Almost everyone quits losing weight
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Keeping it off is the problem. I was morbidly obese when I found MFP 3/12/12.
I have been maintaining a "normal" weight for a little over a year now.
Everything I have read about this says that the odds of maintaining after 5 years are astronomically high against us doing this. A very small minority are successful at keeping the weight off. We all want this achievement, very few of us will be able to do this.
How many of us are actually in this category? It would be interesting to find out.
I am no different. I am very concerned about gaining all the 160+ pounds back. That is why I will continue to log and monitor myself for as long as I am able.0 -
I'm OK with not losing any more weight at some point. I'm not trying to vanish entirely.0
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Because I did. I don't have a self-control or determination problem, which most that quit do. I always accomplish my goals. It has truly been a journey for me. I've learned a lot in the process and have truly changed my poor eating habits plus discovered life long healthy activities that I love.
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I turned my Asperger's into my superpower. Since I'm prone to habitualizing things and obsessing about details, I made logging and exercising a part of that mindset. Keeping the 75 lbs off for the last two years says it's working so far.0
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DeirdreWoodwardSanders wrote: »One day at a time.
/Thread
Annoys me when people expect to much in short time; you didn't gain the weight in a day, you won't lose it in a day.
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GuitarJerry wrote: »I think most people fail because they rely on motivation. Motivation is fleeing. In the end, those who make it, and keep it off, tend to be people that are disciplined. Discipline and habit tend to last a lifetime. Motivation comes and goes so quickly. No one is motivated to get up everyday at 4am and go to the gym, however, some people are disciplined enough to do it, even when it's the last thing in the world they want to do. It's really more of a habit and complete lifestyle change...and when I say lifestyle change, I mean a real one. Not just a change for a couple weeks. But, where you stick to it, basically, for the rest of your life.
Love it! So true.
Discipline is the hardest thing to adopt if you don't naturally have it
And habit, well if you do something for like 18 consecutive months it becomes a habit (or something like that, can't remember the time frame exactly)
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I wanted to loose weight in 1995 for health reasons and so i did. A total of 66 pound. And aldo i wasn't lean or slim ( still 100 kilo's) i was happy and fit. I worked 14 hours a day with my horses. I trained, was teaching and did dancing. I was feeling good the way i was. Specially because it didn't bother me at all to be that weight and i could sport and work all day long 7 days a week. When i was doing body-robic i could do it for hours and hours. No problem at all. I maintained this weight for about 20 years and there was just a few pounds of fluctuation sometimes. Like going out and drink something or holidays etc. but it came down straight away to the 100 to 101 kilo again in days.
But after my knee surgery and back injury it all went wrong. Being always active and landing in a chair not able and allowed to walk for months made the pounds fly on. In total i went up to 260.1 pounds (117.1 kilo). My move to the US didn't help me either. All the new things/food. So much yummie things of course. And coming from everything homemade and i grew my own garden this was totally destroying my healthy eating habits.
After some bad days ( were i really thought that i would die) i thought this is it.
You better start getting back in line or you will die. I was short of breath. Heart rate and bp were much ...much to high. Blood sugar level was just like in 1995 idiot high again.
So i started my "new life" style ( i dont say diet because my believe is what i am doing is a life style). And "new" in brackets because i just do what i did in 1995.
Back to healthy eating as much as is possible.
My determination is only confirmed by every little victory/milestone in the last weeks.
( lost 49 pounds, BP is since a week back to normal, blood sugar has dropped again and i had to go shopping yesterday because i went from an XXXL to the size L, so clothes were really dropping of me). My sweet husband is supporting me in every way and cheering me on. Buys me clothes step counters, heart rate monitors bp monitor etc. He tries to help in his way. He told me he loves every inch of me, the weight doesn't interest him at all. He wants me to be happy and healthy. He does what he can, and eat the same way i do. ( lol and lost weight too without any excising btw) And he dont have to loose weight, so eats a bit more when i train in the gym
But i told him it doesn't bother me at all when you do when i am home. I am not hungry and have no gravings. We have all kinds of healthy snacks so when i want something i can grab a protein-bar, or fruit or radish whatever.
These victories make me respect myself more and smile at myself when i look in the mirror. It makes me feel strong. And i enjoy saying , no to offered diners, unhealthy food and gestures by other people. Yes i feel even proud that i can resist it so easily.
