Share the REAL reasons why you're fat (or too thin)

daydream_believer

I ate too much and moved too little. Got fat Got depressed about being fat. Ate more. Moved less. Got fatter. Repeat ad nauseum.

this is me!

Sandy3313

I too don't like confrontation!!!!!

UsedToBeHusky

I didn't care. I wanted what I wanted when I wanted it and I didn't care of the outcome. I thought that I wanted to enjoy life so I was not going to hold myself back from anything.. Then, one day I realized that I wasn't enjoying life, I was ashamed of my body, and things were out of control. It honestly never occurred to me before that point that my philosophy on life was so self-destructive. But the reality is that it is only one of many battles I have created for myself over the years due to self-destruction.

walkinon_sunshine

I am hypothyridic and when i first started taking the meds i dropped tons of weight without changing a single habit, but i have always been moderatley active and i love my fruits and veggies. Anyways, im 5'3" and at one point i weighed 98.5 lbs. I was bullied for being skinny. My parents stopped me from joining any more sports teams, i wasn't allowed to walk the dog, and i was constantly being quizzed by people that were trying to make sure i was eating enough. I never counted calories then, so i don't know how much i was eating in terms of that, but i eventually couldn't take the pressure anymore. I wanted to gain the weight so badly i started bingeing. Entire cakes. Whole loves of french bread. Giant muffins. Often still frozen, and at night. After i gained 10 lbs from bingeing, i couldn't stop. I kept gaining more and more weight. I was then addicted to bingeing. It took me 6 months or more to finnally fully stop bingeing and not have urges to anymore. And soon after, i decided to set myself a healthy goal weight, get there, and stick to it. Once and for all.

levelheadedgirl

I "eat my feelings." And I've had some really painful things happen in the last few years. Eating helped me cope. I've put 40 lbs on since I got married 9 years ago. I'm turning 30 in about 6 months and I looked at myself in the mirror a few months ago and just realized that I was ashamed of how I'd let myself go. Had to wait to deliver my baby (was about 6 months prego at the time) but I've lost all my baby weight and am working on losing the rest. I don't want to hate my body anymore.

Suewags

I come from a family that has always celebrated with food. All our holidays were based around food, we'd get together for someone's birthday and it was always celebrated with a big fancy dinner at a restaurant or a potluck at someone's house. We'd go camping and one of the first things we'd do was plan out all the yummy meals we'd have plus all the car snacks to take along for the trip. When we'd go on vacation, we'd always find the most fun restaurants (buffets were always a good option for us) and we'd always treat ourselves because, after all, we were on vacation! And our family always has such fun when we're together. Food for us was all about having a wonderful happy time together as a family. Big Sunday breakfasts were amazing, and getting together with our extended family for wonderful big Sunday dinners was the highlight of the week.

So I've come to accept that I associate food with having a good time, being relaxed and comfortable. So when my life gets a little stressed and I want to have that sense of comfort, my very first reaction is to turn to food. For the longest time when I came home from work, I needed that comfort food break and then I could start planning dinner. I can recognize that now and I am trying to find alternative means to provide that comfort, happy feeling. And for family get-togethers, we are starting to try to plan more activities as part of the celebrations and not just only eating. But it's a whole lifetime, in fact, a couple generations of lifetimes, that have to be relearned.

ember673

My weight gain started when I was a teenager. We move and didnt have much money, I ate very little for a month or so then my mom put the whole house on one yo-yo diet after another. By graduation I was 189. Went to college ate crap finished college, got depressed went up to 242. Had my son got down to 197, got pregnant again stayed at 226 for 2 years then with in a few months I was up to 236 and pissed. I tryed to get more physically active but it was stressful, stated using this app, did everything I could and still put on weight. Got depressed about it and had a reality check when I had to see a cardiologist and he said I needed to lose the weight if I wanted to be here for my kids. I am 31 and started my journey 3 days before christmas at 247, I am now at 232.

emichale13

injury and menopause.
Two things I was quite powerless over.
Working on getting moving again and being accountable for what goes in my mouth.
Inventorying your food is just like inventorying your self. You never really have to face the music or the truth until you see it in black and white. Hard to deny how much your're eating if you're writing it all down.
This is the best thing that's happened to me in a while.
So thanks friend for sharing it with me.

mrsgeneric

I dont eat as much as i should cuz i dont like what i c in the mirror. I always think if i can loae thise extra few pounds ill b happy!!!
Havent made it that far yet

