What makes people quit?

KF1216

People regain lost weight all the time. Why?
I know I lost 15-20 lbs of baby weight two summers ago then regained it all during an incredibly stressful time where we sold our family farm & moved across the state. But now, I am so into this, so devoted & focused I can't imagine what would throw me off. I had told my husband that the only thing that would stop me is getting injured, but two weeks ago I hurt my knee running & the whole week I was resting it I was miserable without being able to exercise and was able to lose 2.6 lbs that week anyway. My life is comfortable & stable, I'm a stay at home mom and I have a few years until my kids will be in school, my husband has a terrific job...what could go wrong? I dont want to tempt fate or anything but im just curios & nervous about why so many people gain weight back because once I get where I'm going I dont want to EVER go back.

s1lence

I think that some people fall back to old habits and eating styles after losing weight. Feeling confident that they won't have to worry about the weight anymore and forgetting all the things that helped maintain the size they got down to. It's hard to break a lifetime of habits even when you do achieve the weight loss. There are also other factors that come into play with people regaining weight- attitudes about how they did it, excuses not to continue exercise, stress, illness that prevents exercise, and even medication that creates problems with weight gain. There are all sorts of reasons people go back to their old weight.

harebearva

I agree, I believe its diet related. SO many people embark on diet plans that they don't plan on continuing for life. I believe one should make permanent changes in their diet that they are willing to stick to forever. Just my 2 cents

ninerbuff

Most people regain because they dieted. There are very few people who can sustain a restricted diet and abstain from foods they actually like for life.
People who are successful usually learn how to moderate what they eat and have an exercise program that they can fit in without upsetting their whole day.
I don't like to have my clients try to do too much exercising UNLESS they intend to do it for life. Some try to have me increase their intensity and duration so they can lose faster, but I let them know that this is usually a reason why many regain weight once they go on their own. Weight loss is a long process if you do it right.

A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

harebearva

Weight loss is a long process if you do it right.

This should be the quote of the week! Way on!

funkycamper

I agree that too many people diet instead of making sustainable lifestyle changes. And there are people all over here who insist that they are fine eating very low calorie (less than 1200/day) and then don't eat back their exercise calories either. These people lose precious muscle while losing weight which further slows their metabolism down. When they go back to eating foods they have deprived themselves of during their diet, the weight comes back on very easily. Heck, I've been there myself. Never again.

This time around I'm taking it slow with a smaller deficit and am incorporating lifting heavy weights into my program as well as other exercise that I enjoy and can see doing for the rest of my life. In addition, my goals have really switched from weight loss goals and the scale to fitness goals. I figure as long as I'm following my sensible eating plan combined with getting stronger and increase my endurance, the scale weight will follow. So far, it's working and it's a lot more fun and less stressful.

KF1216

Well that is very encouraging! I feel that I am making life changes and not really dieting. I'm dieting in the sense of limiting/counting calories, but we are otherwise doing what comes natural to us. We have nearly always cooked 95% of our meals at home and now I'm just using recipes from healthy sites (skinnytaste is on our menu 5 nights a week, lol!!) and payin attention to healthy ingredients and portion sizes. And I gotta toot my own horn a bit, I'm a darn good cook and we've been eating some amazing meals lately, but they are healthy meals. We have been having splurges here and there (went out to an all you can eat BBQ buffett the other week!), have reese cups here and there and days where I just splurge, but all in all I think we just make healthy choices and I think I can sustain that for good. And as for exercise, I have started to LOVE jogging and can see myself continuing that as a lifelong habit.

I can do it:)

funkycamper

Yes, you can. In fact, it sounds like you already are. Enjoy!

chevy88grl

Honestly? I think when you fall into the "gimmicky" diet trap. When you severely restrict yourself (whether it be calories or making certain foods "off limits") you set yourself up for failure. Not many people can honestly say they'll go the rest of their life only eating 1200 calories a day or working out 4 hours a day or by never eating a piece of cake. In my opinion, success happens when you accept that life happens. Being honest with yourself and realizing that you have to enjoy life will help.

I've lost and gained weight in the past - and looking back every single time I did it I was on a diet or telling myself I had to workout for a ridiculously long period of time or whatever.

When I relaxed and lived a little, I found success.

Nearly 60lbs gone for over 18 months!

carlaunderconstruction

I think a lot of people regain weight due to emotional eating. Alot of us (emotional eaters) can get it under control to lose weight, and keep it off for a while, but then something comes along and derails us. Most emotional eaters are aware that there are triggers to there eating: stress, boredom, anger, lonliness, etc. Most emotional eaters also know that there are other ways of dealing with these triggers other than binging, like walking, journaling, talking to a loved one, taking a bath, etc. Sometimes something happens where a emotional eater falls back into old patterns. Quite often this can be a major trigger, a major life change, that causes someone to turn back to food for comfort. People quit, because life changes, and food is a way to cope with that change. People quit, because they never dealt with the emotional issues to begin with that caused them to be overweight. People quit, because exercise was a major component to maintaining their weight loss, and an injury or illness made it near impossible to continue to exercise. There are many reasons people quit, and let me tell you right now, it is not all because someone was on an unsustainable low calorie diet while working out three hours a day.

Disclaimer: I am sure there are many overweight people who are not emotional eaters, however I will admit that I am an emotional eater, and I know many others out there that are as well.

