Why did you get fat and what triggered the change?

CurlyQTee

Addiction to food. I was also busy with my sons and just didn't have the time to learn to cook better foods. I also was not really able to afford to cook healthy foods. Now I'm about quality cooking. My sons are older and it's me time.

SinIsIn

I blame my mom. ... that is all.

I decided to change because I want to look good naked in front of a camera.... :bigsmile:

going2befit

Growing up I used to only eat really unhealthy foods and eat way too much of them. I remember I could sit in front of the TV with an XL bag of cheese puffs and eat the whole thing in a few hours while I was just 10 years old. I used to not eat many real meals at all, just desserts and other junky snacks and if I did have meals it would be things like fried chicken, chicken nuggets, pizza, poptarts, etc. Whenever anyone mentioned vegetables to me I'd be the first to say "ewwww!" Taking in this many calories without any activity = massive weight gain.

I changed because I was sick of the way I looked and felt.

epona_mus

I was in an accident a few years ago and it took about 18 mo. to be able to be "normal" again. Pain meds, mobility issues, etc. was compounded by life and job stresses. I gained 50+ lbs in about 2 yrs. as my health continued to decline.

I got to the point where I figured that I couldn't continue to live immobilized and in pain, unable to enjoy life. I HAD to take off the weight and gain some mobility. I hired a wellness coach to get me started on my fitness goals, and made some life and career changes that helped support those goals and joined MFP. I've only lost 9 lbs in the first month, but I know I can do this and it will be sustainable!!

Jess5825

My trigger point to gaining weight. I was always a little on the heavier side. But my real point is when I turned 17 and started driving and being more independent. I was gaining before then, but not to the huge extent. I think part of it was my mother is very into fitness and stuff and always harped on me about eating and kept junk out of the house, so I think I rebelled. Also in school I got picked on a lot and suffered from depression due to this and I think I tried to feel better by eating McDonalds and stuff. I got up to a high of 308#. I tried diets, mostly because my mom made me and I was unhappy. I've lost weight on diets before, but get bored and gained it back. I made the decision last year to have surgery. I had the lap band (i sort of wish I didn't), but I think it really gave me the motivation to lose weight right and keep it off. I'm actually not using my lap band and am losing weight on my own through diet and exercise, but I feel having the surgery gave me the extra push I needed.

jazminjes

Honeysprinkle: you and me have almost the same story and weight ..... exept i didnt have trouble with my tyroid! You are doing great keep up the good work!!

bhalter

I've had a few yo-yos:
- Started gaining weight in 8th grade when the cafeteria let you choose "a la cart" options like Little Debbie snacks.
- Lost weight midway through high school after a bad breakup.
- Gained weight being "comfortable" in my new relationship.
- Lost weight at the end of college after a bad bout of bronchitis/pneumonia.
- Lost more weight after a bad breakup.
- Gained weight again being "comfortable" in a relationship.

The day I got engaged, I was like "the working out/eating healthy can NOT be put off any longer...I have a year before the wedding to lose weight so I can look great."

And now here I am! I also grew up in a not-necessarily-unhealthy family, but a very meat-potatoes-bread-little veggies with a bedtime sweet snack every day family. Once you have a lifetime habit of doing that, it's hard to break. I'm definitely going to raise my kids differently from the second they come out of me on food choices, etc.

TLCEsq

I lost 50 lbs and then law school and the Bar exam happened... enter stress, hormone imbalances and generally feeling like I was going crazy. I have a total of about 30 lbs to lose to get to goal, I wasn't quite at goal before.

ilovemyhorse

One reason: I like to eat!

To become a better equestrian. Fat people don't really barrel race.

boneyEm

every time something goes wrong in my life, split from a guy, mum getting ill, i comfort eat. then my doctor said i put on 14 pounds in just 3 months- i thought this girl has to change period

honeysprinkles

Honeysprinkle: you and me have almost the same story and weight ..... exept i didnt have trouble with my tyroid! You are doing great keep up the good work!!

thank you!

hbart500

I got comfortable in my relationship and had babies. I lost all my weight after the 1st one just breastfeeding my baby boy (i say its because i was going to gym before that so it was easier to drop weight) After having my 2nd 16 months later and seeing pictures of myself I was not happy with what i saw. I was in the biggest size jeans/pants i had ever been in and decided to start my lifestyle change. Now i am at my smallest pants size since 6th grade haha and just have 8lbs to go for my current goal.

Toxictwist

When I was younger I used to Eat ALOT of Junk food. Used to have the most unhealthy breakfast's (perogies loaded with all the toppings) Basically whatever I wanted. + I used to finish every last bite of food on my plate.