I get curves again A waist.
It makes me feel good and happy and when i walk the treadmill everyday it almost makes me jump up and down to get it done.
So quitting nope i wont, why should i? I feel better this way. Food is just nutrition to stay and be alive. Not to satisfy my feelings. Happiness comes from inside and feeling good too. Food is only the fuel i need to do the things i do and want to be. Not to satisfy me.
Maintaining...well i know i can because i did it before for almost 20 years without a problem. That's why i say this is my new life style and not a diet. This is my eating pattern that i have and develop to get the weight i want and stick to that weight.
Now this is how i do it. This doesn't mean it works for anybody else. I only know that when you start respecting, and loving yourself for whatever you are, that it makes it damm easy.
Feeling good is like a drug. And my goal is not losing all that weight. My goals i being as healthy as i can be and feel good, fit, healthy and proud at myself.
And i can ensure you it feels great!
So why should i quite?
( sorry for my baby English and grammar its not my native language)0 -
I also think that our bodies are continually doing things that will put weight on. So even if someone achieves really healthy habits, they might gain weight as they get older and their metabolism slows down, or, for women, after menopause. The middle age spread hits a lot of people who were accustomed to being healthy and fit through their younger years. In that way, it's not quite like brushing your teeth; you actually do have to actively re-evaluate your goals and tactics every so often.
But most people who go back to gaining weight after a loss do it because they saw the weight loss as temporary, and did things that were unsustainable to achieve it. If it's a "diet" then it psychologically has an end date, and your brain keeps wanting to cheat. If it's not a diet but just the way you live, it's easier to get results in the long run.0 -
How many times are you going to make this same post?
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10005026/most-people-quit-weight-loss0 -
herrspoons wrote: »snowflake930 wrote: »Keeping it off is the problem. I was morbidly obese when I found MFP 3/12/12.
I have been maintaining a "normal" weight for a little over a year now.
Everything I have read about this says that the odds of maintaining after 5 years are astronomically high against us doing this. A very small minority are successful at keeping the weight off. We all want this achievement, very few of us will be able to do this.
How many of us are actually in this category? It would be interesting to find out.
I am no different. I am very concerned about gaining all the 160+ pounds back. That is why I will continue to log and monitor myself for as long as I am able.
Well the reason is pretty simple:
1) You didn't change your habits, so once you stopped dieting you went back to the things that made you obese in the first place.
2) You didn't monitor your weight on a regular basis and take action before things got out of hand. You don't gain 160 pounds back overnight.
This is what I mean by weight loss not being a journey. The weight loss in itself means absolutely nothing without the change of dietary habit and the feedback loop of regular monitoring and correction.
Honestly, once you get that it becomes quite easy to do.
If you bothered to read what I wrote, I lost the weight and HAVE kept off over 160# for over a year now. I am monitoring myself and not allowing myself to gain back the weight I lost. I am in the low normal weight range for my height, and have been for over 1 year.
I most certainly DID change my habits and HAVE kept it off for over 1 year. My concerns are for keeping it off for the rest of my life. The statistics are extremely high that everyone that loses weight, will gain it all back and often times more.
You don't know me, or anything about my life, so do not tell me what I did, or am doing wrong. It may be easy for you and that is wonderful. The statistics show otherwise for most of us.
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Why do you think you'll stay strong and stick with it?
I have started and quit several times. This time was different. I gave up soda, it was a horrible addiction that I never fully committed to wanting to give up. I have lost 38lbs and 6 months later, I still am here and now 11 pounds away from my goal.
Why do you think others quit?
They don't really want it. I say that because that is why I always quit. I never wanted to do it. I said I did but I was just doing myself lip service.
What makes you different?
I am not different. Everyone can fail. However I have a drive and a determination this time that I have never had before..knowing I have went from a BMI that made me obese to a BMI that now has me normal..to knowing I lost 3 pant sizes. I am different this time.0 -
Why do you think you'll stay strong and stick with it?
Because I have stayed strong for an entire year, and I have learned my lesson from the last time when I re-gained 35 pounds after having lost 65. Frankly, I think I had gotten a little cocky. Also, the first time around I don't think I realized how much of an issue impulse eating was for me because I didn't have so many opportunities for impulse eating until the fall of 2012. So I learned impulse eating was something I still needed to work on, and I have. (It did take a long time!)
Why do you think others quit?
