What was your.....

tamanella

AHA! moment when you knew you couldn't go on like this anymore? And what do you do to keep yourself motivated and not look back?

Dtho5159

When my size 26 pants were snug and my stores don't carry anything higher so I was doomed to mail order ugly clothes lol.

ETA: I keep them and look at them and remember I don't wanna go back there.

lucybyrd3

it sounds stupid but i got broken up with and i was laying around feeling sorry for myself and i decided that i didn't want to be sad for no reason anymore and that i was making matters worse for myself by never doing anything and eating like ****... i weighed myself, saw the number, my jaw dropped and i got right to work. i almost couldn't believe that i had gotten to 230, and i realized most of my friends were around 130... the fact that they were 100 pounds less than me really kicked my *kitten* into gear and the rest is history lol

mjersh

when I saw a picture of myself and I didn't like what I saw!

ItsMeLori

I didn't want to turn 50 (this Nov) fat and unhealthy. What motivates me... When I look at pics of my progress and a couple really fit MFP friends.

McKayMachina

My very best friend ever took an hour to work up the guts to tell me I should think about losing a little weight. He was SO terrified I was going to hate him or be hurt. I was RELIEVED! It was like, FINALLY! Someone is telling me the TRUTH! It felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders and I was free to go back to being myself again. It was amazing.

cfred40

For me, I think I had just given up. Looking back I was literally at the point where I was just eating myself to death and waiting. Thank goodness it was a painful wait, cause I guess something finally just clicked inside, and I knew I couldn't carry on down that road. As for not looking back/motivation - that's easy, I just remember how much I hated that person back then

luppic8

I saw a picture of myself and noticed the weight gain...ugh! My daughter told me about MFP and I joined. I found some great friends that rooted me on each time I posted my exercise and food diaries. It was contagious! I have dropped 4 clothes sizes and am back to feeling like myself again!!! Now I can't stop, this site is addicting! I hope it works for you too!

sarah307

when i went shopping and had to buy jeans that were way bigger of a size than the size i thought i was ... and i said to myself "ugh, i'll do anything to lose some of this weight!" and then i replied to myself ... "oh, all i have to do is eat less, move more.. i can do that .. "






^^^ hahaha!!! love it

ranewell

I was put on medication for blood pressure and realized I did NOT want to be my mom on 100 different medications!!! And my bestest friend had lost 50lbs and has totally been my inspiration!

GaiaGirl1992

I came home from college to realize that I gained 30 lbs in a year.......and I was so FREAKED to realize I was over 200 lbs, and pant size 18! I broke up with my ex in june, and I decided before I would try to date anyone, I need more confidence. and my confidence is low mostly because I've been regarded as a "big girl" my entire life.

My motivation? I am tired of being the 'moose' of the family, the lazy one, the lump on the couch. and, well, I wonder what I would look like in a size 10-12 dress =3

lmelangley

For me, it was two things. First, a conversation with one of my sisters about all of her health problems and the realization that all of my siblings (I'm the baby) had terrible health issues and were overweight. I still didn't know what to do, but then I found the MFP app for an iTouch I got for Christmas and I said, "hey, I can do this". I've always known my biggest issue has been eating mindlessly. MFP keeps me honest, even if I don't always like the honesty....:noway:

hm_day

The first time I cracked down, it was when I saw that I'd gained 20lbs in a few months. But I didn't last. The most recent aha moment was when I realized I had a wedding to go to in October and that my brand new, unworn slacks (size 5) no longer fit. When I bought them, they were long but fit perfectly in the waist. Now they fit perfectly in the length but I can't even button them. My goal is to fit into those by October

sister_bear

I've always been heavy and had been avoiding cameras for several years. In February of this year within the same hour I was diagnosed with pneumonia and found out I could have a heredity mutation in my dna raising my risk for ovarian/breast cancer from a regular risk level to about 100%.

I spent the next week struggling to breath and did extensive research on my laptop in bed. Short of regular drinking and smoking, I was doing everything I could to raise my health risks. No looking back at that point...

Btw, it was several months later I was tested and I'm negative for the mutation. *phew*

Bellum24

Mine was changing into clothes I have not worn since last summer and feeling destroyed and disappointed that nothing fit!
I had enough and wanted to make the change, 2 weeks in I decided that this needs to be for life because I am tired of the heart break and terrible feelings that weigh heavily on my mind when I am over weight.
My second aha moment was when my step daughters told me they are sad that I am losing weight because "I was comfy and squishy before" cute yes, but also very hard to take in...
Cheers everyone, congrats on your achievements and wishes for healthy happy futures!!

Magic_Girl

when I saw a picture of myself and I didn't like what I saw!

Same here! I got this dress for a school piano recital thing and I thought I looked really good in it and I had heels and make-up and I was feeling so pretty for dressing up. After the recital, I saw a picture of myself standing next to all the other students and my mouth dropped to the floor because that dress showed all my bulges and my round belly and my arms were so puffy-looking compared to all the other students.So I started small and changed the way I ate and did some exercise and very gradually I lost 30 pounds in three years. I'm no longer obese, but I'm still overweight so I started MFP to get myself into the healthy range and to be more happy and confident!

daveytrouble

my brother's skinnier

HangoverSquare

Clothes weren't fitting anymore.

