What was your "wakeup call"?

amandarawr06

When I was having trouble fitting into XL shirts when shopping. (Am now down to a L - sometimes a medium).

Also, when walking past window front stores or mirrors in public and refused to make eye contact with my reflection because I was so ashamed of what I had become.

Charloo1990

The number on the scales and the before pics I took, they're absolutely hideous.

mikebooker1

Joined a hiking group in February to meet new people and I enjoy hiking, but it somehow escaped my notice that I was extremely unfit and quite overweight.
I couldn't do it, kept the entire group up waiting for me continuously so I could catch my breath! I couldn't finish it, I let them go on without having to wait, and just went home before everyone. Didn't have the guts to go back to that group again, felt so ashamed that I didn't realise how far I'd let myself go. But I worked on my fitness and weight goals over a few months and recently went back with my partner and completed the entire hiking route without even having to stop once. I'm kinda glad it happened.

similar thing happened to me... great for you!

glenelliott5872

(1) Having a friends kid nick naming me "Big Fat Belly Boy"
(2) Snoring
(3) Sleep Apnea
(4) getting out of breath climbing the stairs
(5) wearing elasticated trousers
(6) being shown MFP and realising that losing weight was possible

Learning2LoveMe64

my ex husband and i are still real good friends. His wife who is about 10 years younger than me, and about 100 lbs lighter had a heart attack and nearly died. It made me take a real good look at myself and i knew i had to make some changes if i want to live

MegE_N

The thought of going wedding dress shopping, but none of the samples would fit me.

djprice_69

Going to a Kohl's store to get a new pair of jeans & dress pants for work, and everything being too small. I've been 'big' my whole life, but that was a terribly humiliating experience. I'm down about 25 lbs from there so far.

nopotofgold

:grumble: Pants not fitting.

cindylou1992

Realising that if I got pregnant now I would have a bump surrounded by a big layer of fat. I would look fatter, not pregnant. I want the cute little bump whenever it happens. Plus I got on the scales and I'm massive now.

nobel99

Finding it ridiculously expensive to keep buying bigger sizes in clothes when I had so many perfectly good shirts/pants packed away in bins. My fat clothes were too tight....it was sad and pathetic. I'm now enjoying my regular sizes (sizes I wore in my before-kids years) & clothes shopping is much more enjoyable. I went from a size 12 pants to a size 6 and feel much better. I still have 10 pounds to go before I'm "happy" but it's been a great learning experience, logging all my food and evaluating the worth/worthlessness of certain foods. I also value the fact that I need to MOVE everyday.... walking and taking the stairs. Being lazy is not a healthy option.

emily889

Actually, a couple days ago I was getting dressed and looked over in the mirror and saw how massive I was. I always knew I was overweight/not healthy looking, and I had a picture in my mind what I looked like, but it wasn't nearly as bad as what I saw in the mirror. I am starting to be more strict with my food today, I am hitting the gym the first time in a while tonight, and I am planning a hike tomorrow!

sharonpink

I don't think it was any "straw that broke the camel's back" kind of thing. I have been tired for months, and it's been harder and harder for me to move to get out of a chair. My stomach gets in the way of everything. I got on the scale at the doctor's (hadn't been on one in months) and it was up to 286. Realized then that I had to do something. My size 24 slacks and jeans couldn't be zipped up without laying down. Didn't and won't buy 26. Now I've been back on here for about 6 weeks, and I'm down 14 pounds and I can zip up my pants without laying down. Small baby steps I know, but I don't feel as tired (except when I overeat) and I feel so much better just physically and that's just with 14 pounds! What am I going to feel like when I get to goal? I can't imagine how good I will feel then, but I can't wait to find out!!!

brainsndbeauty

Well I had a friend that always would talk down to me call me fat say I was too big , that I looked like a bear driving my car... Just every mean thing he could say to me. I started just feeling like I wasn't good enough. So i started eating more and picking up bad habits like smoking. On top of that I was stressed in school. But one day I noticed that when I was walking I was panting and it was hard to breathe. So I weighed myself...

Getting on the scale and it said 250!!... I knew I had to make a change!!

ValhallaBound

For me it was the number on the scale and my age. It was time to make some changes.

Icandoityayme

My wake up call was a picture. I was asked to take a picture with my guy on the back of a Harley. I really didn't want to do it but it was Father's day so I went with it. His daughter took the picture and showed it to me and I just about fell on the ground because of how bad it looked. I thought I looked pretty decent for a big girl but that picture blew that thought out of the water. Then she posted it on facebook not meaning anything by it but it was enlarged compared to the pic on her phone and I cried when I went to bed. I didn't sleep all night. I cried most of the morning the next day and then I got mad. Mad at myself for being so lazy and unmotivated. Mad that I let myself go like this. I posted that awful pic on my laptop as my wallpaper so I had to look at it every day to remind myself that this is not the real me. So, I decided to change this mess. I have not stopped or made any excuses since then. I am so glad I started this program and I am very grateful to those who have been encouraging because it makes such a big difference to hear you are doing great.

brainsndbeauty

Making a deal with myself that I can't buy myself a surfboard until I hit under 200lbs, considering I'm going surfing end of August and I'm currently 205, might just make it .

Good luck you can make it under 200!!!

bluesarah13

When the scale hit 250 and the Dr said I was pre-diabetic with high blood pressure. I got home that day and was so disgusted with myself. The next day I joined the gym and hired a personal trainer. Eating better has been a struggle but I keep working at it.

wlapp1107

Four months ago my doc said I needed to go on high blood pressure meds. He gave me two months to go salt free to see if that was behind it. When I went back I had lost 30 pounds and 10 points off the blood pressure. He then gave me three months more as I told him I have no interest in meds. Once you start one medication things just tend to go downhill and the meds multiply.

