What was your wake-up call?

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Replies

  • berryjk
    berryjk Posts: 120
    I wanted to quit smoking. Tried 3 times in the past year but gained 15 lbs each time (45 lb in a year) and went right back to smoking to stop the gain. 2 months ago I tried again.. put on 3 lbs and KNEW that if I didn't get the whole thing together I would fail again.

    2 months later I am having great success. No more smokes. Working out everyday and keeping my diet as close to perfect as I can get. This is the first time in years that I can say I am super proud of myself.

    congrats! 14 days cig free for me! it's hard! I've tried and failed many times, but I am even more determined to stay smoke free this time!
  • perpetual98
    perpetual98 Posts: 90
    You got all the way UP to 211? Poor thing. :p
  • MichelleLaree13
    MichelleLaree13 Posts: 865 Member
    I stepped on the scale and it said 142, my highest ever. I was like OMG :noway: never eating anything bad ever ever again. I am 5'2" on a tall day and my weight use to stay in the 120s.
  • Amberonamission
    Amberonamission Posts: 836 Member
    I wanted to quit smoking. Tried 3 times in the past year but gained 15 lbs each time (45 lb in a year) and went right back to smoking to stop the gain. 2 months ago I tried again.. put on 3 lbs and KNEW that if I didn't get the whole thing together I would fail again.

    2 months later I am having great success. No more smokes. Working out everyday and keeping my diet as close to perfect as I can get. This is the first time in years that I can say I am super proud of myself.

    congrats! 14 days cig free for me! it's hard! I've tried and failed many times, but I am even more determined to stay smoke free this time!
    Congrats to you too.
  • HypersonicFitNess
    HypersonicFitNess Posts: 1,219 Member
    My clothes were getting too tight; I was wearing a size 12 (weight 152) and really needed to move up to a size 14 and I had NEVER wore a 14...I was about to have a birthday ....38 and I thought, I don't do it before I turn 40; I might not ever get it off. So I became serious about it; set my goal to drop down to where I once was....a size 6 that was comfortably loose on my and thought 120-125 would be the weight. I got to 125 and had already passed size 6 to a 4, so kept going to my final resting place 118 and size 2.

    I kept it off for over 4 year; but had a lot of changes last year: empty nest, selling our house, moving, building a house, living in a hotel for a few months b/c the house didn't get finished on time, our beloved Doll Face Persian (he was 20) passed away while we were in the hotel, I changed jobs three times, I was working from the hotel (so I really didn't leave the hotel except on weekends)....you get the picture. Anyway, I gained a few pounds back (12) and am back to trying to get rid of it. I know what to do and how to do it and I'm certain I'll be successful.
  • IronmanPanda
    IronmanPanda Posts: 2,083 Member
    February of 2011 I went to the hospital to have my gall bladder removed. One night while I was there a nurse stopped in to look at my charts and make sure I was doing ok said, "Are you diabetic?"
    I said, "No..." She replied, "You will be." And walked out. That's when it hit me and I knew I had to make a change.

    I got home lit my last cigarette and 8 months later lost about 60 lbs and completed my first 1/2 Ironman.
  • GhostPack
    GhostPack Posts: 197 Member
    Got fed up with being just another person walking down the street. Weak, slow, in a trance, wanting bad food and more TV. Tired of blaming old injuries, tired of old stories of 'when I was in shape'. Pictures told me the truth, my brother did too. :mad:
  • jwerdlike
    jwerdlike Posts: 14 Member
    The wake up for me was when my daughter was born. I wanted to not only be around for her, but I wanted her to have good eating and exercise habits. I was at my heaviest when she was born (and part of that was just because I would eat and binge with my wife on whatever was in the house, could be ordered or could be served) and I decided I'd had enough. It's been a very rewarding journey thus far. I started with the cardio portion of getting back into shape and did various programs, then I started to get my diet dialed in as well. Now I'm at my leanest and healthiest and it was because of that one big decision back in 2009 that changed it all for me :)
  • 18guyhornet
    18guyhornet Posts: 195 Member
    Went on a Disney Cruise with my family and on one of the excursions we wee on a nice beach. I looked at pictures from that and was concerned because I didn't know who that fat a@@ dude was who was so close to my daughter - yep, you guest it. That was me - I didn't even recognize myself in a picture! I've lost 30 lbs so far with 10 more to go.
  • babel95
    babel95 Posts: 44 Member
    3 things.
    1. I stepped on the scale and was horrified that I was almost 190lbs. I felt sick.
    2. I realized I would be the fat girl at prom. Maybe even the girl without a date.
    3. I feel like, because I'm "chubby" or whatever, I cant be my true self.