janet_pratt

When something in my back popped and I went to the floor and couldn't get up in the middle of K-Mart. After laying on the floor for a while a security guy helped me into one of those motorized carts and out to my mother's car. She dropped me at home where I had to crawl to the bathroom from the living room couch. I got stuck on my bathroom floor on the third trip and had to wait for my husband to come home. Any movement caused incredible pain. I thought I had ruptured a disk. When he and my daughter came in, I told them that I had been laying there thinking about it and if they slid a sheet under me and both took a side and pulled they could probably get me up. I had seen whales moved in a sling that way. It didn't work. The paramedics had to come and inject me with morphine...twice...before they could get me off the floor onto a stretcher and carry my fat *kitten* from the bathroom to the gurney. It turned out to be a muscle spasm from Hell, caused by my lower back tightening to support my gigantic belly when I leaned forward to look at something on a lower shelf. I spent 8 days on the couch unable to move because every time I did it went into another spasm. And the pain meds made me sick so I couldn't eat. I lost about 8 pounds during that time. Once I got to where I could walk again, I decided 8 pounds was a good start and I never looked back. I've lost 100. And I'm in the best shape of my life.
http://thedancingcyclist.wordpress.com/2010/05/08/helloworld/

CricketKate

I joined MFP last fall because, although I had lost all my Baby Weight during the year after having my 4th child, a summer of trips and parties and general fun had caused me to gain back 10 lbs. Yesterday, I got back from my last trip of this summer and got on the scale. I now weigh 15 lbs more than I did when I started MFP.:sad: This is how much I weighed right after my son was born. It's time to kick my butt into gear.

Zen_Master_B

I am passionate once I get started with something new, and I knew once I found a love in exercising that I would take it all the way. My AHA moment was being slow and winded at 260 playing full court basketball when I used to be a stud on the court in high school, definitely my all time low for fitness. I want to keep going because I know there is no end, I can always be stronger and faster with better definition even once I reach my goal weight which is only like 8 pounds away. I owe a lot to this site I was stuck at 180 for so long, I don't think I would have made it any farther without MFP.

Much respect by the way to the people who didn't think they could do it and stuck with it, it is all about whether you REALLY want it.

chloebelle777

love the pic daveytrouble and the reason...lol.

chloebelle777

i think i really realized it when I didn't want to wear heels anymore. I used to feel so sexy in heels, then when I put them on I didn't feel girlie anymore I had no desire to wear them. there were several other reasons, like feeling my tummy come over the top of my jeans (worst feeling in the world i think) ... do you guys have a minute??! ha. when my massage therapist up and mentioned if i wanted to lose 15 lbs i could cut out some things ... some people can say some of the most hurtful things without realizing it. And I am really not that overweight .... maybe I will post the most hurtful stuff later when I burn off some of this torturous fat....

janet_pratt

i think i really realized it when I didn't want to wear heels anymore. I used to feel so sexy in heels, then when I put them on I didn't feel girlie anymore I had no desire to wear them. there were several other reasons, like feeling my tummy come over the top of my jeans (worst feeling in the world i think) ... do you guys have a minute??! ha. when my massage therapist up and mentioned if i wanted to lose 15 lbs i could cut out some things ... some people can say some of the most hurtful things without realizing it. And I am really not that overweight .... maybe I will post the most hurtful stuff later when I burn off some of this torturous fat....

People feel free to say some of the most horrific things. My worst was when I was walking on a sidewalk in front of a store and three bratty little kids were walking behind me, oinking. That was about 6 or so years ago. I can only hope they are overweight teens now! And I get the last laugh, because, MY massage therapist always tells me I have an incredible muscular system. So, stay with it. Change does happen and you will feel great.

crnaiwilb

When my wedding band was too tight! I refused to have it resized! I decided to resize myself instead!

nicothepotato

I had started looking for a vintage wedding dress. They biggest ones were still about 5 inches too small for me. I said whatever, I'll have to get a new vintage inspired dress instead. Then I went on vacation.

I was looking at my vacation pictures from Hawaii. My thighs were full of cottage cheese and I had a big pot belly that I proudly showed off in my bikini. I was thinking I was looking good. I thought wrong. No wonder all those dresses are to small. I started logging everything I ate and then joined MFP soon after. Now my inches are to the point where I can fit into some of the larger vintage wedding dresses but I'm still about 2 inches from the dream dress.

hhan

Mine was going on my first major plane trip. I realised I couldn't lower the table into place and on looking around saw other fat people that could. It was a wake up call, that combined with a few other timely events was the spark I needed take action. It still took me a couple more months to work out how I was going to do it but I'm getting very close now to that 100lb loss goal.

The motivation to keep going turned out to be easy, as I noticed some of my personal health markers improve dramatically. I realised that I too had "given up" on my life previously but now can celebrate it and reveal in reaching good health markers.

kdm97

My Aha moment came when I was looking at pictures taken on a cruise I had gone on. I did not like the person I had become and I knew that only I could change it. So I'm beginning this long journey but the journey begins with one step and I'm willing to go the distance


Good Luck to all on their journey!!

jellyfishjen

A family reunion, when I saw cousins with medical and physical issues and then an aunt had a stroke 2 days later. I could see my future if I didn't make a change.

Very slowly losing, but I can now do up my own shoes with ease, put down the table on airoplanes, and am able to park far far away and walk to the shops.

rachel1496

Mine was finding out that I weighed more than I had when I was 9 months pregnant .

malvakai

When I lost my job at the same time I quit smoking I was very depressed and gained a lot of weight. My aha moment was hitting 300lbs. I'd gained 60 freaking pounds and I was overweight to begin with. Now I'm on the right medications and I'm not as depressed, the sun is shining and I'm feeling good walking to the gym.