Jayne19099

I would eat whenever I felt stressed or anxious. I wouldn't listen to my body to learn when it was full, I just ate because it tasted good and made me feel good. I can remember times when I would continue to eat even when I was full to the point of being sick. It was awful. I'm learning to respect myself more.

sallievp

For me there is no other explanation than that I LOVE EATING! and have a HUGE appetite! and love to eat all the wrong foods :-(

vlmay1955

I was never "obese" and I have always made time to exercise, but years and years of working 60 - 80 hours/week, endless travel, business lunches, business dinners, and a desk job took its toll. Remember in "Gone With the Wind" when Scarlett O'Hara grabs a plant out of the ground and tries to eat it and says "I'll never go hungry again!!!". Well when I retired my rallying cry to myself was "I'll never sit on my *kitten* again!!!" So now I exercise at least 2 hours/day, cook and eat healthy, a dinner out is a treat rather than the norm, and I feel SO GOOD and happy. It's really true that the more you exercise, the more energy you have and the better you feel. So for you desk jockeys out there, do the best you can and keep your eyes on the prize.

4men1lady79

Stopped walking everywhere when I learned how to drive and did A LOT of drinking!

Megan7707

Great question. I think my issue was getting older and metabolism slowing down. Never had a weight issue until my 4th child came along at age 36. All of a sudden the baby weight didn't go away as fast and I really had no clue how to lose it and keep it off. So now I am on my second round of weight loss and trying to do it the right way.

pobalita

I. Love. Food.

I also thought that I was "destined" to be the size I was because that's just how the women in my family look.

^^This exactly!^^

Chris99mu

*Poor food choices (carboholic and sugar junkie, still to this day. *sigh*)
*Spurts of exercise, then deserts of laziness
*Late night TV watching companion (Ice cream, pop tarts, toaster strudels, etc)
*Too much soda, not enough (*ahem*ANY) water

NaomiJFoster

I like to eat and I don't like to exercise. Too many calories in, not enough calories out. Simple math made me overweight. Damn you, Math!!!

TiffCK

I gained too much weight while pregnant. Went from 104lb (worked on my feet all day, too busy to eat much at all) to 160lbs after 2 kids. Stayed 160 for a year and decided it is time for a change. I didn't realize how many calories I must have consumed to maintain that frame (on a 5'2" body) until I started counting them. On 1360 calories a day I have lost 14lbs in 25 days. (was only trying to lose 1lb a week, lost almost 1lb every 2-3 days. I hated my body then realized my body is awesome. It was just giving me what I gave it. Now that I am eating healthier and much less calories, it is giving me my body back in record time. IN 5-7 more lbs I won't even be overweight anymore! (Though I want to lose quite a bit more, and tone up.) I ate crap, and ate a heck of a lot of it. Now I eat less crap (though I still eat some!) and eat a ton healthier than I used to. My diet of Krispy Kremes, buscuits, chocolate, hot tamales and potato salad wasn't doing the trick. I still eat chocolate daily though, but instead of 5 or more pieces, it is one or 2.

TiffCK

P.S: I haven't had a soda in a month! Went from 3-5 a day to nothing. So that was about 600-1000 sugar filled calories a day! To nothing but water, and the occasional (meaning once every other day or so) hot chocolate, cappachino, orange juice or milk.

red9812

Two words. Law school. Due to all the stress, I was at my thinnest during law school, which was 119lbs (5'8"). I was pretty good about eating when I was supposed to, but I kind of lose my appetite when I'm really worked up. Since then, I have gained weight (125lbs), but now I'm working on making sure that weight is lean muscle instead of just fat.

Camiladavila

I think it was mostly eating without thinking, and being to lazy to workout. Not anymore!

NaomiJFoster

I like to eat and I don't like to exercise. Too many calories in, not enough calories out. Simple math made me overweight. Damn you, Math!!!

OK, but the more honest and complete answer would be menopause. I was always *slightly* overweight. Always size 10 or 12, while the rest of the world was size 6 or 8. And for most of my 20s and 30s it creeped up very slowly but surely. But then the menopause threw me completely off course and I gained about 30 pounds in 6 years. And it seemed like I just could get on top of it. It spiraled out of control...so I gave up. That didn't help!!

