How many times did you try?

WalkingAlong

Every day is a try. I get better at it the older I get. I prefer not to think of it as a 30+ year battle but as 'how much heavier would I be if I didn't battle it at all?' I've been up to 50 lbs. overweight but tend to keep it in the 0-20 over range, so I count that as pretty successful. I don't think I'll be high school sized again, or even college, or at least I don't care to give up what it would take to achieve that. I'm happy if I can keep myself down to a women's size 12, though I'd prefer the 8s in my closet.

AllonsYtotheTardis

I gave a couple half-hearted tries for a couple weeks, different 'diets'. Then just continued making excuses for a few years. This is my first real "my heart is in this" try.

Siansonea

Care to share what worked for you?

In the 90s, I restricted carbs, which of course also restricted calories as a side benefit.

In the early 2000s, I just barely ate anything, which of course created a calorie deficit as a side benefit.

This fall, I just went for a calorie deficit. Bang. Weight came off. :drinker:

RosaliaBee

Once if the requirement is that you intend to lose weight.

Twice if it counts that I changed my diet solely for athletic performance (weight loss was a side effect).

Three times if it counts that I increased my activity levels tremendously, but my diet didn't really change and I wasn't trying to lose.

FWIW, I think it's easier to succeed for those of us who had generally decent eating habits for most of our lives. I gained weight in the last couple of years because more restaurants + not consciously limiting my portions ever + desk job = fat gain. It wasn't too hard to reverse that process, just hard to get to the point I decided I needed to do it.

I think it must be really tough if you've struggled with eating issues and a heavy weight all your life, on multiple levels. I've tried and successfully lost weight twice before, once in my late teens (about 10lb) and once in my late twenties after an injury (about 28lb). Both times it felt pretty easy, though neither time have I been faced with this volume of weight. If I'd grown up as obese as I currently am, I think it would have had a really challenging impact on my self-image and beliefs about my identity. Even now I still think of myself as someone who needs to "lose weight to get back to normal" rather than an "obese person trying to get slim". That may simply be because of the way I perceive things, but I think it's probably a helpful way to perceive things.

Keiras_Mom

I have no idea. A whole lot! I would always have good success for a few months, then get discouraged or feel too restricted and throw in the towel. As so many of us did/do, I'd gain back everything I lost plus more.

This time I found a plan that worked for me, where I didn't feel deprived, and it just sort of clicked. I am now 30 pounds below my original goal, and so happy. I've been maintaining for nearly a year, and I think I can do it for the rest of my life. It's an amazing feeling!

Care to share what worked for you?

Intermittent fasting is what finally worked for me. I do JUDDD (Dr. Johnson's Up Day Down Day diet), so I really only "diet" every other day.

BrainyBurro

only once (this current effort).

never tried to lose weight before November 2011.

i wasn't fat until starting a 10-12 year stretch in my mid-30's. of course i wanted to lose the weight i was gaining at various times during that stretch, but i was one of those "i'll start on monday" people and i never really knew what i needed to do to lose weight, so i thought i was going to have to eat salads and other unappetizing stuff to do so... hence the "i'll start on monday" mindset.

GreekAmericanChrissy

Multiple times lost/gained/lost/gained...but now, I'm doing it for good!

michael1976_ca

this is my third time. the first time i lose 57 pound taking classes doing cardio and weight training. then i fell hard on emotion gained 37 pounds back. i switch gyms i went alot took some classes and gave up. stayed in maintence mode for over a year. i just started again 5 month ago after moveing away from the city my work outs are at home. i'm having some good results. i just have to get up push play every day. weights comming off not as fast as i would like it to

WhiteRabbit1313

Care to share what worked for you?

A not so condensed history for you:

Well, I've never been really, really big; I've always had the big thighs and butt that I've been fighting against since I hit puberty. I've always been able to drop 5 or 10 lbs. pretty easily, but I've never been slender. Ever. Not even as a child.

The largest I've been was 180 (I'm 5'2") due to intentionally overeating, because I told I didn't eat enough in my early 20's, when I was living on alcohol, etc. (I overcompensated re-learning how to eat well.) However, I was able to lose down to 145 lbs. over a few months really easily once I saw a picture of myself, just by cutting back on my portion sizes, visually/intuitively.

After that, I had trouble moving down from that, and my doctor prescribed Meridia (Sibutrimine) to me, which is now banned in the U.S. I lost down to 125 lbs. and gained about 10 lbs. back after I was off of it for a few months (naturally, because quick fixes don't work, right?).