    It was a rough wake up call, but I woke up nonetheless.
  • AlexandraLynch
    AlexandraLynch Posts: 161
    I knew I wanted to do something for some time, but wasn't sure how to go about it. I lurked on several blogs that have subgroups of active people, and started to do yoga and feel much better.

    I knew that I couldn't do it unless my husband, who started at 375 pounds to my 298, was doing it too. We discussed it a while, and then we just decided to do it! And we lost 20 pounds in two months. He started not having to use his inhaler constantly, and discovered he could fit in booths at restaurants again, and fit into the new jeans we had bought him recently. I felt better, and my clothes began to fit better.

    I discovered MFP, and decided to use this to track my calories more closely, since being female and 40 it's going to be harder for me to do. And I really like it! So here I am, and he'll be here soon too.

    The little things? Not being able to fold into a pose because my fat's in the way. The pain levels in my arthritic feet and ankles. Bumping into things. Getting told, "I like you, but I don't think fat chicks are cute." This may help my fibro pain, too.
  • Mandeez77
    Mandeez77 Posts: 4 Member
    I did the math. I lost weight once and since gaining it back I've been saying I did it a few years ago; I can do it again. Then I realized I had been saying it for ten years. I got so disgusted with myself I shut up and started doing instead.
  • honey_bee_keysha
    honey_bee_keysha Posts: 773 Member
    When I saw a picture of me and a couple of friends taken at a football game, I was shocked and appalled to notice that I had a double chin! I realized it was time for a change.
  • lolobi1
    lolobi1 Posts: 17
    My boo telling me he thought my belly y was cute and squidgy! After burying his body in the loft I joined this site!! lol
  • babymine55
    babymine55 Posts: 127 Member
    Hmm..wake up call?? I had a few...

    Back in 2009, I was the heaviest I'd ever been. Tipping the scales at just over 370 (I'm 5'6", yikes!). When you're super obese, you become almost inhuman to the public around you. Adults and children alike, would stare. Kids in my children's class would whisper and giggle. I could no longer fit in most booths and seats in restraunts. I couldn't sit up in my own bed...there was just too much stomach in my way.

    It was decision time!! Get to living, or plan my own funeral so my husband didn't have to for me.

    I'm not there yet, I have about 60 pounds till I hit my ultimate goal, but, there have been so many AWESOME triumphant moments along the way.

    I'm so incredibly thankful for so many positive motivators here within the MFP community. It's all or nothing baby!!!!! :D
  • AliasSha
    AliasSha Posts: 46 Member
    I was having heart palpitations and got scared. Well, when I lost some weight they stopped, so I am going to keep on going so I don't get all the illnesses that run in my family.
  • sydnisd183
    sydnisd183 Posts: 247 Member
    pictures of me at my sisters wedding, and I started getting those creases of back fat near the waist so the skin made contact with itself when I moved just right..... very uncomfortable on a hot day, and I had always prided myself on my lack of back fat

    this, i never had to deal with back fat..............well anyway it's super hot out here in Houston. I was walking to my car and could feel the back fat rolls meshing together. i kept bending to one side thinking "oh well maybe it's the way i'm walking???" :noway:

