What is your WHY?
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DBrooks1979 wrote: »My why's for getting fit...
I want to avoid diabetes which runs in my family,
I want to be a healthier and better husband,
I want to be at the weight I was as a Marine
I want to live long and not deal with unnecessary health problems
All great reasons. Thank you for sharing and thank you for your service.
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I love this thread. I'm so glad it was resurrected. It's made me really think about why I'm doing what I'm doing. A couple years ago, I started watching what I eat and lost about 50 lbs, but I didn't really have a good reason other than "to look better." Well, that didn't stick. When I moved cross-country, my eating habits changed and were worse than they were before I had lost the weight, and I had to say hello again to those 50 lbs. A couple weeks ago after hearing about MFP on one of the Fitbit forums, I decided to see what the hoopla is about, and I'm so glad I did. In the past 16 days, I've been more dedicated to eating well than I ever have been and kept thinking to myself "this time feels different." I didn't really think about WHY until I read this thread. Here are my whys, in no particular order:
- I refuse to be the fattest one in my family anymore.
- I'm sick & tired of not being able to do activities because I am not fit.
- I want to be able to find clothes I like in my size.
- I HATE feeling tired all the time and getting sick WAY more often than I should.
- I want to actually feel good about my appearance.
- I'm tired of being the "stereotypical" overweight, unhealthy gamer. I want to be the "hot" girl gamer, NOT the overweight girl gamer.
- I REFUSE to spend my 30s as unhealthy, closed off and shut in as my 20s were.
- I want to be able to drop and do 10 pushups like it's nothing.
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I love this thread. I'm so glad it was resurrected. It's made me really think about why I'm doing what I'm doing. A couple years ago, I started watching what I eat and lost about 50 lbs, but I didn't really have a good reason other than "to look better." Well, that didn't stick. When I moved cross-country, my eating habits changed and were worse than they were before I had lost the weight, and I had to say hello again to those 50 lbs. A couple weeks ago after hearing about MFP on one of the Fitbit forums, I decided to see what the hoopla is about, and I'm so glad I did. In the past 16 days, I've been more dedicated to eating well than I ever have been and kept thinking to myself "this time feels different." I didn't really think about WHY until I read this thread. Here are my whys, in no particular order:
- I refuse to be the fattest one in my family anymore.
- I'm sick & tired of not being able to do activities because I am not fit.
- I want to be able to find clothes I like in my size.
- I HATE feeling tired all the time and getting sick WAY more often than I should.
- I want to actually feel good about my appearance.
- I'm tired of being the "stereotypical" overweight, unhealthy gamer. I want to be the "hot" girl gamer, NOT the overweight girl gamer.
- I REFUSE to spend my 30s as unhealthy, closed off and shut in as my 20s were.
- I want to be able to drop and do 10 pushups like it's nothing.
That is fantastic. Good for you. I'm glad youfound my post too. when I found my why and started focusing on that, I became so much more determined and consistent. The other thing I did was start focusing on how I would feel when I started achieving those goals. Let me tell you, whoa, what a rush.
So, my question for you, and really think on this, how will you feel when you achieve your goals? Not being the fattest one in your family anymore, being the hot gamer, etc?
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I have a few "why's"
1) I would like to actually finish and accomplish a goal.
2) My husband and I are going on our first vacation since our honeymoon, and I don't want to worry about how my clothes look on me the whole time.
3) I ride horses and it hurts a lot less to fall off when you are fit.
4) I see my father deteriorating physically because he never took care of his body. I don't want that to happen to me.
5) I now have a desk job and I don't want to fall into the typical effects of sitting all day.0 -
My two year old!
He is my why.0 -
I couldn't wash myself to my liking all of a sudden. After that I was like NOOOOOPE.
Plus my girlfriend had been gaining over the last couple years due in part to me feeding her. She was unhappy with herself and I felt it was my responsibility.
So far i have lost 23lbs and she has lost 11!0 -
jenmckane86 wrote: »I have a few "why's"
1) I would like to actually finish and accomplish a goal.
2) My husband and I are going on our first vacation since our honeymoon, and I don't want to worry about how my clothes look on me the whole time.
3) I ride horses and it hurts a lot less to fall off when you are fit.
4) I see my father deteriorating physically because he never took care of his body. I don't want that to happen to me.
5) I now have a desk job and I don't want to fall into the typical effects of sitting all day.Amanda_elainee94 wrote: »My two year old!
He is my why.Damien_Scott wrote: »I couldn't wash myself to my liking all of a sudden. After that I was like NOOOOOPE.
Plus my girlfriend had been gaining over the last couple years due in part to me feeding her. She was unhappy with herself and I felt it was my responsibility.
So far i have lost 23lbs and she has lost 11!
All excellent reasons why! Thank you for sharing. Aside from using this site, what do you do to help you achieve your goals?
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My WHY is 6 years old and she's going to the first grade.0
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I work in rural healthcare. On a daily basis I see obese elderly women trundling down the hallway for medical procedures to ease the pain and suffering caused by carrying too much fat.
I'm 35. Biologically, I'm at a turning point. My size and thickness is increasing. I look pregnant and struggle to reach my toes - I'm flexible, but I can't maneuver around my belly fat.
If I continue to do nothing, I will end up just like the obese elderly women I see in our hospital. I don't want to be like that. It's not for me. Dude, the change has to happen now.
Aside from using this site, I joined a Tae Kwon Do studio to get in shape. I didn't like our local gym. It wasn't friendly and I didn't feel welcome there. I sought out other places and found the martial arts studio. It's the best place for me.0 -
My turning point was losing my father in 2014.