NOW I eat healthy, still treat myself (within my calorie intake) & I eat until I am satisfied.

Slove009

I was working on my feet in a high stress retail job for years and the stress kept me from gaining weight for 3 years. I ate mall food and lived off of fast food and basically ate like crap, but was even still shedding pounds. When I developed a heart problem, the doctor told me to find another job or I could end up getting worse. I got a desk job and thought I could keep eating like that. That did not work. I started to work out and watch my eating, but I had recently turned 21, so I started indulging in the world or spirits and cocktails, and eventually became an enthusiast. (Similar to a wine sommelier). That trashed it, and then I got engaged, then married and then the zipper burst on my favorite going out dress as I reached for the door handle to go out for an evening on the town with the hubby. I had worked so hard to get into that dress, and it nearly killed me that the same dress was too big only a year before.

So now here I am! Thanks to MFP I'm back on track and even getting some of my family members who need to shape up to make the changes with me!

yukimiyazawa

my mom got re-married and moved 3 hours away. without her around to cook meals, i just ate fast food every day. plus, i was depressed, because i missed her. i tried to fill up my emptiness with food and within a year or so, i was overweight. it's like i didn't notice how much weight i'd gained until the doctor actually classified my as "overweight" at my check-up.

since then, i've lost over 50lbs. that was 2 years ago. sadly, i've also developed an eating disorder along the way. i've always had disordered eating habits since i was about 17, but they've developed into a full-blown ED at this point. i've been threatened with hospitalization multiple times in the last few months, especially when i became underweight this past summer (i've put on about 9lbs since then, unfortunately).

SooZ1138

I had a nervous breakdown =(

At first I lost 30 pounds (couldn't eat anything without throwing it back up) and then once I started "coping" with everything (and being put on antidepressants), I gained 50 lbs. I quit antidepressants at the beginning of this year and quit smoking as well, I've been battling the buldge ever since!

SaishaLea

I went thru 2 pregnancies in two years and I literally ate for two.

rlysrh

This isn't really a reason for why I gained weight- but i remember being 13 or so and some guy me and my friend had in common told her he liked her more than me because I was bigger than her. At the time I weighed 128lbs and wasn't even remotely fat at all but I thought I was kinda chubby anyway, and after hearing this I just felt really upset and like I was really fat.
Its taken me gaining 20lbs to realize how much this guy needs a slap around the face, and how much I miss weighing what I did before.
I just want to punch this guy because I just constantly had this feeling that I wasn't good enough for any guys because of my weight.

sweet110

i got fat from....SSRI's, getting older, and a society structured around making you fat (yes, we're individually responsible for staying fat, but there's a reason why we're fatter, on average, than the Japanese or the French).

Why did I change? I went for a walk with my friend and found it hard to walk and talk without breathing hard...and we weren't exactly power walking! I was young and personally didn't mind looking fat, but I was deeply embarrassed by not being self-sufficient, ie, not being able to move my own bodyweight without huffing and puffing and sweating. My habits were making me, literally, disabled. And given that I may face unavoidable disability someday through age, illness, or accident, I sure didn't want to look back on these years and feel like I had squandered the gift of an able body.

nrimas

I love this thread because being overweight is not a MORAL issue. People look at the 'fat' us and think we are lazy or stupid, and we are not. We all have circumstances. What I see here is a group of people who are refusing to allow "circumstances" to be who they are. Has anyone read "The End of Overeating?" Our problems are physical, emotional, and in the food industry. Seriously, if you go to a Convenience store is ANY food there of nutritional value? No. But it is all tempting. Do you know Cindy Crawford? Do her sisters look like her? No. Could they look like her if they tried harder? No. We have circumstances, sure. We have issues, sure. But we also have the ability to be a first rate version of ourselves. 200 pounds, 175 pounds or 105 pounds. "it doesn't matter how slow you go, as long as you do not stop." Confucius I love,love,love all of you! Rock on!

julslea

Getting married and not caring anymore about how I looked.
My desire to change is to be healthier and to be able to be around for my 3 year old when she has kids of her own.

fiberartist219

My journey with weight revolves around health and medical history.

I gained weight due to some hormonal issues and inactivity due to some other health issues I was having. I was inspired to lose it when I found out that my mom and my grandma have diabetes.

Lady_Chadwick

I picked up the extra weight somewhere between kid 3 and kid 5. I also had a great metabolism, combined with constant nursing/pregnant. Made eating something I just tended to do.