Lack of motivation, lack of discipline, presence of emotional issues with food and/or weight loss. Too many people "white knuckle" their plan and can't maintain the intensity and instead of modifying their plan to be more modest, they just quit and go back to their old lifestyle.
What makes you different?
I think having been fairly thin most of my life, only overweight for approximately five years, gives me a big advantage over people who have been heavy most of their lives. I have overcome emotional eating, hardly ever have food cravings, and I am disciplined about logging my food daily and exercising most days. I am still working on impulse eating, but have gotten much better about it because I have committed to logging it.0 -
I think that exercise is the first tree to fall. If someone is eating back their exercise calories, once the exercise is gone, the weight creeps back on because the calorie buffer is gone.
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herrspoons wrote: »DawnieB1977 wrote: »herrspoons wrote: »People fail because they see weight loss as a journey. It isn't, and it's actually pretty stupid to think of it as one, because it doesn't have an end destination. Sure, you may have a target weight to drop to, but then you have to maintain it, and that means not reverting to the habits that got you into this mess in the first place.
The people who succeed realise this. A little bit of thought is all it takes.
I've never had bad habits...unless maybe getting pregnant can be classed as one?
If people want to refer to it as a 'journey' does it matter? If it's something that takes a long time to reach, I'd have though good habits would be ingrained. It's more the quick fix diets that don't work and the whole 'diet' mindset.
Not the same thing. You give birth, you lose the weight of the kid, then you lose the support weight you gained. That's not a habit, it's an event that happens a few times over the course of your life.
As for good habits being ingrained, the recidivism rates suggest otherwise.
Yes, but is that for people who lost weight through quick fix diets, or people who have lost weight slowly and changed their lifestyle? If you do something like the Cambridge diet, drastically cut calories and live off shakes or whatever, that's hardly sustainable long term, so no wonder people regain the weight.
I've only logged on MFP for 894 days but I haven't really changed what I eat. I actually eat more now than I used to, and eat more protein, but I haven't massively changed what I eat. I was always of the eat 1200 calories or fewer to lose weight before I read the forums here.0 -
I've done harder things for a longer time… and maintained it. Losing weight is NOT the hardest thing I've ever done. I know what I'm capable of.
And what makes me different… I'm not goal oriented… I'm process oriented. The scale doesn't determine my success… so stalls or plateaus don't break me or even really disappoint me that much. It's a whole different game for me.0 -
I think people who think those of us who lose weight for "vanity" are shallow.
If you've never experienced the psychological damage that comes along with a poor self image you might not realize how much aesthetic motivation can drive you to improve mental health. Feeling good about the way you look, having the mirror reflect more your true inner self, is powerful and life changing.0 -
cincysweetheart wrote: »I've done harder things for a longer time… and maintained it. Losing weight is NOT the hardest thing I've ever done. I know what I'm capable of.
And what makes me different… I'm not goal oriented… I'm process oriented. The scale doesn't determine my success… so stalls or plateaus don't break me or even really disappoint me that much. It's a whole different game for me.
You make a good point with being "process oriented". Thank you for sharing that- I think it is something I needed to hear today to make this not a diet but a lifestyle. I know from past experience that I will quit working the weight loss/maintenance program once I reach goal. Making the process a part of the rest of my life is the key. Thanks!!
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I've been working out consistently for 4 years now. I've educated on myself on the correct ways to do things..and believe it or not, truly KNOWING and LEARNING how to actually do something makes you way more confident in your decisions....and also this ...
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smittybuilt19 wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »Actually, for most people losing weight isn't the issue...maintaining the weight loss is. By and large, people talk a good talk about "lifestyle" change...but really, it's just words...most people never implement such a change.
I lost about 40 Lbs and I've maintained that loss for over 1.5 years and counting. I am very committed to nutrition and to my fitness. I'm a former athlete and once I got back into things I realized how much I missed it and how much I missed being fit and healthy. Also for me it was not so much about losing Lbs as it was reversing a bunch of bad blood work.
There's a high to losing. I felt no high trying to maintain. I'm back up about 20lbs and having a heck of a time losing.
I personally had no maintenance strategy and it shows.
That's one of the most honest admissions I've ever seen on this board. It's refreshing.
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I guess the way I see it is that I never plan to "maintain"...I always plan to gain muscle or lose fat...I don't ever not want to push myself to be better0
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