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MyFitnessPal Community

Why did you gain weight in the first place?

VictoryGarden

Ok, it makes sense to me that a major support factor to any sustainable weight loss is to first understand how we got here in the first place. Only then can we recognize what we need to change, fix, cure, or remove from our life in order to lose the weight and in the end KEEP IT OFF. Isn't that always the most frustrating point: losing it and then gaining it back, and then some? And I think a lot of us can find support in others who are going through the same struggles and changes on this deeper, personal level.

Does anyone care to share what their "triggers" are that cause overeating? If you all are anything like me, there is more than 1. . . . . . .

This isn't intended to make excuses, only to identify causes, or through sharing,help others identify their triggers that they might not consciously recognize.

Replies

sillyshamrock11

I love food.

^Yup, pretty much. Quit smoking. Beer is wonderful. Didn't pay attention to my calorie intake or portion size. Exercise was minimal to none.

Now I exercise more, watch what I eat, and drink beer with less calories...and still make room for delicious nom noms :-)

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drop_it_like_a_squat

Because I ate. Too much. And I didn't care.

lizbess1

getting hurt, not slowing down on the eating thinking I could still eat the same way even though I could not move I gained 30lbs on top of the 30 that I never lost after giving birth to my daughter years ago. I am now almost to goal within 10-15 lbs and this is the hardest because now I want to eat again and I got into a car accident recently and it put me at a stand still and the weight is fluxuating again and it will come off once I can move again but it is getting depressing again... good luck everyone

bluestarlight19

How I got fat in the first place, well...I was always bigger, taller and had a larger frame when I was younger than almost all the other girls. Something happened to me in 8th grade and I think I got depressed from it, I'm not really sure. I just mostly stayed in the house after and pushed my friends away from me. So lack of physical activity and I probably stuffed my face. I also got depressed again after a major family event at 16 and we had to move. My parents never noticed anything because they were dealing with their own issues and also my sister's issues (she ended up having epilepsy). It never really improved from there and I remained heavy and got heavier straight through college, although I was much much happier in college and had lots of friends and fun. The some more stuff happened and I said blah I hate being heavy and lost weight for my health. Then...I met my husband (who eats like crap) slowed down and stopped exercising eventually because I had to get a second job. Then the pregnancies....I didn't gain much and lost it all at birth from each preg, but I was on bed rest for the last one and had severe morning sickness with both, so I have lost a lot of strength and muscle mass. And once my eating returned to normal...I gained back more than pre-preg each time. Right now i'm just working on getting some basic strength back so my body doesn't hurt from everyday activities, I seem to injure myself more easily. Since trying to lose weight since the start of the year, I have learned my binging/grazing triggers are chocolate (if I know its in the house, I will find it and eat it, no control), boredom and be stuck in the house for long periods of time, makes me a bit stir crazy like I should be doing something. Oh and as I found out last night, apparently work stress is also a trigger, which I didn't know about since my job isn't usually crazy stressful but it was yesterday and when I got home, I just sat in front of my computer and played candy crush and ate a crap ton of calories.....sigh....

markiend

I was always tall and skinny, used to weight myself daily hoping had put weight on. As soon as I hit my mid 30's I didn't get enough exercise and continued eating whatever I had done. No excuses, nobody , nothing else to blame but myself

One day my girlfriend at the time, called me a fatty b*****d and told me in no uncertain terms I couldn't go to holiday looking like that. It was then it hit home. My waist had bulged by 7 inches and I had put on 40lbs without truly realising

Bought myself an exercise bike, few weights and over a year or so got it all under control

Took my eye off the ball .. no excuses and it won't happen again

favoritenut

I ate too much, I always thought you had to eat everything in sight...and I never exercised. always had a weight problem as a kid and now...

Thommothebear

Made the mistake of listening to my doctor and increasing my carb intake, coupled with an incredibly stressful job which got in the way of my mountain and watersports, so major increase in the type of calories that I really can't metabolise well, coupled with lower level of exercise.

I quit my job, changed back to a lowish carb diet and now all back on track, feeling great and enjoying life again.

zjpq

stress eating though I can generally maintain a certain weight fairly easily. Unfortunately pregnancy helped me put a bunch on and now I am doing great at maintaining it! lol I also don't lose weight while breastfeeding which makes it harder... now if I could just stop buying chocolate...

kkerri

I gained when I was pregnant - that plus age has me about 10 pounds over my pre-pregnancy weight. I am always in a normal weight range for my height, but I still have asperations to get the 10 pounds off before my kids are in college.

A full-time desk job with long hours doesn't help matters.

kkerri

*aspirations!

joyincincy

I returned to college at the age of 28. Between my job and school I sat for 16 hrs plus everyday and then the stress of being a perfectionist at both my job and my schooling resulted in me eating unhealthy. Getting my diet back in order has been easier than getting my body back in motion but I am finally at the point that I am learning to run/jog at least 3x times per week with light to moderate activity on other days. I also don't have to sit for that long anymore, which has helped tremendously. I actually think that the sitting was more of a physical stress & weight gainer than anything else.

