For those who weigh 300 pounds and up

amusedmonkey

I can imagine that when you say you are not trying to offend any one that you mean it but... Come on..

I thought the same thing....but I figured she just worded it badly. I'm sure she is just curious looking for things to avoid doing.

ORRRR maybe she just wants to hear all the fatties' stories. ******* WHY DOES A PERSON AT 160LBS CARE HOW SOMEONE ELSE GOT TO 300LBS? JUST SEEMS LIKE *kitten* KIND OF QUESTION. IJS

I wonder the same thing sometimes. Not to be *kitten*-ish..
But I experience such a high level of discomfort getting to be 50+ pounds overweight that I'm compelled to start dealing with it.

I don't quite understand how someone can gain 100 pounds or more and be comfortable or unwilling to deal with it unless they're suffering from mobility or medical issues.

I would never have come out and asked outright however.. lol.. but in my case I think I'm trying to understand how other people think.

It doesn't happen over night...it's those 5 lbs at a time you get used to it, you deny it's happening. If it was 100lbs all at once, people would definitely be uncomfortable. When you're complacent and comfortable it's hard to make a big change.
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Your question is legit and simply comes from not realizing that different people have different thresholds due to various reasons and often hardships. To some other person, they may find it hard to understand how you managed to gain 50 lb when they feel gross and uncomfortable gaining 10. If you hear them say that you think "ugh, third world problems.. they're overacting for a measly 10 pounds and looking down on me for gaining 50". They may be genuinely as bothered by gaining 10 as you are by gaining 50, and may really find it hard to understand how you managed it, simply because they are not you!

When the gain is very gradual, not 50 lb in a year but 100 in 10 years, you hardly notice it. You know you are changing your size every couple of years but it doesn't feel drastic enough to warrant immediate action, especially if you really don't care because you are dealing with other issues that are taking up more of your emotional capacity than a silly few extra pounds creeping on.

Chibukalu908

Remember folks, just because you find someone offensive or condescending doesn't mean that everyone does. I'd imagine that's why more than a few others are willing to answer the OP's question without accusing them of trolling.

ecxactly,thank you.I thought this would be great place to ask this question since we are all on our jorney to weight loss.I woudnt dare to ask someone that in person.

Chibukalu908

I can imagine that when you say you are not trying to offend any one that you mean it but... Come on..

I thought the same thing....but I figured she just worded it badly. I'm sure she is just curious looking for things to avoid doing.

ORRRR maybe she just wants to hear all the fatties' stories. ******* WHY DOES A PERSON AT 160LBS CARE HOW SOMEONE ELSE GOT TO 300LBS? JUST SEEMS LIKE *kitten* KIND OF QUESTION. IJS

I wonder the same thing sometimes. Not to be *kitten*-ish..
But I experience such a high level of discomfort getting to be 50+ pounds overweight that I'm compelled to start dealing with it.

I don't quite understand how someone can gain 100 pounds or more and be comfortable or unwilling to deal with it unless they're suffering from mobility or medical issues.

I would never have come out and asked outright however.. lol.. but in my case I think I'm trying to understand how other people think.
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Same here.thats ecxactly what I think. My question was out of curiousity and I thought this place would be safe and appropriate to ask this question since we are all on weight loss journey and changing our lifestyle. I woudnt come right out and ask this someone in person as they would take an offense to it

smantha32

I don't quite understand how someone can gain 100 pounds or more and be comfortable or unwilling to deal with it unless they're suffering from mobility or medical issues.

^That is a douchey and ignorant remark. You certainly do NOT have to have any medical issues that cause you to gain that much. You don't know each one of us that has had this happen. pfft jerk.

I didn't say you did. I said I understand people gaining extreme amounts of weight from medical issues or issues relating to mobility.
Thank you for explaining your side of it.
\

PikaKnight

Remember folks, just because you find someone offensive or condescending doesn't mean that everyone does. I'd imagine that's why more than a few others are willing to answer the OP's question without accusing them of trolling.

ecxactly,thank you.I thought this would be great place to ask this question since we are all on our jorney to weight loss.I woudnt dare to ask someone that in person.