We had a tongue in cheek bet going: first one under 200 wins.
It's my way of honoring his memory- coping with the grief.2 -
I have a few whys, some light-hearted enough, one pretty serious.
1. I want to go skydiving, but when I signed up for my 'maiden voyage' this last spring, I was mortified to see that I was over the weight limit for women.
2. I want to stop being the 'fat friend.' Most of my friends never bring it up, and will strenuously avoid making comments about my body even as they go on and on about their own bodies, their friends and family's bodies, etc... And yet, we all know. The silence is louder than words, really. (On a somewhat related note- a few comparatively quite slender friends have not been particularly supportive of my intention to lose weight. They may be concerned that I'll go too far (history of eating disorders here), but I am fairly certain that they just... don't want me to lose weight. That would upset the order of things, after all. Someone has to be the fat one. Riiiiight? *eyeroll*)
3. And the serious one: My mom nearly died of an aggressive form of breast cancer a few years back. She is morbidly obese, has type 2 diabetes, neuropathy in her feet, sleep apnea, etc, etc... She takes terrible care of herself, constantly makes excuses for why she can't feel better/do more/eat less ("I want to enjoy myself! I'm getting the dessert."), and her long-term prospects are not good. If she doesn't make drastic changes, she'll continue to decline until she can no longer work, or even leave the house. She is 57. She is too young to be in the condition she's in. Most of the people in my family are overweight. Most of them are in pretty good condition for being larger, fortunately, but not mom.
4. I don't want to follow in her footsteps. I want to be healthy and happy and vibrant into and past my middle years. I want to feel attractive (haven't for, oh, 60 pounds or so now). I want to go out and do fun things, be engaged in the world, be energetic, be happy. I want to not disappear in the eyes of men because I am fat (and therefore, apparently unf*&^able). I don't want to RESIGN myself to a fate that I have just let happen to me. This, really, is about self-determination and the further development of me as the person that I want to be. I am taking over my own life.0 -
My "why" is simple...
- Look Good
- Feel Great
- Live Well
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All great reasons why. When you truly know what you are striving to avoid or accomplish the journey makes it so much easier.0
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VryIrishGirl76 wrote: »My turning point was losing my father in 2014.
We had a tongue in cheek bet going: first one under 200 wins.
It's my way of honoring his memory- coping with the grief.
I'm so sorry for your loss. You are responding like a champion. Hats off to you!0 -
I want to improve my health and self esteem. Most importantly, I want to be there for my son as long as possible and be able to do activities with him while he is young.0
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rachellosesitall85 wrote: »* The little girl inside of me has had enough abuse; it's time to unravel her cocoon and spread her wings...
* I'm tired of being the fattest family member
* I'm sick of using my body as a fat suit. A security blanket.
* I don't want to follow in the footsteps of my diabetic, high blood pressured relatives
* I should be able to pick the men I'm attracted to and not accept those who date "big women"
* I deserve to walk into a normal sized store and come out with more than shoes and jewelry.
* I've hidden myself for far too long and I'm over being invisible
* I deserve more self-love and attention that what I've given myself in the past
Man, I could've written those very words, particularly about using my fat as a security blanket. In fact, I think that was one of the main obstacles to my making the decision to lose weight. Fat was 'safe' (well, not really, not truly, but it sure felt like it). Fat meant that most people would leave me alone, women would be nice (if occasionally condescending), and men wouldn't see me at all. With the exception of the chubby chasers, that is. There is nothing quite like going on a few dates with a guy just to realize he's only there because you are his body type fetish. Ummmm, no. Yuck.
Of course, being skinny sure doesn't solve everything and has its own host of social issues (former skinny person here- not particularly looking forward to all the creepers coming back out of the woodwork), but in general life is easier, and being healthy rocks!
I wish you well on your journey. We'll get to the next leg (maintenance) before we even know it!
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-So when I get pregnant this year (hopefully), I can have a healthier pregnancy for me and my baby
-So that my size is not the first thing people notice about me
-So that I'm not afraid to go out and socialize0 -
Wow, great thread! My WHY's are the following:
* I would like to stick with something for once, and what better 'something' than my health and fitness?
* I don't look fat because I have a small face and thin limbs. Everything goes to my stomach/gut, so I feel ashamed to expose that part of my body because I think people will be shocked/horrified/disappointed.
* I want to look good, period. Losing those love handles will make me feel more confident for sure.
* I want to grow old in a healthy manner. When I have kids, I want to be able to teach them by example.0 -
Lots of poignant responses. Here are my why's:
1. I love the feeling of being fit. At least what I remember of it
2. Once I hit 50, I lost my desire to look "hot". But my "no one's looking at me anyway" attitude has to go. Not only can I look much better than I do now, but I can look fit, polished, and put together, at any age.
3. I have a young grandson and may have more grandchildren as the years go by. I want to be able to do more than put them on my lap and read stories. I want to be active with them.
4. Mortality, or the thought of it, starts to rear its ugly head as you age. The penalty for abusing your body grows more imminent once you hit 50. At a minimum, my feet and knees will thank me for taking some pounds off. Sixty and seventy year old me will be grateful for the changes I am making now.
5. It's time to prove to myself that I don't have to "give it my all" to be fit and slim. I can incorporate exercise and a very moderate calorie deficit into my life without dedicating every waking thought to losing weight and getting fit.0 -
I am tired of being the "fat girl"
I want to be taken seriously at my Career.0
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