How did you gain the weight?

I was assaulted and became afraid to leave the house for pretty much a whole year. Sat around eating and feeling sorry for myself.

I just got into really terrible habits. Family dinners as a child became associated with very bad memories for me (I was yelled at for eating too slowly, for getting up to get more food, or for accidentally finishing something that my dad wanted (this was when I was like 6 years old)). So as I got older, eating became a very secretive sort of thing. I would eat hardly anything at meals, and then I would sneak piles of food up to my bedroom and hide it under my bed or in my dresser. Then, once my parents went to bed, I would pig out on it before going to sleep. That habit never really changed. I started sneaking food all throughout the day, and stopped really having meals at all. My mom stopped cooking for my brother and me once I got to be around twelve, and only cooked for my dad, who to this day eats dinner by himself when he comes home from work. So my diet basically consisted of tons of junk, pasta, chocolate, and frozen meals (which were probably the most low-cal healthiest thing; at least they had some vegetables!). I progressively gained weight as this went on.

But then I started going to summer camps, and one in particular served AMAZING food. To me it was amazing to think that people actually ate meals like this, with balanced portions of various real foods. I had always thought that was only done on holidays or in restaurants. To eat like that every day, every meal was entirely new for me. A few months after that, I decided that I wanted to make a change, not only to be thinner and more attractive but to be able to eat foods like that; foods that I had previously seen as "special" for only a few days of the year. And now the weight is falling off. I still don't eat nearly as well as I do at camp, or as well as I'd like to, but it's a lot better than what it used to be and I'm slowly training myself not to be so secretive about eating and to sit down at a table and have meals rather than erratic all-over-the-place eating.

I never cared about what/how I ate. My entire family is overweight/obese. I wasn't happy. I learned that something had to change. I'm now 45 pounds down and in a healthy weight range while the rest of my family is overweight/obese. I've tried my best to help out as much as possible and they don't seem to want to put in the effort to change. I won't give up though, but whatever happens, I WILL stay healthy throughout the entire journey!

I think it started with depression in my late teens. I had a horrible relationship with both my parents at the same time. I was very stressed out as a student in a very academically challenging university. I had given up athletics to focus on studies. I relied on food to soothe the emotional pain. Food was there to comfort me when the rest of my family were being jerks or when I had huge, virtually impossible deadlines coming up. And then I graduated and got a job and some money. Why not celebrate with a little fine dining and a few drinks with my friends? And this repeated when each one of them had a success in their life. And then I moved to another country where I didn't know a lot of people or speak the language fluently (yet). Food's language is universal! And then I moved back and was unemployed and lost my grandmother, the only family that I felt loved me no matter what. And then I moved to a new state where I didn't know anybody and was very stressed out with my new job. And then here we are. Working hard to undo all the damage that unhealthy coping with my challenges did.

Self-indulgence, sloth & denial.

beer
flaming hot cheetos
beer
skittles
beer
chocolate
beer

Simple. Beer. Budweiser and Heineken. Six pack + a day. That's an easy 1000 C extra/day before the pizzas, pulled pork, etc. Not that you asked, but how am I losing it? Gave up beer? Hell no! Cut back and switched to Beck Premier Light @ 64C vs 150C. OK, it tastes more like water than beer, but beggars can't be choosers. Also the occasional full flavored beer after exercise when I have extra calories to use. Find I sleep better without all the alcohol too!

after having 2 boys & years of stress i have found myself close to 40 pounds over my weight . I am only 4' 11 .

I worked retail through college, full-time, so I was running around a store 8 hours a day, plus walking to campus and classes. I graduated, got a desk job, and gained 20 lbs. Eek.

I wasn't prepared to gain weight, because I always thought I had an awesome metabolism. Turns out, I had a normal metabolism, and a super active job. Being at a desk is not super conducive to losing weight.

But I am officially tracking calories and signing up for workout classes. And possibly C25K. 20lbs by December would be awesome!

I was 13 when I lived in a very little food in a household of 10 people to 12. At this time we were all broke and i practically ate 2 slices of bread for most of the day. My nan and pop brought me down to live with my mum and then I was living in a household of 6 people and I was given the opportunity to eat.
I am and always was a fussy eater and when we finally had a place of our own I was a size 8 and was dog sitting for my nan every friday night and she would buy me a tray of sausages. I felt obliged to eat them, she never froze them so it was then or bin sort of thing. So for 6 months I had a competition with myself "how many sausage sangas can I eat." ! sausage and 1 slice of bread.

After a few months I was challenged to eat 9 sangas.

I was 13 and didnt know how much I weighed and then I was 14 and chunky size 16 and hell I still didnt notice. I was 16 and I was bulding out of size 18 pants and I still didnt notice I was fat. It was when I started tafe at 18 a friend said I was the fat one and she was the skinny one and it shocked me, I went home and looked at myself. WOW.

I got into habits that I had to break and this was that time. I was adamant I would get skinnier then my friend and prove all the people who ever dissed me wrong. (Still work in progress, I fell off the wagon after losing 21 kilos and I was stuck so I put it all back on......TAKE 2. )