And now the youngest is 1.5, I am not pregnant and I Would like that old body back, or at least close to it.

momtimesone

Got pregnant at 19 and thought "well I am pregnant so I am gonna gain weight anyways" I ate massive amounts of fast food. After the baby I went on birth control the side effect being I still craved the fast food like mad. Being told by someone I was in love with that they where not physically attracted to me even thought I never thought of myself as huge triggered me to start losing and now its not about him at all its about me and I feel great

Carlamere84

First I never lost the weight with my first child, however, I did lose the 30lbs from my second child. Also, I quit smoking and gained 48lbs. So total, I need to lose 78lbs to get back to where I was. I feel gross and disgusting, I don't like the way my body looks or feels. This is what triggered me to lose weight.

Macrocarpa

Why did I get fat? Simple. Food tastes awesome and exercise hurts*.

What triggered the change? I interpret this as 'what made you decide to stop being overweight - in the same week, getting a multi-thousand dollar root canal bill from a dentist (sugary drinks = bad teeth) AND a warning from my doctor that another 10 years and I'd start getting sick. .

* I know, I know, exercise hurts less once you're fit, but getting over the first hurdle is the hardest.

Reecebullet

I was quite thin when I was 12, but then we moved into a horrible, horrible area. Out of the entire neighborhood there was only 1 family who were nice, so we bonded with them. Whenever I use to go over there, they'd feed me, then I'd go home and eat again. After about a year or so, I'd put on quite a bit. We lived there for 5 years, which for about 4 of those the same thing happened.

I could've turned down the food, or started eating better, but I didn't, as I was young and just enjoying myself. After we moved out there, I just continued to eat badly. I use to drink a lot of caffeine too, drinking about 2 liters of different caffeine drinks a day.

Living in that area was horrible, was a very nasty place. Suppose I just carried it with me when we moved. Now though, I'm finally doing something about it. Simply motivated by wanting to feel better, and be happy with how I look.

theoddlittleduck

I got "chubby" (went from 150lbs to 170lbs) when I started to date my husband. He has a medical condition and requires more calories... He eats multiple dinners, lots of snacks, fast food, etc - so I started to do the same... 170lbs didn't bother me so much. I was comfortable in a size 12, I felt healthy still.

I gained an additional 15lbs when my FIL was ill. We ate fast food every single night for 6 months. Not healthy fast food, but big macs, buckets of fried chicken, etc. I then got pregnant the same month he passed away. I didn't gain anything too crazy with that pregnant (~35lbs) but have been struggling with my weight since.

What triggered the change? I saw 200lbs on the scale. I wasn't pregnant. I had no excuse. My size 14 pants were now tight. This was up 10lbs from my weigh in for insurance a few months prior.

luvinlaurakate

Hmm let's see... in 7th grade my grandpa was diagnosed with terminal cancel, and I gained 30 pounds. From then until I was 17, I weighed 170-175. I got pregnant at 17, put on over 30 pounds, and developed high blood pressure. I weighed 206 when I got married when my oldest was 4 months old. Over the years I lost some weight, and only gained 18 pounds with my second daughter, and after her got down to 180. Then I got pregnant again, but with twins, and gained alot of weight. My weight has went between 200-220 for the last couple years, and I struggled with some major post-partum depression, which definately hindered my weight loss as well, since I didn't care enough about myself to take care of myself.

What finally made me decide to get with it? Well, my husband came back from Afghanistan in January a much different man than he left as. After 9 years of marriage, there were moments where I really didn't think we would "make it". So one morning, after a horrible night of crying and trying to deal with his issues, I just realized that I couldn't take care of him, and that I needed to take care of myself instead. That I could be happy with or without him, and I knew what the first step to accomplishing that was. Things have gotten better since then... I think that maybe I was trying too hard with him, and he needed the space to work out his own stuff, and my deciding to be independent and focus on myself gave him the room to do that. But that hasn't changed my goal to be healthy again! There is no way I am stopping until I get to where I want to be!

i_love_vinegar

i went through a series of really bad events and began binge eating on sweets afterward...

What triggered the change was taking control of my life...got out of the unhappy relationship, someone else got sent to jail for a few years, I moved first cities and then countries, started scheduling my days better, saw a counselor etc.

Naturally, with this came my wanting to lose the weight (and health problems) I had gained in those few months...

Once I hit my original weight, I realized I wasn't as small as I thought I was, and decided to continue losing for aesthetic reasons >.<

I got fat eating around 5,000+ calories per day (not even exaggerating...3 white gummy jamba juices, a carton of haagen dazs, few king size candy bars, extra buttered popcorn, pasta, a few bowls of cereal, cheeseburger with fries, few slices of pizza, carton of cream-on-top whole milk, etc...what I ate daily )...that is how I got fat...at the age of 20/21. o-o