my goal-ish) I was a 12/14.

Anyway, my Enough! moment was gradual. I don't know what really made me sign up with a trainer and hit the gym. I have tried diets my whole life and I'm just sick of always thinking, every moment of ever day, "I wish I were thin..." or "I bet people are talking about me..." so, I just decided to start working seriously on it. Hopefully, it works!

I was a comfortable 14 at 200lbs, and sometimes a 12.
I have a thicker waist and slimmer hips than most women - my current measurements are 33-30-36. while my waist is actually much larger than an "actual" size 8 on many size charts, the cuts that are most flattering on me tend to be lower rise, therefore requiring a smaller size. in "traditional" rise pants i am sometimes a 10, though more often than not, the 8 fits better -i assume - because of my lack of hip and behind. the one honest-to-god dress i own is a size 6, and it fits (again) but it is from my high school graduation over 10 years ago and a very loose cut, so not a great example.
I am very lucky to have an extremely athletic build - before my weight gain I was a very active person, as i am again, and I have a lot of muscle. My measurements are actually smaller now than they were 10 years ago in high school - when i was 135lbs.

Oh i thought you are wearing a 20 at your current weight LOL

LOL! I guess i wasn't clear.. and i was raaaambling this morning! It was such a nice day i doubled my run from 30min to an hour and i think i was a little out of my head right when i got home, which is when i posted that.

my moment came in two parts

last year in feb my best friend got married and moved away and i was soooo sad. i met a guy and he called me "voluptuous and big boned." he thought it was a compliment but i personally think it screams FAT and i for a fact was abnormally thin for most of my life i am not big boned but obviously i looked it. no offense to anyone who appreciates the word i just dont like it. i decided to workout to get my mind off of how much i missed her and to finally lose the weight i'd been complaining about for years so i wouldnt be called voluptuous again. i started WW and got a PT and lost 21 pounds. then life happened and i got lazy and had a great relationship with a great guy and we shared all sorts of food.

then he broke up with me...

and i gained all the weight i had lost back plus ten pounds. and didnt realize it when all my clothes didnt fit or my PANTS SPLIT at work. i was so depressed i didnt notice anything really. i didnt get on the scale from october till march. when i did i saw 210 and i have been trying to lose it ever since. and its harder now. but i made a vow not to eat when i am sad. (i lived on a diet of popeyes and oreos i swear for 4 months)
and im changing it with 3FC.

My moment also came in two parts...

First, all the following added up: after being in this stressful program/school (dental hygiene) I had thrown all my healthy eating and exersising habits out the door, as I was stressed like mad and using food to de-stress, while NEVER exersising. Over the last 3 years I've had to upgrade clothes a little here and there. I started looking bigger and bigger in pictures. I never weigh myself (even when I was skinnier, i just go by how my clothes feel) but out of curiosity I jumped on a scale and I had hit a 30lb weight gain in the last 2.5 years (the biggest weight gain I usually ever have is 10lbs) However, I brushed it off and told myself that I could lose it after I graduate in June.

THEN, to give background info and to make a long story short, in asian culture I find if you're not a bonerack, you're considered fat. I was a chubby kid (round belly and cheeks, skinny arms and legs), and called fat all the time (even if I honestly think I was just a smidge pudgey and far from fat) and even when I was at my ideal weight I was considered "bigger". And even if all my relatives and other asian ppl called me fat, my parents NEVER did b/c I think they knew I was okay, I wasn't unhealthy, I was just not a bone rack. But about 2 months ago my parents expressed that they were worried that I wasn't exersising like I used to and reminded me that heart disease, diabetes and obesity run in my family, and they were concerned for my health. As my parents NEVER gave me a hard time, That really struck a note, and I asked my classmate about WWFlex, and have been counting points and exersising 3-5x/week since March 12/08. I found 3FC a week or two ago and feel this is exactly what I need.

I know exactly what you mean... I'm from Korea and one of my classmate from juinor high (Korean) told me that for my height(5'7"), I should weigh about 115 lbs(53kg) at the most. HAHAHA!!!

My boyfriend and I are taking a trip to Florida and I want to wear a bikini without having to throw a t-shirt over myself.