That's not actually true. Just to clear that up - We aren't all on a weight loss journey. It's a fitness site, not a weight loss one (though there are a lot of people on here with that goal). There are also people on here maintaining and looking to gain weight for whatever reasons.

:flowerforyou:

lyrics09

I didn't say you did. I said I understand people gaining extreme amounts of weight from medical issues or issues relating to mobility.
Thank you for explaining your side of it.

ok you're not a jerk, interpreted what ya said the wrong way. /brofist-- not sure if you do that there lol

smantha32

Your question is legit and simply comes from not realizing that different people have different thresholds due to various reasons and often hardships. To some other person, they may find it hard to understand how you managed to gain 50 lb when they feel gross and uncomfortable gaining 10. If you hear them say that you think "ugh, third world problems.. they're overacting for a measly 10 pounds and looking down on me for gaining 50". They may be genuinely as bothered by gaining 10 as you are by gaining 50, and may really find it hard to understand how you managed it, simply because they are not you!

When the gain is very gradual, not 50 lb in a year but 100 in 10 years, you hardly notice it. You know you are changing your size every couple of years but it doesn't feel drastic enough to warrant immediate action, especially if you really don't care because you are dealing with other issues that are taking up more of your emotional capacity than a silly few extra pounds creeping on.

Very succinct. Thank you!

Tiff050709

I ate a lot of bad food that tasted yummy. I didn't exercise at all. My depression led to eating to make myself feel better (in the moment).
After awhile I didn't care what I looked like and losing that much weight seemed impossible.

smantha32

I didn't say you did. I said I understand people gaining extreme amounts of weight from medical issues or issues relating to mobility.
Thank you for explaining your side of it.

ok you're not a jerk, interpreted what ya said the wrong way. /brofist-- not sure if you do that there lol

lol.. yeah things are easy to interpret differently based on writing styles. :flowerforyou:

amandzor

It doesn't happen over night. It's 2 pounds here, 5 pounds there. If you can lose 10 lbs in a month just be cutting an extra 500 cals a day, you can absolutely gain 10 lbs a month by having an extra 500 cals a day.

And if you've ever logged your food, you'll understand that 500 cals is NOT difficult to consume.

Many who get to be that big have underlying emotional hurdles including anxiousness, depression, etc. Although I never got to 300, I was much closer than I ever wanted to be. Food makes you feel good, and you can use it as a coping method.

Food will never judge you, and you can count on it being there, and being delicious. I, at least, developed an emotional attachment to food because everything else in my life was so ****ty. Now that food and I have "broken up" it's so much easier to turn that attachment on to people, activities, and healthier comforts.

6ftamazon

And to add, I kept telling myself I wasn't that big. Or people telling me I'm a tall girl (well tall doesn't mean you have to be fat lol). And not caring that I was destroying myself....there's a whole bunch of reasons why we get this big.

snowflake930

Sorry, I just don't get this attitude.
5 pounds 50 or 100 or 200 or 300. A lot of differing circumstances, life styles, etc, etc, etc.
There are millions of different individuals with millions of different reasons.
Walk a mile in their shoes, maybe it would be easier to understand.
We all are different..............snowflakes.

Murphy0126

I really wish people would stop blaming genetics and past abuse for their size.

A lot of people in my family suffer from obesity, and I was also abused to an extreme extent as a child, but my obesity is MY FAULT. No one elses.

I was lazy, the rest of my family is lazy.

OP, want to know how you can get over 300 lbs? Eat without regard for your own personal health. Have a large enough bank account to bank roll endless amounts of take outs. And just not care.

I reached 428 lbs by doing just this, and trying to put all the blame on my father, or on my mother, or on being bullied as a young child. It's all BS.

People need to take responsibility for themselves, and make the choice to change!

Chibukalu908

I have always been big. When I graduated from HS, I was about 240. Yes, I was overweight and yes, I should have lost weight, but part of it was a skewed view of others. The other guys were so thin. What I did not realize then was, I had matured faster and was already in my "adult" body, many of the other guys were still growing and developing.

