I'd say for me it's:

70% - vanity

20% - the desire to be physically fit (my weight was hindering my physical activity)

10% - health

Betsy, I think you pretty much hit the nail on the head for me, too. It's frustrating not to be able to do so many of the relatively simple things that give me pleasure -- taking walks, puttering around my house and yard, hiking.

Plus, I'm also trying to ward off diabetes. My numbers are climbing and my doctor is threatening me with medication. I hate taking meds when I can control a problem without them.

The reason I want to lose weight is both the combination of aesthetics and health. I have ALWAYS had a pudgy tummy, even when I was 100 lbs and a size 3. It would be nice to have the washboard tummy and be able to wear a bikini with confidence. Also, I am predicted to get married in the next 2 years or so, and I would like to be able to fit into my dress and be presentable in pictures, especially since my boyfriend's sisters are both lean, running machines.

As for health, I have struggled with endurance due to my asthma. I would love to be able to run without having to bend over panting for air after only 2 minutes. I have slowly built endurance, but not enough to run for a straight mile yet.

I want to lose weight simply because I want to look better and be fit for myself. I am doing this not for anybody else but for me.

Mostly it was health; I was already winded up so easily at barely 25-26, so I was scared of what I'd be like 40 years later. Not to mention hypertension, diabetes and blood factor problems running in the family, which are exacerbated by being overweight. And I also wanted to be a normal size for a change (the last time I was 120 lbs, it was when I was 10 or something).

To save my life! I don't see me having much of a future with so much weight. I still live with my parents after all.

My weight loss is about vanity. I want to be hot. I want to look good and feel good about how I look, which makes me feel good about myself. The health benefits a secondary side effect.

It feels obscene to be as fat as I am when people are starving elsewhere.

I want to be attractive.

I want to job hunt with one less obstacle - judgement, conscious or not, from interviewers.

I want to live to 90+.

I want to be sexy and slim. I think in my 20s it is easier to achieve than if I were older than that. I used to be between nine and a half and ten and a half stone even through my undergrad degree but then during postgrad I went up to twelve and a half I used to be a cheerleader and I want to join this adult team in London but their uniforms are really skimpy and there's no way I could do it above 140 pounds. When I hit 140 pounds my reward is joining that squad (well, if they'll take me, I need to stretch and exercise to get good again).

Health's the biggest one. Given the current state of the medical system and (my opinion here) the taint of "make the most money possible", I firmly believe that the ball is fully in my court to know about (and do) everything it takes to keep myself out of the hands of doctors.

The other 10% is that I don't care for the way I look with a tummy roll and chubby cheeks - it's much easier to find clothes when I have an actual waist and proportionate rear!

Health is my number one reason. I have a heart condition, and I NEED to get this weight off me. And I want to have more energy, be more active, live life!

I also want to stop wearing plus size clothes. I have major issues with the clothing industry in general, but I think the way they handle plus size clothing is just beyond ridiculous. The expense is way too high, a lot of the clothes are so ugly! And it just makes me HATE shopping.

Love the honesty! I'd say my figures are fairly similar: 50% vanity, 20% desire to be fit, and 30% health. The differences may reflect the fact that I'm probably older than you. (I turn 56 in 4 days.)

F.

I want to lose weight for the sake of my mental health. I feel much better about myself when I'm an apporpriate weight.

Complete vanity on my part. I started because I refused to move up to the next jeans size - I realised when I put on a spare pair of jeans that they didn't fit and I was completely not willing to buy a bigger size. (I'm not sure if this should have been the motivation for me, but it totally worked!)

There might have been about 5% of me that was doing it for fitness/health as both my parents have Type 2 diabetes due to lifestyle issues and I didn't want that to be me. I was also a bit tired of being out of breath doing long walks and going up stairs, but honestly I just didn't want to have to buy the bigger size jeans.

Believe it or not I was pretty happy at 280. Annoyed at times, but still overall happy with life.

It wasn't until I started to have chest pains now and then that I started to wake up. I also was terrified that if I was laid off from work, no one would ever hire me at that weight.