And I want to last longer during sex and be able to wear lingerie for my boyfriend without feeling gross.

My enough was realizing that I had gained 20 lbs since I started seeing my boyfriend due to eating what he eats and the same amount (rarely a good idea for any woman). I was seeing lovehandles starting to resemble a muffin top out of my jeans and my thighs looked like they were battling hippos when I walked. No good!

My mum was actually the one that reached breaking point first after seeing pictures of herself on a recent trip to Miami, so i accompanied her to an Herbal Magic to get the 'real deal' and when they weighed me I came in at 190. big sad face. I was determined that I would lose it all one last and final time because I had spent the previous 3 years trying to come down from 215. Plus the last thing I wanted was to look back on wedding pictures (June 2009 wedding) and for the rest of my life see what I considered to be a fat girl in a pretty dress. (Man, us women can be hard on ourselves!)

OMG! That made me laugh OUT LOUD, as my best friend is Korean. In my eyes she is the proper size for her frame... PLUS thank God she is reasonable cuz she always has stories of how Korean people love to tell her she should lose 20-30 lbs, and laughs at how silly that is. (oh and they tell her how she should get plastic surgery and how she should be taller among other things) I'm from a Filipino background and I thought they were nutty. LOL!! I haven't weighed 115 since elementary school Heee Heeee

My came when I see myself in pictures. That is when you truly see how big you are. I hate taking pics but now with me trying to lose weight taking pics is one of the things that motivates me. I know I hate what I see so .....lol Plus my son is two years old and very active I want to be able to play with him outside and have fun while doing it....

AHAHAHAHA! I only laugh at this because I have the same problem!

Mine comes a few different things. Growing up I've always been a "thick" girl. I would say I carry myself well. I've always wanted to be "the skinny girl," but for all of the wrong reasons.

I moved back to NC about 5 months ago. When I came back everyone was telling me how good I looked and how I had lost weight. I really hadn't thought I had lost THAT much weight, but obviously after being in Atlanta for 2 years they could tell a difference. Unfortunately I saw some pictures of me from a couple of parties I attended in Atlanta and *gag* is about all I have to say about that!!!!

My mother and father are both overweight, always have been. My paternal grandfather died when he was 53 due to a heart attack. My father is now 54 and I worry every day that I will get a phone call that he's in the hospital or has died (heaven forbid!) due to a heart attack. It runs on BOTH sides of my family so I have a double whammy. I don't want to be in his position when I get to be his age. My father has always struggled with yo-yo diets and being miserable and having what my mom and I call "fat attacks" where he doesn't want to do anything and generally feels miserable due to his size.

I have NEVER worn a bikini. During the summer I always wear pants or capris because I'm embarrassed of my "hippo thighs." I have a naturally olive complexion and tan beautifully during the summer. It's a bit embarrassing to actually wear shorts around your friends and them make fun of you for your "casper" legs and super tan upper body. Whenever I go swimming its usually in a pair of men's board shorts and a t-shirt or tank top because I don't like how I look. This is the LAST summer I will be doing that.

Recently I just started a new job. My mom went shopping with me and after watching FARRRR too many episodes of "What Not To Wear" I was critiqued to no end (from someone who has NO room critiquing!) and utterly depressed at how clothes just don't fit right. (Again, I have very thick upper thighs so even though they may fit in the waist, its hard to find a good pair that fits in the waist AND thighs.) I would love to wear the cute little clothes my co-workers wear, but alas, they don't really make them in big girl sizes.

I HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE shopping for these reasons! I hate looking at the SAME clothes I wear every week wishing I could be wearing something a little more in style.

I'm not growing any younger and even though its not easy at ANY age, I would certainly imagine it's much harder the older you get!

So... enough is ENOUGH!

A few summers ago I had lost 30 lbs and couldn't BELIEVE what a difference it made just being able to run up the stairs without being out of breath! [Thanks to my brother's 3rd story apartment!]

My reward... and BIG BIG BIG goal [aside from weight loss] is to finally get my half sleeve tattoo and back piece that I've been dying to get, but just don't want to bother with if my body is in this kind of shape!!!!