I considered making this a poll but I think there's too much variation to put together in a poll.

My short answer: my whole life

Longer answer: I first felt fat at age 5. I remember being considered overweight in 3rd grade. I spent from age 18-20 at a healthy weight for my height and have been back to overweight/obese every since (now age 27).

How about you?

Too long, to be more specific about 17 yrs.

Literally, my whole life. I was born in the 95th percentile, so even though I'm still overweight I feel more average-sized than I did as a kid

10 yrs.

ive been overweight since i was about 10 im 48 now..ive lost weight 3 times in my life but never kept it off

you are all doing great...im gonna start on ash wednesday

Since about the age of 18 months.
Apparently born on the low side of normal, I was a picky eater, so a terrified first-time mother stuffed me with whatever I'd take!

I was born 3lbs 90z and stayed thin for a quite a long time. I gained some weight around age 8 at the start of puberty. It quickly went away. I have been overweight now since about age 20, so for 6 years.

I have been overweight since the 5th grade .. I'm a junior in college now :/ ... lost the weight and re-gained it once I got married :/

I have been overweight my whole life. Like you I would have to say I have been overweight since the age of 5. I do not think I have ever had a healthy weight. I have discovered a new form of theraputic help dealing with the fact that I have been overweight most my life. I did some research and decided to make a very hard decision for many people. The realization and the courage to admit that I have a problem with food. So I decided to go to OA which is Overeaters Anonymous. I love it and it has been really helpful. Well I hope this helps your poll.

I was a skinny kid up until 5 grade, about 10. After going through a traumatic experience, I turned to food and started packing on the pounds. I was a good 30 lbs or so overweight throughout high school. Was very conscious of the fact that I needed to lose weight I was always on a "diet". Never a good one though and they didn't last very long. Very restrictive eating, very binge-y eating, very poor eating. I was like this till I got married at age 22. The second I was engaged I started piling on more pounds. I must have been one of the few brides who actually needed her dress taken out as it got closer to the wedding day. I had a baby about 19 months later and forget it - any semblance of normal eating was totally and completely gone. I became obese, then morbidly obese VERY quickly.

Then when I was 42, I'm 45 now, my light bulb moment came, realized that I didn't have to be fat if I didn't want to be. Realized that I did indeed have control over this (the whole time in fact) and made the decision to be a healthy person and lost 165 lbs.

Since I was 10 years old. I am 47 now.

I was a twig as a kid. Gained some during the college years but nothing bad.

It really wasn't until after I started having kids that it became a problem. That plus the dreaded aging and slowing of metabolism.

I was slightly overweight in middle school. Then I was at a healthy weight until I started working in an office full time, about 3 years ago.

a little over 8 years.....I gained 80 pounds with the first kid, 30 with my second and and about 30 more with my third (and last!) baby lol