I had walked religiously two summers ago and saw little effect because I didn't have MFP to show me the impact the food was having. Now that I understand portion sizes and have found some great alternatives (like PB2) everything is clicking. I look forward to the doc visit in six weeks but still realize there's more work for me.

fullersun35

There wasn't one. I just gradually starting getting tired of feeling and looking bad.

MarziPanda95

Mostly other people around me losing weight... My sister went from being a little overweight to being underweight. And whilst I don't want to be underweight at all (I like my curves - the ones that are in the right places!) and my friend has gone from near obese to only just overweight. Not to mention figuring out my BMI and realising I'm an obese 18-year-old. I also ordered a dress in the size I thought I was and it didn't fit. It still doesn't, but I'm working on it! Also, upcoming events. I'm going on holiday late August and I'm heading to uni in early September and want to make a good first impression and be a new me by the time I go.

JCrazyRunner5

I got tired of telling myself I was wearing 40inch jeans because I liked 38inch loose. One day I went to GAP and a 38 wouldn't button at all. I had been lying to myself for years. Went from a 40inch, down to a 35inch, and XXL shirts, to M/L shirts.

I still want to lose some more, but cant motivate myself at all. Its depressing.

IMissSports

I really don't know what changed for me. I had just spent a weekend with my boyfriend because it was his father's 50th birthday and on the train back home I just decided I needed to lose weight. That was that. And I've not looked back since.

spacemonkey75

When I got on the scale one morning (weighing myself for the first time in about 5 years) and the scale said "217." Now I'm 150 and still working on it....

sammama5

I hit 200 for the third time in my life. The first two times, I was pregnant, and that third time I wasn't. I also needed a new dress for church, and didn't like the way any fit in the store. So, I decided to sew one myself. The problem was not the dresses in the store (obvious to everybody else, but not me.)
I think I wore that dress 2 times, and then it was too big. :-) I'm thinking about tearing it apart and making a smaller one now that is not tent-like in any way! LOL

djprice_69

Four months ago my doc said I needed to go on high blood pressure meds. He gave me two months to go salt free to see if that was behind it. When I went back I had lost 30 pounds and 10 points off the blood pressure. He then gave me three months more as I told him I have no interest in meds. Once you start one medication things just tend to go downhill and the meds multiply.

I had walked religiously two summers ago and saw little effect because I didn't have MFP to show me the impact the food was having. Now that I understand portion sizes and have found some great alternatives (like PB2) everything is clicking. I look forward to the doc visit in six weeks but still realize there's more work for me.

I just have to say - very nice work on your part! I hope you're able to keep up your efforts as it seems to be that you're doing very well. Kudos :-)

joshblaine1980

Mine was getting hit upside the head... literally. I had gotten up early with the wife to take her to a 4 mile race on the 4th of July last year. When we tried to leave the garage door came off track and wouldn't close. I ended up staying back to fix it so to avoid us coming home to an extra "clean" garage. Well, if you have ever heard anyone say the garage door is the most dangerous thing in your house, they weren't kidding. The bracket that attaches the door to the spring came away from the door hitting me just over the eye and knocking me out. Concussion and some stitches, nothing overly serious. The wake up call (in no reference to my regained consciousness of course lol) came from seeing a picture of myself on a bed at the hospital that was less than flattering. Why my dad thought it was a Kodak moment, I'll never know. Anyways I decided that looked a little too soft and started on here and working out. I am down 47 pounds and have dropped more than 10% body fat. Also, I ran the 4 mile race this 4th of July, one year after I had some "sense" knocked into me.

Sherbear1109

After basically not sleeping for a year, due to my youngest not sleeping, I booked myself a hotel room and slept as long as I could for the first time in 6 years. Getting a full nights rest kind of woke my mind up a bit and I started really noticing the damage I had done to my body by not eating, sleeping, or excercising well for the last 6 years. I decided it was time for me to get back to taking care of myself, too.

karenrebeccadavis

I read your post and it really hit home for me. I spent the past 25 or so years feeling the same. Living in the past about what my body used to look like and instead of doing something about it, I just kept eating and getting more depressed about my physical appearance. I'm tired of hearing you have a pretty face.

I am very fortunate to have a 20 year old daughter that is health and nutrition focused. I have watched her over the past few years stay true to her fitness and watched what she ate. Then it hit me like a ton of brick a few weeks ago. She put me on a 4 week program to get me started on a healthy path.

Since the begining of my journey I have quit smoking and with the changes in my diet, havent had a craving or fell off the wagon.

I'm no longer having heart papitations and anxiety about whether each pain is a heart attack or stroke. Mentally, each day I feel more and more impowered to do this for myself.

JaneyB311

I had previously lost 50lb and then regained it all, and seeing the scales hit the original number, which had been my heaviest ever, was the catalyst.

However a lot of other things contributed; i'd always been an emotional eater but had sought counselling to tackle food as a coping mechanism; my father had a stroke which was found to be the result of diabetes; I was bursting out of my UK size 20 clothes (US 16); I was heavier then than when I was pregnant; I was 32 years old with aching knees and ankles and out of breath walking no distance; my marriage had broken down and it was time for a fresh start - I would not be a fat, frumpy Mummy to my gorgeous little girl.

So a perfect storm of things really, which has led me to be super motivated still after 8 months. I've now gone down 4 clothes sizes on top and 3 on the bottom and I wake up happy every single day, with exercise as my stress buster now, not bread & chocolate!!

BigT555

no real change in the month before i started losing weight compared to the 8 years previous, but i attribute my wake up call to my 21st birthday. i guess i just had enough, realized that i had to take care of myself if i wanted to be happy with my self image