Who is here for reasons other than “getting skinny”?

It isn't the same as something like mono, but for years I've had problems with clinical depression. I'm doing better now, and want to stay that way. Part of my vicious cycle of depression is my eating/exercise habits and my weight. I want to get them under control to help remove that part of the cycle.

TBH, I also want to lose weight because I'm tired of being fat, but I also want to get in shape. I want to be better all around. Friend me if you like, I definitely understand how emotionally taxing long term illness (of any kind) can be.

I need to lose weight, but I'm also here to get healthier through exercise. I have fibromyalgia (a sister syndrome of chronic fatigue syndrome) and I need to get healthier to try and reduce the severity of my symptoms.

I can empathise. Living with constant exhaustion and pain is no joke.

Reason 1- 1 billion I am here
My health
I wanted it back!!!
I want to feel "light" when I run again... no not skinny; light; that " woooooohoooooooooo this is Fuuuuuuuun! light - like i did 20 years ago:)

Hi like you my motivation is health I too have CFS and fibramyalgia and depression I need to work a few more years and the demands of my job get tougher and tougher everyday Ill request you as a friend and you can read my goals

Of course I want to be skinny, but I have other reasons for being here. My family has a history of heart disease and type 2 diabetes, and I really don't want to get either of those. I'm not focusing on how fast I can run, but how long my heart stays in my target zone to give it a good workout. I also have been binge eating and realized I need to get it under control. Aaaand, my final reason, is that I have pretty bad asthma, but the more I run, the better it seems to be. I'm trying to work hard and improve that as well.

I am trying to lose weight and maintain a healthy life style so I can get of my darn Blood Pressure Meds. I have hypertension and I am hopeful that if I can control diet and excersize more I can accomplish just that. I have been on the meds since I was 29 years old... I am now 39....I am done. The side effects of the drugs are horrendous (fatigue, loss of hair, weight gain....). There are days I wake up completely exhausted and then I have to push myself ALL day to make it through....especially to work out. But I do...everyday....because I would LOVE to live a long and healthy life....It's hard because I am going this alone....but I am determind.

As for the size ten.....might do good for my ego....but I am in it for my heart,

i know exactly what you are talking about. I had mono back when i was in college, it landed me in the hospital for nearly 10 days, and i was out of commission for about 6 months. But you can only get mono once right....wrong. apparently people who have had a severe enough case of mono, can develop a different strain of the virus up to years later. i know this because i am one of the lucky ones that happened to develop said strain this past winter.

I ended up missing 3 weeks of work, but it doesn't end there. My immune system was so shot i couldn't fend off anything. colds, sinus infections, finally the NORO virus. my body was so weak the NORO virus actually turned and attacked the lining around my heart and my heart itself. I was rushed to the hospital because at the ripe old age of 36 i was presenting all the signs and the accompaning lab work that showed i was having a massive heart attack. It was terrifying. I have never been in so much pain, or more scared in my life.

When i got out of the hospital the Dr's told me that i HAD to start exercising and eating right, to both boost my immune system, and loose weight. It was nearly impossible at first. I would literally have to sit on the edge of the tub to catch my breath, because i got so winded just toweling myself off when i got out of the shower. just getting up out of bed, wiped me out. Now i wasn't in the best of shape, but i certainly wasn't morbidly obese either. at the time i weighed in around 222, and i am 5'9". Again, i wasn't and i am still not small but it wasn't the weight that was doing this to me it was my heart, and the after affect of my illness.

After doing a little research i found a product that not only helps boost your immune system, but it also increases your energry level, is loaded with anti oxidants, 1 scoop mixed with 8oz of water is the equivalent to between 5 and 9 servings of fruits and vegetables. i SWEAR by it. I still take it every day. it is simply called Green Superfood, and you can buy it at wholefoods (i'm guessing you can get it at any health food store i just happen to have a whole foods up the street from my store). It isnt that expensive either. it is around $30, maybe $40. i honestly dont remember because the tub lasts me a while. I drink a glass of it every morning after i work out.

After just 2 days of drinking this stuff i felt a little better, i had a little more energy. Slowly i went from walking up and down my drive way, to down the block, to around the block to...well now i am on my 2nd month of insanity, and i can run 4 miles in 38 minutes. I'm down 16lbs, and i still have about 30 to go. But I am not losing the weight so i can look good in my up coming wedding photos, or because i want to get back into a size 32 jeans. No those are just going to be added bonuses. I'm doing it because i want my health back. I have a beautiful fiancee at home, and a soon to be step son, and i want to be around for a whole lot of years making memories with them. I'm doing it because i promised Robin on that God awful trip to the hospital that i was never...NEVER going to put her or myself through this again.