Part of my problem was my senior yr in HS, I had gotten a job working in a concession stand at the local rec league ballpark. And we could pretty much eat whatever without paying. So, I indulged in too many candy bars, and too much popcorn and hotdogs and nachos and sugary sodas.

So I ended HS probably 40-50 lbs overweight.

In college, I was on my own and making all my own food choices and McDonalds 69 cent cheeseburgers were prefect for my wallet. So I continued to gain weight.

I took up tennis at 19 and my roommates and I played daily. I was not losing weight, but I was maintaining (mainly because we ate a lot of pizza and such). Then I met the love of my life. And I started spending all my time with her and not playing tennis. I kept eating the same and no exercise and started to gain more.

She and I were both overweight and we never wanted to nag each other, so our weight continued to go up.

After a few years of marriage, and a couple of kids, our weight had gone quite high. I was pushing 400 lbs (a number I had vowed never to reach). But I had a sedentary office job and kids and bills and an hour plus commute each way and no desire to eat better.

I did WWers, I did South Beach, I did Atkins, I did super low calorie medically supervised diets. On each I lost at least 50 lbs, but then life would happen and I would regain what I had lost and then some.

Finally a year ago, I had been diagnosed as a diabetic and was on a low dose of orals and a low dose of BP meds. I decided I needed to get rid of the weight once and for all.

So this past Feb, I had WL surgery. I am down 95 lbs, I have been exercising (walking mostly) for the past 4 months and I feel great.

I have a long way to go and am still over 300 lbs, but I am moving in the right direction.

The key is managing what you eat. Exercise has helped me physically, but the food is the main difference in the WL.

Wow good congradulations for your weight loss and thank you for sharing your story

Chibukalu908

At my peak I was at least 327 pounds. After I saw that number on the scale I didn't weigh myself for a while. Poor eating habits..eating the wrong things and WAY too much of those things got me there. Hopefully I will NEVER see a 3 in front of my weight again! Currently 221.2.

Congradulations on your weight loss.i wish you all the best

Chibukalu908

So... you've never weighed 300 pounds and you want to know how people can gain enough weight to reach 300 pounds... because... why? This is a personal question that often has a complex answer involving painful memories. You don't ask someone about something that's potentially traumatic and/or embarrassing unless you've either been there or have a serious need to know.

that's why I posted this question on this site since we are all on our weight loss jorney and trying to be healthier.I woudnt ask this someone in person for the reason you stated.As for anyone who find this offensive then you don't have to answer this question.You can just skip and go to the next one.thanks:happy:

cljones302

@ RobbNL:

Stop using abuse as excuse - that is a pretty a**-holish thing to say. I am happy for you that you were able to take control of your life and overcome your circumstances, but you might want to have some compassion and empathy for others. Every situation is different and unique.

What good does it do anyone to judge a situation that they were not a part of? I just dont see how that is a constructive statement at all.

Chibukalu908

I was over 300 lbs when I started this weight loss journey. Just like it doesn't come off overnight it doesn't go on overnight either. I hit 180 by 15 and then went up slowly, reaching 330 by 31, then lost 80 lbs in a year and spent the next 15 years working my way back to 300 again. The gradual change allowed me to ignore it or deny it. Yes my clothes got tighter, but I don't shop that frequently. I might go a year or two without changing sizes. I also hated to look at myself in the mirror or in photographs. All I saw was a fat blob. At some point it didn't really matter whether it was 250 or 300, I just hated myself.

I didn't eat because I was hungry. When I was bored, or sad or angry I ate. If you looked at what I ate during regular meals, my portions were reasonable and my food choices weren't terrible. The problem came in the snacking and the mindless eating I did, mostly in the evenings and on weekends. In other words food became a way not to deal with my other issues.

What changed was when my health started to suffer. I was diagnosed as a Type 2 diabetic about 5 years ago, but managed to control it for a while. Then last year I totally fell off the wagon and got to the point where I needed to take insulin. I did not want to go down that path. I started the insulin to get my blood glucose levels under control, but my goal became to lose weight and get off the insulin as quickly as possible. 5 months later I had lost enough weight I no longer needed insulin. 3 months after that I was able to reduce my oral medication to the minimum dose. At my next checkup I hope to be medication free all together.