Then, my husband and I decided to have a baby. I gained 37 lbs. during my pregnancy. I was 172 lbs. when I delivered my little girl and 163 lbs. for the next year and a half, because I was nursing, not trying to diet, and was totally ravenous.

So, to your question, this last time, I decided to lose weight was in Aprilish of 2012. I read "French Women Don't Get Fat" (which isn't true! I've seen fat French women. haha!), but that book really helped me to understand how to make tiny changes that produced results. It focuses on quality over quantity, small portions, and NO GUILT. It doesn't matter what your size is, you should not feel guilty to fuel your body! I lost 15 lbs. in a few months just by cutting down on portions and eating better quality foods. Then, some friends and I decided to do a Biggest Loser Challenge, in which I became over-competitive, resorted to strict Atkins Induction for a couple of months. I lost 10 lbs. in the first two months and plateaued for months, in which, I struggled with why my low carb diet wasn't working for that time period. Then, I realized that it wasn't the carbs; it was *ding, ding, ding* THE CALORIES that I needed to control. (Really dumb, I know, but PLENTY of us fall into that trap. Others, do extremely well with LC, but not me.) So, I starting using MFP a couple of months ago, counted calories faithfully, and have lost 8 lbs. more.

I'm 130ish lbs. now, which is what I weighed in high school. Now, I'm stalling again, and I've always wanted to be 110 lbs. like the charts say I "should" be. This is why I've never been happy with my weight and always struggled with it. I'm to the point, that I know exercise (above and beyond walking, which I do on weekdays for 1-3 miles, in addition to normal activity) is in order. If I'm ever going to trim up my hips and thighs, I either need lipo- or serious exercise. I'm considering a Beach Body plan (like P90X) or weight lifting.

So, yeah. I hope you can get something from that. It might be that I'm struggling with genetics and don't want to admit that. I'm not giving up, yet, though.

marisbowen

COUNTLESS. I never did fad diets, just exercise and eat healthier. I grew up chubby until the summer before High School. I started running every night. That summer I stuck it out went from jean size 24 to 8. Of course I was a young girl at the time. Than school started and I went back to my old habits and bumped up to 12. Stayed there until I turned 21 and I started gaining and gaining until I was at my heavist at 316! I didn't actually start trying until about 4 years ago. Since than, I would get tired of exercising...I just wanted to go home and read books! But than I would start exercising again, than get tired or bored and go back to just reading.

My biggist thing is food. I still crave the junky fatty foods. I never just give in, I wait a few days/weeks or even a month! Until I finally cave and eat Taco Bell or whatever unhealthy food group I happen to want. Than its the fight of trying not to cave again or say I'll try to eat healthy tomorrow or Monday. Its a constant trying process with food. And no, just keeping it in my calorie count for the day doesn't work. It's not just one little cheeseburger, I want the mcnuggets and shake too. LOL So that doesn't work. When I blow my helathy eating, I blow my calorie count out the water.

In the 4 years, I'm done 67lbs! I've learned to never look at WHERE or WHAT I screwed up. I focus on how I kept trying. Trying is proving to myself that I can keep going no matter what and still lose.

mmm_drop

Third time is a charm for me.

Twice previously I tried and lost the weight, without exercise, through diet only. Once I stopped watching what I ate the weight crept back on.

This time I started with diet (just eating at a deficit), slowly added exercise and now am addicted and this is now my life. I'm healthy and happy and actually fit!

WhiteRabbit1313

And no, just keeping it in my calorie count for the day doesn't work. It's not just one little cheeseburger, I want the mcnuggets and shake too. LOL So that doesn't work. When I blow my helathy eating, I blow my calorie count out the water.

You sound like me on eating multiple things. I figured out, for me, that I require multiple flavors and textures at each meal. So, portion sizes are definitely important! If I want a cheeseburger, McNuggets, and a shake, I have to divide it all, first, into calorie budget-friendly portions, then toss the rest. Ex: Half the burger, 2 nuggets, and 2-4 sips of the shake. Sounds wasteful, but starving children wouldn't get that food if I ate it, either. Before I learned I could throw the excess away, I used to save it and re-heat it for later meals. That worked well, too.

I'm glad you're focused and determined now, though. I wish you the best of luck!

WhiteRabbit1313

In the 4 years, I'm done 67lbs! I've learned to never look at WHERE or WHAT I screwed up. I focus on how I kept trying. Trying is proving to myself that I can keep going no matter what and still lose.