Ampedette

I was raised on cheap food because I grew up poor. I was never hungry, but I was also never healthy. Eating mac and cheese and drinking kool aid for lunch five days a week isn't exactly good for you. Preconditioned to love sweet and salty foods, my entire lifestyle has been centered around eating. I also wasn't raised to be athletic or to enjoy sports (my parents didn't play outside with me), so I was conditioned to make and accept poor diet choices before I knew what "lifestyle" meant.

YES! This!!!

Momm22boys

Laziness and overeating caused me to become fat. I gained weight when I quit smoking and became a stay at home mom. I started smoking cigarettes at 15, quit during both of my pregnancies, but started smoking again within months after they were born. I didn't have trouble losing the baby weight. I was back down to a size 6 in less than a year. In April 2009 I decided to quit smoking, become a stay at home mom, and homeschool. So in stead of smoking I started snacking all the time. I also became lazy after sitting for hours at a time while homeschooling. I gained about 40 pounds in 3.5 years. I got to a point where I hardly recognized myself. I felt like Humpty Dumpty because I carry my weight in my midsection. Since January 1st I've been making time for exercise and trying to eat better. I've lost 13 pounds and I'm starting to feel like myself again.

goldie980

If there is such a thing as being in the middle of above thin and definitely below fat. Then that's me. However my mom and sister are both obese. I don't fear being fat, I just don't want to get to a point where it's even harder than it is to lose weight. My metabolism is pretty much gone so even with all the exercise I'm still hovering below 150 lbs. So here I am trying to lose 20 lbs to give myself enough distance from 150 to maintain a desire able weight. Goodluck to us all. Oh did I mention I also want to lower my cholesterol and be an example to my husband who struggles with his weight.

MyChocolateDiet

I am generally a mostly healthy eater so it takes a lot to make me gain. In this case it was 3 things. Three surgeries in 3 years each one added a little weight. Otherwise I'm a pretty healthy eater so I find it relatively easy to stay thin once thin.

goldie980

Didn't realize turning 50 that I couldn't eat like I was prior to 50. But I continued to eat with zero metabolism and the weight ensued. Now I'm backtracking and realized unless I change and become more accountable about what I eat my weight will continue to rise.. So cataloging my food daily is really opening my eyes. For instanc who knew a marie calendar pot pie has 630 calories.

CJLS_5

Chubby from a young age. Never seemed to know when to stop eating, couldn't turn down food. Stayed active, played sports but could never get my eating under control. In elementary school I was teased and bullied everyday about my weight, this led to more overeating, which led to weight gain which led to even more bullying and extremely low self esteem. Highschool was way better, no teasing, awesome friends, and I was popular, I was finally gaining some confidence! But old habits die hard, my eating was still out of control. I would try and tell myself I was gonna lose the weight but after a day or 2 of dieting I would give up. My self esteem was building for everything in my life except my weight and how I looked. Even though I was never called fat in highschool, everytime I heard that word I would and still sometimes do get uncomfortable, adjust my clothes, and have a voice in the back of my head saying "they are talking about you", those old wounds from childhood are still healing now at 21. I still have body image issues even though after losing 25lbs (and almost halfway to my goal!) I know I look the best I ever have and am the healthiest I've ever been. Being in University, living in my own place and buying my own food has made a huge difference...lots of booze and partying doesn't help but I can be good 80% of the time and have my fun on the weekends:)

sleepytexan

n/a

CynthiasChoice

I recognize myself in many of these answers, but the REAL reason I'm overweight is that I struggle with food addiction.

Have you ever been going about your day, when suddenly you're interrupted by a voice inside your head that says "CAAAAKE!!" You try fill up on something healthy, distract yourself, take a walk, or just say no, but the voice persists? Eventually you just have to eat the damn cake so the voice shuts up and you can go on with your day? But the trouble is, two hours later, the voice says,"COOKIES!!!" and it starts all over again. By the end of the day, you're demoralized, depressed and feel hopeless and maddeningly helpless. If that never happens to you, consider yourself blessed.

If I'm able to stay on my diet for a number of days, the "voice" loses it's intensity. If I'm able to stay clean for a month, I feel like a giant burden has been lifted because my mind isn't constantly being invaded by thoughts of food.

Eating the wrong kinds of foods literally makes me enslaved to the whims of the naughty child that likes to yell "cake" at me. This naughty child has lived with me on and off since I can remember. I wish I could just send her away somewhere - like a very dark, scary closet, or even the bottom of a swimming pool, but I think she's here with me for the duration.

Eating clean consistently is the only way for me, but consistency isn't my strong suit....yet.