    anyway i got disgusted then and decided to do something about it. so i'm here. today it's still hot (heat index of 108 right now) but i'm going to run my 5k after work which reminds me i need to drink some more water
  • Babymomakell
    Babymomakell Posts: 257 Member
    I was always thin and in shape growing up. I had my daughter young (at age 21) and gained a lot of weight, and have had horrible back problems and complications as a result of my pregnancy and her birth.... I gained SO much weight, and I was depressed and used my back problems and pain as an excuse.... until I caught my boyfriend of three years cheating on me with every woman he could get his hands on, and they were all amazingly skinny and beautiful.... something just snapped in me, all the wasted crying over him and I took a long look in the mirror and decided that enough was enough.

    I since have made tremendous life changes, lost 30lbs (working towards more loss), quit my job that was contributing to my misery and was leading me no-where, and went back to college full-time....

    Honestly... we struggle, we don't have a lot of money now that I am not working, but we make do on savings and my school loans.... and I can say that I am the HAPPIEST that I have EVER been!!!!!!!!!
  • mgobluetx12
    mgobluetx12 Posts: 1,326 Member
    In June I went to a kid's pool with my little nephews just because I was tired of always sitting on the sidelines and there were other fat people there. I didn't realize my step-mother would be taking pictures and posting them on FACEBOOK and there I was, looking like a beached whale. I went to Vegas for work later that week, ate whatever I wanted and started when I got back. 25lbs down since then and going strong. Next summer, a bathing suit will be a whole different ballgame for me!
  • catholic_chick
    catholic_chick Posts: 9
    I'd been telling myself that I was trying to lose weight, but not really doing it "because I didn't have the time" to exercise. In reading a blog, I discovered a book called Make Shi(f)t Happen and decided that I needed to make some shifts in my life. I started riding my bike early in the morning before kids and hubby get up, I make a lunch instead of take out and I have a supportive husband. Now I am down 26 pounds - not trying to lose more, but not trying not to either. If I keep doing what I am doing, I will be healthy and my weight will be where it is supposed to be.
  • m_shuman
    m_shuman Posts: 179
    One Friday night I was home alone (DH and the kids were at my MIL's house.) I was sitting on the couch watching Burlesque eating a piece of chocolate lovin' spoon cake and I started thinking......wow my body used to look like those girls and it hit me that if I continued to eat the chocolate cake I was only going to gain more weight and if I put it in the trash, walked away and started going to the gym I could look like that again. So I went to the Y the next day and signed up. That was almost a year ago, fast forward to today and I have lost 20 LBs and regained my love for exercise and being physically fit. I also have been certified to work in the fitness field as a group exercise instructor and a spin instructor. Working at the Y will be my everyday reminder of how I want to live my life. Healthy and fit!
  • rmf626
    rmf626 Posts: 47
    For me pictures have always been difficult. I would fanatically untag pics of me in Facebook because I didn't want people to really see how big I had gotten (especially the old high school and college friends). In May I had to have my gall bladder out and the lab tests to determine what was wrong showed that I was prediabetic and that my cholesterol was high. I don't want to take Rx drugs...so I'm here. And of course, I feel sluggish all the time and hate looking in the mirror. Time to change!
  • sweetiebrittie
    sweetiebrittie Posts: 51 Member
    I was overweight all my life but I had gotten cancer when I was 14, I lost some weight from that but then gained it all back and then some. I went to a cancer convention in 2011 and heard Kris Carr talking about cancer and how nutrition can be powerful medicine and she was living with an inoperable tumor. I was inspired. Then I saw my doctor and he told me my cholesterol was too high and he was going to put me back on Zocor and give me a nutritionist. I begged him to give me 3 months to lower it and lose weight.

    I followed Kris Carr's diet cleanse and lifestyle and lost 37 pounds in 3 months. I learned about nutrition and cut out processed food. I was determined never to get cancer again. I am determined to claim my health back.
  • agriffiths73
    agriffiths73 Posts: 108 Member
    You know what, I missed a lot of signs, being referred to as the big guy, so I'm over 6 ft, have broad shoulders etc but was too heavy....