I've learned a lot about myself and changed my relationship with food. I still find myself wanting to eat my emotions, but I recognize it and do a much better job of stopping myself and finding a more healthy way to deal with what I'm feeling.

thanks for sharing your story.Good luck on your journey

zodan1976

Not quite 300 but 270 is my highest weight. For me I was at a "normal" weight for all my life growing up. around 130 to 140 When I got pregnant with my first at the age of 31 I gained over 80lbs during this pregnancy. I didn't even realize that I had gained that much weight! I remember packing into my overnight bag a pair of jeans and a t shirt that I wore before (and they were my TOM jeans too) and the day I was getting dressed to go home they didn't fit.......not even close! BUT......I thought well this is because it had gotten sick with pneumonia and then I had to have an emergency c section. the weight will just come off on its own later when I get better.........so we get home and I lost my job while on maternity leave. so everyday I just wore pajamas or sweat pants. I didn't change my eating habits back to the way I was before. I continued to eat. ALOT. and I kept gaining weight. I finally got another job and i started maintaining my weight then at around 230ish. Then I got pregnant with my second child. I ended up with some medical conditions with him and I did good in not gaining more than 30lbs that time. The doctors took him via c section 5 weeks early due to my medical issues, so he had some medical issues of his own. For the first year of his life I was at home again. And then I just kept gaining. I was so busy with my children and typical household stuff that I just forgot about me. I didn't even go back to the doctor for myself. I just focused on my kids. Then we moved into our house last year in August and I had to pack all of my old clothes and I just realized at that moment how big I had gotten. At that time I was around 250. Then it was like no matter what I do I couldn't lose the weight. So finally I went to a doctor in Dec of 2013 and they ran a lot of test. and finally in May of this year I found that I have an under active thyroid. I have PCOS, and I am insulin resistant. All three of those things can cause you to gain weight. I am now taking medication for all three and I joined MFP and I am logging my foods and building myself up on being more active. I have lost 27lbs. since I started this journey. So in the end. that answer to your question is partly medical and partly lazy for me is how I gained so much weight.

6ftamazon

I really wish people would stop blaming genetics and past abuse for their size.

A lot of people in my family suffer from obesity, and I was also abused to an extreme extent as a child, but my obesity is MY FAULT. No one elses.

I was lazy, the rest of my family is lazy.

OP, want to know how you can get over 300 lbs? Eat without regard for your own personal health. Have a large enough bank account to bank roll endless amounts of take outs. And just not care.

I reached 428 lbs by doing just this, and trying to put all the blame on my father, or on my mother, or on being bullied as a young child. It's all BS.

People need to take responsibility for themselves, and make the choice to change!

So it's my fault the guy literally held me down and shoved food and then supplements down my throat? Yeah, I probably shouldn't have stayed, but we all know that there's manipulation going on in these kinds of relationships. Not everyone is strong enough to leave at the beginning. I'm glad you had the strength, but you would think you could be a little less harsh.

Tanie98

I only have 30 lbs to loose.I am fortunate that I never got that big

horsehockey

Years and years and years of a combination of being comfortable in my situation, a desk job, *really* enjoying food & alcohol, and a dose of not caring too much (stemming from a variety of other reasons).

Even at my most fit years ago, I had a pretty awful diet by most standards.

