I'm quite curious about the science of weight loss as well as weight gain and so I tend to analyze myself a bit. I know a lot of people, especially people of 100 lbs or more, have said that they would go on diets, lose weight, then gain the weight back plus more in kind of an endless cycle.

I have thought about myself and I don't think that phenomenon has occurred with me. Even though I was a chubby child, I can think of 2 distinct times in my life when I have gained weight, although I have dieted almost all my life.
I gained most of my weight at the onset of puberty, I entered high school weighing 300 lbs. I lost weight and then I would go right back to my 300 lbs when I stopped exercising/dieting. Then the last couple years of college and the first few years after college, I gained 60 lbs, so I weighed 360 (well 364). I started exercising and dieting and I lost 30 lbs so I weighed 330 and plateaued (for 9 months) Then when I stopped dieting/exercising, I gained weight, but I went back to 350, not 360. I then dieted/exercised a few times and every time I'd hit the 330 mark and plateau. Everytime I gained weight, I went back to 350. I finally went past that plateau point for me during my recent weight loss efforts, which actually made me cry

Anyway, I was trying to share my experience because I don't believe I exhibit the normal "yo yo" effect that we hear so much about. I was wondering how many people have exhibited the yo yo effect in their efforts to lose weight or not.

I hope this makes sense.

I pretty much kept gaining weight all my life. I was about the same weight during high school, then gained about 40 lbs when I worked in a 7-11 and then gained about 30 lbs after that during college. Then I was about 210 when I got pregnant, gained 55 lbs and lost most of it 3 weeks after the baby was born. Just over the past 3 years I've gained 20 lbs. Over the years I've tried various diets and exercise programs but nothing ever really stuck. I remember losing 14 lbs in about a month while eating nothing but soup and exercising like crazy but I got sick and gained it back quickly. Otherwise I've never lost significant amounts of weight.

I am in the NON-yo yo camp. I was slender and fit in my youth and into my twenties. During my twenties I spent some time in India, where my gastrointestinal system took a major hit after I got sick, and I ended up having a significant dietary change afterwards. I gained enough to put me at around 140-150 lbs. at 5' 5 1/2". A teensy bit heavier than I'd have liked, given that I wasn't muscular, but still no biggie. It wasn't until I started to drink more heavily that I began to pack on the pounds. I'll spare you (and myself) the painful details, but really, the more I drank, the more I ate, and the worse I ate, and the less I moved......and the more weight I put on. When I got laid off from a job I loved, I just really exploded, putting on another 60 pounds. Obviously it was all interrelated, and there was an underlying attempt to avoid, at all costs, finally dealing with some painful childhood trauma. As soon as I stopped drinking, I was able to develop the wherewithall to reclaim my earlier healthy eating habits. Then, the more I lost, the more active I was able to become.

So that brings me to now. My weight gain was tied to other self-destructive behaviors, all rolled up into one big, unhealthy, painful mess. I only tried once to lose weight before this March; I did Atkins for about 3 weeks and lost 15, only to regain the 15 plus 10. That was the only time I ever tried, and that attempt was completely half-hearted. I don't really count it, to be honest, because I hardly exercised, and drank more calories than I was eating throughout the entire time.

Hope I didn't bring anyone down -- just sharing my own experience as another flawed but well-meaning creature on the mend! So, to recap: Sarah = Former Mess; Sarah = Healthy Girl; Sarah = A Work in Process; and Sarah = Not Really So Much In The Yo Yo Camp.

IMO what you've just described is yo-yo dieting. The fact that you've lost weight in the past and then gained back would be the yo-yo effect. Your yo-yo just hasn't been played with as much as others

My weight loss history is very similar to yours. I lost down to 175 before my senior year and gained most of it back by the end of the year. Then I pretty much stayed between 220 and 230 for several years. Then I quit wal-mart (i.e. standing and moving and lifting and squatting all day long) and worked at a TV station (i.e. sitting in front of a computer or in an editing bay for 8 hours a day) and gained 20 pounds in about 2 months. so then I just kept gaining from there. When I joined this sight upteen years ago I weighed 295. I lost down to just over what I am now (I think about 265) but life happened and I stopped dieting and exercising and was at 292 before I got preggo with my daughter over 2 years ago. I had her, got down to 270 but again didn't take the time for me and was up to 317 when I got preggo with my son last year. I got diagnosed with gestational diabetes while pregnant with him and knew that I would have to make my health a priority to keep me from getting diabetes. And so I started again at 295 this time around and you see where I'm at. I'm trying hard to make sure I don't make the same mistake I made the last time because I know that my body could easily balloon back up there without much thought or effort.

I am not a yo-yo person either. This is the first time I have lost this amount of weight and also the first time I have needed to lose that much weight. I plan to not re-gain any of it. I've always been overweight but not in the obese category until about 4 years ago. After getting married 3 years ago, it got much worse, my husband and I both easily gained 50 lbs up to my highest weight ever. I feel great now and you will too very soon Nelie!