    Struggling to put shoes and socks on, nearly constant lower back pain, out of breath in no time - then my son arrived!

    Man, what a wake up call that was, and is. He's amazing, without doubt the best ever thing to have come into my life and it was the terrifying thought of not being around for him, not being able to spend time messing about, being out of breath etc.

    So, things had to change, and they are. I've lost over a stone in 6 weeks, and it's still coming down. I can bend over with ease, the back pain hasn't been around for a while now, and I can move about better. i can fit into my old suits again, run about without having to stop after a few seconds, and the bowel problems that have been dogging me for years seem to have all but gone too.

    We have all had many attempts at this before, but for me, I can't let this go now - my life has real focus now, and I'm going to make it count.
  • Frozen300
    Frozen300 Posts: 223 Member
    Now that I'm in my 40's, I've realized that losing the weight is only going to get tougher as I age, especially if I continue with my 5lbs a year that I was averaging. My belly was getting larger and larger and it's goddamn embarressing. 20 more lbs by Christmas, BOOYA!!
  • californiagirl2012
    californiagirl2012 Posts: 2,625 Member
    For me it just kept creeping up year after year even though I lifted and ran (marathons and ultra marathons), my gosh, I couldn't figure out what was wrong with me. The rest of my story is on bobbies fitness blog but the bottom line is our society has an over abundance of food. I was not a pig, not a mindless eater, not a snacker, not a binger, didnt' stuff myself, it just didn't make sense. Portion sizes are designed for 6' tall men. I'm a 5' tall female. duh! Anyway I finally achieved my dream at age 50 last year.

    Oh yeah and one final incident for me. At age 45 I retired from my high tech job and went through the police academy. I worked really hard to stay fit and even though I was over weight my years of running and lifting made me strong, although I didn't look the athlete I could run circles around the young guys in class. I was really proud after I was hired as a deputy (I work part time as a volunteer) but then to my horror I kept gaining weight! I had to buy bigger uniform pants. What the heck? Finally when we were taking a guy to jail he sat in the back of the patrol car calling me a fat *kitten* the whole time. That was the last straw! I just started eating less. Cut my portions in half and no eating after 7pm. After all the diets I've done for 15 years, it just comes down to eat less, move more (although I had the move part down).
  • jypsyjulia
    jypsyjulia Posts: 33 Member
    I've been overweight my whole life but have never had any health issues. I went to the doctor in August and my blood pressure was 138/20. That is 2 points away from being high blood pressure, which is the "silent killer". I knew then that something had to change immediately.
  • Bellacuore
    Bellacuore Posts: 10 Member
    I had a breast reduction and it took me near 6 months to recover from it, yes 6 months....3 of those months I could not bathe myself and for the 1st month I could not take care of my own...hygienic needs...I can't even say the words as even now it's humiliating. I know my weight and lack of physical activity before surgery was a huge reason for my recovery being what it was, the rest was my complete lack of self worth.
  • DaisyHamilton
    DaisyHamilton Posts: 575 Member
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    That picture was my slap-in-the-face. I usually have a very pointy jaw, sharp jaw-line, and this picture nearly made me break down and cry. This was this past New Years Eve, 2011.
  • lrivera85
    lrivera85 Posts: 35 Member
    I was 25 tired of being out of shape. I couldn't sleep, didn't fit into clothes or shoes that I liked. Two things in one week were my triggers. 1. I have two little girls they both drew a family picture and I was a circle with arms, :laugh: , I can laugh now but for some reason it got to me then. I asked them why am I a circle they said because I was the fattest in the family:noway: . 2. That weekend I was going out so i decided to go shopping, 2XL no longer fit me. That was it for me. That was a year and a half ago and I don't regret starting this journey, one of best things I have done in life.

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