To many people skinny, fat, chubby or even just right, take there health for granted. I did. I dont any more. By the sound of it you don't either. you want your health back, you want to be able to move and do whatever with out feeling sluggish. I am the most impatient person you will ever meet. but with this i had to be patient, i still have to be. With every step you take you are getting that much closer to getting your health back. Everytime you fight off that urge to just lay there and be tired and instead you get up and just walk around the house...you are making improvements. It takes time, it takes patience, but most of all it takes the will and the desire to fight back. So fight back. and when you think you can't... imagine the person that is closet to you whispering in your ear "yes you can". The mind is much more powerful than the body. Use your mind to overcome the false boundries that you think your body has set for you. do that and your results will be astounding.

Best of luck to you, if you ever want to ask a question or just chat feel free to friend me

I'm here to get healthy. If that happens to make me skinny, great, but I certainly don't consider my efforts as failing if I don't get back to my former 122-pound self. Yeah, the number on the scale going down is neat and all, but what I LOVE is the fact that for the first time in years, I'm no longer intimidated by the hiking trails I traversed before my serious medical problems.

I've had a LOT of health issues, and my perspective on getting healthy seems so different than 95% of the people on here. Sorry, but after three dances with cancer and many years struggling with Crohn's Disease, my priorities aren't about being "thin" to fit some social ideal- I just want to exude a balance of physical and mental health.]

I don't have a goal weight, which was confusing at first, but I like the open-ended perspective. I'll just keep losing until I feel that I'm at the right weight for my body.

I am here because I've tried so many other things...but now it's an absolute health necessity.

I was diagnosed with Stage I breast cancer two years ago. I went through all treatment and am now No Evidence of Disease (NED - Woo!) - but I realize that being over 100 pounds overweight changes my chance of recurrence (not in a good way).

I saw my new general practitioner earlier in the week and kind of got a kick in the teeth - the research he's done and read show that at my current weight, even with all the successful treatment, my recurrence rate is over 90%.

Therefore, it must go. So yes, it's more than just "getting skinny". It's real life or death.

And that kinda scares the crap out of me.

I had the same thought, looking through a lot of these threads. Not for nothing, but it always seemed so vain to want to be smaller for the sake of fitting the skinny label. Even the being able to fit into smaller clothes thing never quite had the appeal to me it seems to have to some people on this site.

I decided to get fit for several reasons. The first is that I have a purpose in this life. I may only be a grad student now, but I want to dedicate my career to researching devices, mainly biomedical, that have not been thought of yet, to thin the line between biology and technology so that engineers, doctors, and biologists might have a better chance at speaking the same language. Then perhaps we may make more progress in eliminating some of the ills, both literal and figurative, in civilization. I try not to engineer anything without thinking of who it could potentially help or what kind of knowledge it might give me that would further that purpose.

The other was a group of friends and, especially, one of whom I have very strong feelings toward. Even if I am successful in becoming fit, my general personality, social ineptitude, and inexperience with relationships, I feel it's unlikely she and I would ever end up together, but this thought doesn't bother me much. Because of the above reason, I don't care much about my own personal happiness, and if it meant fulfilling my purpose to make someone else's life better, I would gladly go my lifetime passing up all chances to seize lasting happiness for just myself. None the less, her kindness, intelligence, and general radiance are one of my inspirations to be a better person, because the worse off I am personally, the worse I will be at fulfilling my purpose. Perhaps one day I'll have the eloquence to express how important she is to me, as well as the rest of my friends; if they at least know what they meant to me, it doesn't matter if they reciprocate.

I'm not here to get skinny or hit a certain number on the scale. I am here to learn healthy habits to keep me healthy and fit! Being fit and exercising are a big deal to me because I have scoliosis. Doing DDP Yoga and exercises like supermans have been a huge help in preventing a higher degree in my scoliosis and it has even been straightening out my curve! Also doing cardio has helped strengthen my weak lung that is crushed from my scoliosis.

I accepted long ago that I would never be skinny. It's just not in my genetic cards. These hamhock thighs won't ever have a gap.

What is in my genetic cards is obesity, heart problems and high cholesterol. Unless I keep on top of it. Which is why I'm really here: to learn to manage my health as best I can and try to prevent some of the things my family is prone to, health-wise.

I am autistic. My goals are entirely functional. Could not care less about how I look.

I am here to get my BP under control. I have family history of high BP and some diabetes. I do NOT wanna end up with health problems. And also, i wanna look better. I already have more energy and i never had problems moving but this muffin top is disgusting. So is my double chin