When you're (back) in the habit of closely watching your weight, it's hard to envision not doing that as part of the daily routine, but it's actually quite easy to wind up ignoring your own health altogether.

georgiaTRIs

I'vebeen way overweight before. It just slowly kept coming on! I had to work hard and stop the stupid eating and it was hard work. It can be done!!!!!! I've been at the same weight for several years now and am much happier.

hollymlb1

I have PCOS and my weight is a symptom of this. I have been fighting to treat PCOS as well as the weight for years but every time I would find something that worked (Bulimia, cutting out almost all carbs, not sweets, no this not that etc.) I would lose weight good for 3 to 6 months and then for one reason or the other I just could continue. And I would gain all the weight back plus some. Eventually the gain back lead me to 316 pounds. It sucks but I do believe I have a job that will last long term so I can keep going to the doctor and stay on my medicine, and I think how I am using this site is something I could do for the rest of my life. Hopefully by the end of the summer I am under 300.

arwFTW

I only have 30 lbs to loose.I am fortunate that I never got that big

Then why comment?

starseed777

It creeps up on you. Personally, I was in denial and used food to cope with stress. Thankfully, I am here and now weighing in the 200s. I know that there is hope. Cheers.

RosanaRosanaDana

how did you get that big in first place? I am not trying to offend anyone ,I am just curious.for me,i am naturally curvy so whenever I stop working out and not watch my diet I gain weight until I reach a certain weight or look. probably around 160`s and I am 5`3 but I never gain more even if I don't go back to the gym. So I was wondering with people who end up gaining up to 300 pounds, do they eat at least 5000 calories day to put on that much weight. This is just out of curiosity and I am sorry I offended anyone

I was like you, weight never went above 160. That is until I reach age 45 and started going through peri-menopause. The weight just kept adding on. I will be completely honest and tell you, I am probably one of the healthiest eaters I know, don't each much meat, NEVER beef, and I don't do FAST FOOD, mainly a vegetarian diet. Don't do dairy because I have health issues, so no cheese. You'll never find cookies or snacks in my house unless I'm entertaining guests and then I send it home with them. I haven't had a soda, diet or otherwise in say 20 years. I drink water infused with slices of orange.
So you asked, how did I get this big? My metabolism started to slow down, as my weight increased my exercise decreased and I developed a habit of drinking wine at night. And so my weight crept up to 257 at its highest and now I'm working damn hard to bring it back to where it should be.
I pray you never have to deal with such an issue but don't expect your weight will sit at 160 forever.

Sobus76

Before i started MFP i was 353, heaviest was 384. To get that big im not going to blame genetics or anyone/thing but myself. I ate like crap i.e. 15-20$ worth of fast food almost everyday during the week (enough to feed 3 people sometimes), i would throw back an entire large pizza myself and sometimes crazy bread with it and, drink a lot of pop, didnt do any type of exercise outside of just going to work, I could eat ice cream by the 1/2 gallon, or any other treat i had in the house.

Matthebrute

i have been as high as 240. i'm a 6" male so my ideal weight is around 160-180

people say not to blame genetics but i was always a toothpick in school weighing no more than 130 soaking wet, once i hit my 20's i just blew up...yes some is because of bad eating/drinking habits and i will admit that but my body was genetically designed to slow my metabolism at a certain point, same thing happened to my father and my twin brother.

i have always eaten horribly and never weighed more than 250, im sure as the years go on if i continued on with my terrible eating habits and sitting on my lazy *kitten* all day i would prob hit that 300 lb mark by the time i hit 35 ( im 30 now)

some people just dont metabolize like others, thus they put on weight much faster than others. its really difficult for someone who is facing severe obesity to start eating right and exercising since they are ALWAYS hungry when on a diet, and not the normal feeling a lil hungry could go for a snack hungry....its more like a gut wrenching pain that never goes away...just moving around is a feat for some people so do you think the feel like they can exercise? no of course not they are depressed and with depression comes lack of motivation and lack of caring.

so i guess to answer your question....there is alot of different things that can contribute to weighing 300 lbs, everyone im sure will have the're own unique story..

you want to know how to avoid it? well first you need to learn how you metabolise food and how your body reacts to junk food. i know some people who can eat anything they want and not gain a pound...learn about yourself and what causes YOU to gain weight and then you can avoid those situations.

blondageh

Talking with others in my group who are/were at a similar starting point as me, I would say a majority of us are/were effed up in the head either from psychological, physical or emotional abuse or a chemical imbalance of some sort or we did it to ourselves after years of "dieting" that back fired. :drinker: Hello 200lb gain in a little over a year! That was me! :bigsmile: