What was your "I need to change" moment

Weighing myself and realising I was the heaviest I've ever been. I knew things were bad because hardly any of my clothes fitted, photos looked awful and the belly/muffin top I could only hide in a corset. I went through a bad relationship with someone who also ate unhealthily and put on even more weight.

We split up, I left my job (where I comfort-ate sweets and cake all the time) and became a full time student. Finally there were no more excuses.

When I felt that I was dying a little more everyday. I couldn't get a decent sleep, my husband noticed I was developing sleep apnea, I hurt all over, and I lost the joy from my life. So, finally I realized that I would die and hurt the people I love most in the world if I didn't change my life. It has been two months with MFP and the joy has returned. Thank you all for the encouragement and support!

A T-shirt. A stupid BoSox XL tee that didn't fit. It's super cute and I want to wear it to Fenway in July. And I will :happy:

It was a lot of little things: crossing my legs was getting harder, my size 14 pants were getting tighter, pictures, and my skinny clothes in my closet was starting to grow.

There were a few "camels back" moments. The first was being told by a fella I was joking around with that I looked "healthy." Being a guy, I really didn't know how to take that, but fellas being pretty much cut in stone usually say what they mean (not bashing the fellas here...I love the fellas), I took it as I was seriously showing some weight. My 14's were starting to get a bit tight and I really can't afford new clothes right now because we're broke. Then, there were the ...

FACEBOOK HOLIDAY PICTURES.

Oh...em...gee.

3 years ago I was super fit. I loved being in pictures. My "aha" moment was when I realized there are no current pictures of me because I'd gained weight back, got flabby, and hated being photographed.

I stepped on the scale at my doctor's office after about a year. I weighed 180, which was the highest I'd ever been post babies. And that's with regular exercise! I had been fooling myself, wearing lower and lower cut tops, thinking I could distract everyone from my fat with my bust LOL!

So I said to the doctor, "Oh, it's just a number!"

And he said, "But it's *your* number."

I went home, remembered I had MFP on my phone, and started it that day.

I am now fitting into jeans in a size I haven't worn since before the kids were born! Yea! And I feel healthier than ever!

Thanks to everyone for sharing your stories.

BTW... I was really moved by the woman who said she decided to do it because her then-boyfriend made remarks about her, but now she is doing it for herself. That's the attitude! Be healthy and happy for YOU first!

Ugh mine had to have been flying to Thailand when I had to squeeze into the seat, suck in my gut and have my boyfriend snap the seat belt together....oh man how embarrassing it was that I couldn't even put the seat belt on myself....

My moment was being tired, of being tired all the time, and wanting to sleep all the time. I already have diabeties (taking oral meds) but what I was eating, was not helping. I was making it worse for me and being a bad example for my 6 and 8 year old girls.
Since I am an emotional eater, I worked on my mental issue first. I have been able to change how I eat, and am feeling fabulous!
Last month I incorporated exercising and still feeling great! I take it one minute at a time! I can do this!!!

We had a health fair at work and I was told that I was obese and at risk for x-number of health problems. The thing that shocked me the most was being told that I was 30% body fat. I was in denial for a few days until I did my own weighing, measuring and research.

I started reading online and found "The Body Fat Guide". I'm a biologist by training and it made perfect sense to me. I changed my eating habits, started exercising and lost over 40 lbs. It wasn't until a few years later that I joined MFP and started losing again.

as stupid as it sounds, I was watching The Bachelor and saw how ripped that dude is. All those girls seem to like it, so I figured I'd try to get to that point.

I had always been fairly active. In high school I had gained weight and said "nope" and started getting more active and dropping it... as time went on, College and University, due to working 2 jobs and going to school full time, I was active, but not working out consistently. My ex during university use to tell me I was gaining weight when I was - he was honest - and I would somehow manage to drop the weight in no time... I guess that's what happens in your early 20's.

Time went on, I was fairly 'active' and had another terrible breakup with my ex fiancé (not the same guy) and he had seen me about 3 months after I told him to never contact me again and he had the nerve to tell me I was getting fat. I moved to Toronto shortly after. I was working at Hooters and the owner told me to wear a sweater because my belly was hagging over my shorts (I have IBS and I hadn't used the washroom in about 4-5 days). I was so embarassed!

I went and got a gym membership and used it about 3 times a week. I then got a job that shipped me out to Newfoundland in the middle of nowhere... my exercise was getting up in the morning, walking to the car, to the office, back to the car and back into the house. I gained 15lbs. I came home in February 2010, not realizing how much weight I had actually gained because I never looked at the scale. My 'OMG WTF?' moment was when I tried to put my gorgeous black dress on that had just fit me the past October 2009 and it took my mom, dad and brother to get the zipper up. I looked at pictures after (they're in my pics side by side) and my mom said to me "Stephanie, you really did gain a lot of weight while in Newfoundland."

My mom has never said anything negative about my appearance since the day I was born, that day, I knew she was concerned because she knew my physical appearance means a lot to me. So, I went back to Toronto, got my fat butt back in the gym, got a personal trainer and started working towards a better me. I was between 158-160lbs when I came back.

Now, after a lot of hard work and dedication, I'm not done yet... I'm down to 142lbs as of a week and a half ago. The belt I had to purhcased in Newfouldland and had to put on the 2nd knotch when I was there is now too big for me... I realized that this morning when I was getting dressed. I am so excited with my bodies transformation I have people at work asking me "How do you do it?" I tell them "I want to be healthy."

My moment is probably when I didn't feel comfortable being intimate with my husband. I can't find anything to wear that fits anymore so I just don't want to leave my house. That usually does it.

My moment was stepping on the scale at 199 pounds and realizing I could not let myself hit 200 pounds. It is the heaviest I have ever been and for most of my life I was stuck in a cycle of gaining and losing and I told myself I cannot see 200 pounds on the scale. I want to lose it and keep it off and never enter into the vicious cycle again.

I have yo yo dieted for the past 20 years. I'm only 32. So...I knew I things had gotten out of hand when my weight grew to more than it was when I was 9 months pregnant with twins. But that didn't make me change. I thought as long as I keep my weight a secret no one would know. I lost my grandmother two years ago. She had various heart issues as well as Type II diabetes. She was 78 and that was very hard on me. I lost my job the next summer. I literally wore yoga pants and drawstring shorts for a year straight. When I went back to work, I was miserable because none of my dress clothes fit any more. I had to go buy more immediately because I had NONE that fit. But that didn't stop me either. I started working a desk job instead of chasing my two little boys around all day. So of course those new clothes started to get tight as well. For the past 6 months my dad has been having health issues. He is 60. He is a large. He always has been. He had to have shoulder replacement in November. He needed ankle replacement but before they could do that he was diagnosed with Diabetic Neuropathy and he is no longer a candidate. Yesterday he had ankle fusion. He will be wheelchair bound for 3 months and once he is all healed he will have NO flex in his ankle at all. That made me stop a minute and look at the situation. My Dad's dad died when he was 42 of a massive heart attack. I really started researching my family's health history and it's not a pretty story. I went to dinner with my husband's work bunch for their Christmas party. Pictures were taken. Pictures were posted on Facebook. People were tagged. I was mortified and untagged myself from every picture. Christmas came and went. New Years rolled around and I was terribly sick. I had H Pylori again. I went back with the nurse, she weighed me. I could not believe that number. That was the last straw. I was so upset over that number. I felt so surprised by it....but I shouldn't have. I had so many clues staring me right in my fat face for so long that I just ignored. The nurse then walked me back into the exam room and wanted to take my pulse. Well it was high, too high in fact. She said...."lets just wait a minute and let that come down some." She took by BP which was fine. Then went back to my pulse and it had come down some. It was only elevated from me having to walk down the hall. I did infact have H Pylori again. I went to my dad's defeated. He had cooked that night and he is a fantastic cook!!! I ate 2 plates of spaghetti and about 4 pieces of bread. As I went home, heartbroken and miserable, I realized that I was no better than a drug addict. I was killing myself forkful by forkful rather than needle by needle. I have 6 year old little boys. I have so much to live for. I was upset over it for a few days. And then I decided to do something about it. I started logging on MFP on 1/7 and have not missed a single day. I have 101 lbs to lose for a total of 123 to put me in the "normal" range. I'm doing this for my health and for my kids. If I don't I'm certain to follow in my family member's footsteps and that is not a price I'm willing to pay.