I've never yo-yo'd.... but then again I am only at the ripe old age of 16! :

If it helps at all, I certainly don't *plan* on yo-yoing.

I wasn't overweight until I went to University. I had a very unhelpful (rubbish) boyfriend who told me I'd look great if I just lost a little bit of weight. (I probiably weighed about 140 pounds!!) I started to diet in a kind of cabbage soup/ no real food way to please him. (Pathetic I know) and then I came to my senses and dumped him. After that I put on another 28 pounds at least. I was probiably thinking I could now as he was gone and also because I was messed up and sad at the time I 'comfort ate' a lot. When I started work I put on even more weight until I reached the peak recently. I lost about 40 pounds a few years ago and put it all back on and about 14 more. Since then I've lost 7 - 10 pounds and put it back on about 2x per year so there's some yo yo-ing. This time I'm doing a PCOS diet which is a bit of a low carb with loads of fruit and veg along with exercise. I feel really different and so happy now. I'm not being corny but some thing seems to have clicked. Also no man (or woman) is going to tell me what to eat, how much and when! I don't intend to yo yo any more.

I am a non yo-yo dieter too. I was always considered overweight, I was easily top 3 largest people in my high school, at a size 8-10. I put on a little weight here and a little there, but I was on the swim team and was swimming 3-4 hours a day. I put on about 5 pounds in the 2 years after highschool and before college, and while away at college, the first 6 months I put on 10 pounds. Then I met my boyfriend, and he introduced me to fast food, who knew you could get a whole meal in less than 10 minutes?? I'd never been to Burger King, Wendy's.. and the list goes on. I have just steadily gone up and up and up. I've dabbled in a few eating disorders here and there, but those all resulted in weight GAIN, never loss. I have lost the most amount of weight just recently.. and thats 9 pounds. I won't believe it until I hit 10-15pounds though. However I have dropped a dress size.. yay!

You know I don't know if it is a great misconception of mine or to me it just seems like "experts" seem to say that the way people gain weight is by dieting. I mean that in saying if you diet you lose a few lbs, then gain the weight plus more, etc. That is mainly why I was curious about other people's experiences. That doesn't seem to be most people's experience though.

Swim, that fast food is evil stuff. I'm glad I abhor fast food because there are tons near me. I also don't care for donuts either which is good because there is a krispy kreme near me. I don't know but 24x7 drive through donuts never seemed like a good idea to me.

Starting at around age 12, I've always been a yo-yo dieter. Forty years later, I can say that I am no longer a yo-yo dieter.

If you haven't yo-yoed more power to you. If this is the first time you have ever dieted even better. Make healthy, sane habits now, and use them for the rest of your life. I on the other hand have been as low as 123 (probably lower I quit weighing at this point, and started hiding my body cause people were saying stuff) and as high as 265. My body has had it at 32.

Chris

Hmm. This is an interesting topic. I'm also in the non yo-yo club. Like Amy Jo, this is the first and only time I've gone for a concerted attempted at weight loss - and I feel like I'm doing great. I think I'm lucky, really.....I've benefitted hugely from all of the advice and support on here, and I have always told myself that the only approach I will take is one that feels sustainable, so I am hopeful that I can avoid the yo-yo thing......fingers crossed!

I am not sure if I am or not. I never had a weight problem before I got pregnant. Then I got married, quit working and got a car. I quit walking anywhere, when I used to walk at least 4 miles a day... maybe more. I ate whatever and really started drinking soda.

A year ago I lost about 35 lbs or so and then I just quit and resumed my old habits and gained it all back. So I suppose I am a yo yo dieter. That was the only time though. This time I REFUSE to give up and there is no way I am going to gain this weight back and put myself through this again.

Well I guess it all depends on what you consider yo-yo dieting....I think the definition is basically not being able to maintain...
I am fantastic at losing weight, I've done it so many times (just like that old saying...quitting smoking is easy, I've dont it hundreds of times lol)...
My big problem is MAINTAINING.... I haven't exactly pinpointed why I have failed at maintaining in the past, I suppose it is a variety of reasons...
One probably is feeling deprived for so long while losing weight (even when I've done it healthily) I say, oh that piece of cake won't hurt, etc...
Another I think is distorted body image... I remember when I lost a bunch of weight and I was in size 12's which was like supermodel size to me (lol)....but I didn't even see it in the mirror, I still saw myself as obese....
I think another factor might be that the weight sneaks back up so quickly....and we trick ourselves (at least me) rationalizing...for instance, if I gained a pound or 2 I would say, oh it's my time of the month, I had a big meal last night etc...then WHAM, the scale says 5 pounds gained etc....

So basically I am back where I started before my magical few months in comfortable size 12's and I am super pissed off at myself!!!
I am almost 28 and I really want to nip this in the bud before I'm 30, I just don't want to spend the rest of my life obese

Good luck to everyone!
Tara