Skinnyredhead

I think a lot of people regain weight due to emotional eating. Alot of us (emotional eaters) can get it under control to lose weight, and keep it off for a while, but then something comes along and derails us. Most emotional eaters are aware that there are triggers to there eating: stress, boredom, anger, lonliness, etc. Most emotional eaters also know that there are other ways of dealing with these triggers other than binging, like walking, journaling, talking to a loved one, taking a bath, etc. Sometimes something happens where a emotional eater falls back into old patterns. Quite often this can be a major trigger, a major life change, that causes someone to turn back to food for comfort. People quit, because life changes, and food is a way to cope with that change. People quit, because they never dealt with the emotional issues to begin with that caused them to be overweight. People quit, because exercise was a major component to maintaining their weight loss, and an injury or illness made it near impossible to continue to exercise. There are many reasons people quit, and let me tell you right now, it is not all because someone was on an unsustainable low calorie diet while working out three hours a day.

Disclaimer: I am sure there are many overweight people who are not emotional eaters, however I will admit that I am an emotional eater, and I know many others out there that are as well.

Yes! This is me! I am working on life changes and figuring out different ways to deal with stress, therefor my weight loss is very slow, but I badly want to be healthy, and wear cute clothes, and be very comfortable in my own skin. I am a huge chocolate lover, so I have a little everyday(except on my bad days, then I have a lot) so the diets where i have lost lots fast is cutting out all sugar, but they dont last long and I gained back more, so i will slowly do it this time in order to keep it off! Also I gained a lot with each pregnacy, and now that i am done kids, I am ready for this! To be more fit and more healthy!

beckylawrence70

I think for the mostpart it's lack of motivation on their part.........not enough willpower.....giving into their cravings and being lazy.....

tataliciousd89

Stressful times often lead to regaining lost weight. Beyond that people who dramatically cut calories to lose and then start eating just like they used to will gain everything right back. You got fat for a reason and if you go back to doing everything the same you will be fat again. I think it is very simple.

alise_lmx

I think that a lot of people don't realize that it's not going to be a straight line from their starting weight to their goal weight. There are a LOT of ups and downs, and if you just stick it out during the gains, and keep trying, eventually you'll go back to losing. I have this app on my phone called "Target Weight," where it shows me a graph of my weight over time (I record my weight on it pretty much any time that it changes and stays that way for a couple days), and over the last 6 months, it goes from 165 to 145, but with a TON of ups and downs in between. But ultimately I've lost 20lbs! If I were to focus only on those times that it went up a few lbs, then it would be easy to lose sight of all the progress I've made. That's why I love that app, because the graph really helps me see how far I've come. That helps during the bad days.

jjennyb4

I think for the mostpart it's lack of motivation on their part.........not enough willpower.....giving into their cravings and being lazy.....

I agree with this 100%.... Personally this happened to me, but I'm getting back on track!!!

A_Fit_Mom

Definitely because of habit and getting comfortable with their new body. So they think it would be ok to eat this...or that. Which then turns back into overeating.


For me, it definitely was excuses. Using the fact of being pregnant as being able to eat all the things that I never ate before. Since before I had lost a lot of weight, there were a lot of things I gave up. When I got pregnant for the second time, I just was so happy to eat what I want.

LilRedRooster

Most people regain because they dieted. There are very few people who can sustain a restricted diet and abstain from foods they actually like for life.
People who are successful usually learn how to moderate what they eat and have an exercise program that they can fit in without upsetting their whole day.
I don't like to have my clients try to do too much exercising UNLESS they intend to do it for life. Some try to have me increase their intensity and duration so they can lose faster, but I let them know that this is usually a reason why many regain weight once they go on their own. Weight loss is a long process if you do it right.

That.

KF1216

I have totally been an emotional eater - it's why I gained my weight. I hung around 145-165 through high school and college, up until I got married in 2007. Then I got pregnant right away, went a little overboard on the "eat for two" then had a miscarriage. I gained about 20lbs during the depression that followed, then got pregnant again a few months later, gained too much during that pregnancy, had my baby then didn't lose the weight before I got pregnant again. Gained too much again the second time (I was up to 250 right before giving birth - to a 10lb baby no less!), had the baby, lost most of the baby weight - then gained it back during the intense stress of our failing business and all that entailed with selling/moving, etc. My husband and I both packed on the pounds during that time, just eating whatever the heck we wanted because life was so crappy. But that's why I mentioned how stable my life is right now - and sure, things happen, things change, but I feel like I'm in a great place in my life and the stress eating will hold off.
Oh, and the first time I lost my baby weight I did it with herbalife and spent a friken fortune on that stuff. I'm so proud that I have lost the same weight in much less time by just eating regular, healthy food - no gym membership, no fancy diet food. Feels great:)

ninerbuff

I think for the mostpart it's lack of motivation on their part.........not enough willpower.....giving into their cravings and being lazy.....

Disagree. I give into "cravings" everyday. Ice cream, fast food, candy, etc. and there are many ( who have amazing physiques) that do to. Normally I'll do 1 thing or both: I'll workout harder to burn more calories or I'll make sure I comp for the calories by eating less later in the day.

A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

AntWrig

I think for the mostpart it's lack of motivation on their part.........not enough willpower.....giving into their cravings and being lazy.....

No, it's the eating 1200 calories a day. HIIT 20x a week, and eating clean.

cheshirequeen

you totally remind me of myself(except you have two children, i have one child)i have kept off my weight for a year this time, but i know i wouldnt without support and this website. i believe it was my eating habits. i never knew what i was eating. once i began logging iknew what i was eating and was shocked. i also was around 165 when i started and now im around 145 or so. i remember last month when i had my seizure(have epilepsy) and i was out 2 weeks since it was a really bad one, and i couldnt exercise and i couldnt wait until i could exercise again. i think once you make it a habit, most people dont go back. people forget, the weight didnt come on over night, it wont go away over night.

usernamejoe

I agree, I believe its diet related. SO many people embark on diet plans that they don't plan on continuing for life. I believe one should make permanent changes in their diet that they are willing to stick to forever. Just my 2 cents

Great post!