^^This! I had to learn that one mistake didn't mean I blew the whole deal. It's about progress, not perfection.

marisbowen

And no, just keeping it in my calorie count for the day doesn't work. It's not just one little cheeseburger, I want the mcnuggets and shake too. LOL So that doesn't work. When I blow my helathy eating, I blow my calorie count out the water.

You sound like me on eating multiple things. I figured out, for me, that I require multiple flavors and textures at each meal. So, portion sizes are definitely important! If I want a cheeseburger, McNuggets, and a shake, I have to divide it all, first, into calorie budget-friendly portions, then toss the rest. Ex: Half the burger, 2 nuggets, and 2-4 sips of the shake. Sounds wasteful, but starving children wouldn't get that food if I ate it, either. Before I learned I could throw the excess away, I used to save it and re-heat it for later meals. That worked well, too.

I'm glad you're focused and determined now, though. I wish you the best of luck!

That sounds like a good idea in theory, but its like I go into a food black out! I tell me self only one piece or one bite, than I look down and see only crumbs! lol Its a constant struggle, but I'm down another pound this week! And I had homemade pizza twice this week. lol OMG. It's a never ending learning process and I'm okay with that. =]

seltzermint555

Honestly not that many. Even though I was obese from my early teens to now (age 37) I truly was not all that bothered. I was in denial, partly. But also, I just didn't experience that many of the downs of being so overweight...no problems with jobs, friends, or dating, no criticism from family, and no health concerns to speak of until I spiked to my heaviest weight and suddenly lost that lifelong high energy etc.

During my 20s there were probably a half dozen times that I decided I was going to lose weight, and for me that (at the time) meant eating little to nothing - just salads for two or three days - and then going right back to my usual habits. And those were never a "big deal" to me, no public announcement or WW/Jenny Craig etc. No diets.

It wasn't until my 30s that I made a *true* effort to lose. And it was mainly through exercise and small dietary changes. I lost 40+ lb before discovering MFP and losing more weight by realizing the little dietary mistakes I was making for years, and finding out how much impact counting calories can have.

walkdmc

Too many to count. I've been dieting, voluntarily or not, since I was 10. A few years ago I felt so discouraged after countless failed attempts and reached out for support on another weight loss site. Someone posted, "So what you've tried a million times. If you're not trying, what are you doing? I plan on trying until I get it right." <<<that response has stuck with me since.

rduhlir

Depends on the actual attempt to be honest. I "tried" hap-hazardly to lose weight for years, but was never truly into it. So tried countless times this way.

But with true determination and commitment only once...and I am still going strong.

seltzermint555

Every time I'm made a sustained effort to lose weight, I've done so. I've also maintained my results for several years after each effort. I even lost a ton of weight by accident one time, just because I was busy and depressed. Best diet ever. :smokin:

And each time I regained weight, I never gained back all of it. My all-time high adult weight was in 1993, when I was a soda-drinkin' desk jockey. Now I'm a diet soda-drinkin' desk jockey, and it's made a huge difference in my weight over the years. I had another high water mark in early 2002, but it was about 10 pounds less than my 1993 weight. And this last summer, my weight had crept up high again, but it was still 10 pounds less than my 2002 spike. Now I'm back at my goal weight, the same weight I had been all through high school. :drinker:

I think I have the hang of this now, I don't think I'll be spiking up again, not very much anyway. :bigsmile:

WAT!? I have seen you posting on here for ages and I always assumed you were a teenager or under 25 at least. Whoa.

susankaney

I'd have to say I'm still trying. I'll turn 60 in four months, and on this diet that I started January 1, 2013 I have currently lost 41 pounds. MFP says 39, I think, but I had started and lost a few before I found this site. However, that said, this is my third time losing at least 40 pounds. For me, it's not the losing of the weight that's so hard; it's MAINTAINING the loss after you've reached your goal. What has worked for me to lose weight is setting a daily calorie limit and sticking with that. Once a month I call a "diet free" day and eat anything I want, because I psychologically need that reward. Then I go right back to my daily calorie intake the following day. My reason for starting this diet is because I have a daughter who was supposed to get married this past August, and I wanted to look good for her special day. Then she delayed it one year, so it will be August 2014. I am determined to keep this weight off for then and then keep it off just for myself. I am happy when I look in the mirror! I've gone from a size 18 down to a size 8. (I'm only 5'2" so a little weight makes a big difference!) I've read everybody's comments who posted, and I want to wish all of you the very best and pray that you will all make and maintain your goals.