JeaninePaige

I got the way that I was by being lazy. I didn't think I was "that bad" and kept making excuses for myself. I felt tired and drained all the time. Wouldn't do certain things because of physical strain or having to wear more revealing outfits.

What really made me the worst was eating fast food all the time and drinking soda. I really didn't have a problem with over-eating, I just made the wrong choices.

I'm about four months into my weight loss and 30lbs down. I have so much more energy. Haven't had fast food or soda since I started. I don't miss it at all.

JadeC_3

Ever since I had left high school and gone to college, the weight piled on. School offered sports to which I did partake in, once I stopped playing sport going to parties with friends and dancing the night away almost every weekend was my main source of exercise thereafter. My main weight gain came after I had used birth control. I would gain and lose the entire time (3years now) once I had lost the weight I would stop maintaining my weight and eat something bad thinking it wouldn't do anything to me. Made excuses. The usual stuff. Before I joined mfp, I had lost almost 10 kg's only to gain it back (for no known reason, as I was partaking in daily exercise) and got demotivated. Now I am eager and determined as ever to lose it, and keep it off.
Another struggle I had was that constant hunger, I'd eat because I was ''hungry'' I never considered drinking a glass or more of water and waiting to see if it were hunger or thirst. I have now learnt from that mistake, lost 1 Kg, still plenty more to go and a long hard road ahead. But I am determined to lose ATLEAST 6 kg's before the year is up.

JadeC_3

That is my problem too. No matter how much I try stay away or cut back, it always finds its way to me

tonybalony01

High fructose corn syrup, bad genetics, big food corporations, fast food and not enough government intervention telling me what and how much to eat or drink.

Just kidding. :laugh:

My family always enjoyed eating, and we ate too much of everything. My sister was (and still is) an excellent cook and I was always reaching for seconds and thirds.

BlueBombers

Pregnancy. I took the "eating for two" thing a bit too far.

JadeC_3

I've also had the exact same problem as you. Unfortunately I was taught the same thing, so I'd eat whatever was on my plate. I now half the plate into halves then quarters or put it on a much smaller plate so I eat less. It does help

JadeC_3

I ate too much, I always thought you had to eat everything in sight...and I never exercised. always had a weight problem as a kid and now...

October 23, 2013 8:17 am

I've also had the exact same problem as you. Unfortunately I was taught the same thing, so I'd eat whatever was on my plate. I now half the plate into halves then quarters or put it on a much smaller plate so I eat less. It does help

JadeC_3

I love food.

That is my problem too. No matter how much I try stay away or cut back, it always finds its way to me. Nor did I realise how much calories were in foods that I consumed. I'm actually TOO scared to eat now with what I have learned!

rosemary98

i have always loved food. Even as a child, I loved all food. My mom was a good cook and made well-balanced meals. I stayed pretty trim throughout high school with a solid meal plan in place and being active in cheerleading. then college hit. no more well-balanced meals...lots of fast food and junk. no more exercise either.

FrankiesSaysRelax

Mine was all from college. I drank 5-6 days a week and ate fried foods multiple times a day. I did work out, but not regularly. I actually think I'm pretty lucky that I only gained about 15-20 lbs over the 4 years of college considering how crappy I treated my body. I still have to be careful when going to visit friends because we slip right into that old pattern- tons of alcohol and eating every meal out. It's definitely still a challenge, even now, after 2 yrs of maintenance.

cdahl383

1.) Got married and got lazy with diet/fitness
2.) Had kids and gained weight both times with my wife

After a few years of fluctuating I decided to just get with the program and make fitness and healthy eating a permanent habit while allowing myself to still have some fun and eat the occasional junk food, pizza, beer, candy, snacks, etc within moderation. Working so far.

jeffd247

Boy we can over complicate things for ourselves, eh?

I gained weight because I like beer, chinese food, and sitting more than I like exercise.

Mystery solved.

sepulchura

Spinal injury, prior to which I weighed 200 at 6'0" with a 30" waist (i.e. had bulked up a bit, but was fairly athletic. It has taken ten years to get to where I can take walks and go on gentle bike rides, so now I'm excited to be on a slow track to getting down to 185.

sepulchura

Boy we can over complicate things for ourselves, eh?

I gained weight because I like beer, chinese food, and sitting more than I like exercise.

Mystery solved.

But there is a lot of truth to this too... ^^^^

RoseTears143

For me it was a combination of my autoimmune thyroid disease, and the stress that came with it and then I said f*uck it and just started eating what I wanted since I couldn't lose weight anyway to get back in shape when I was trying! lol Sooooo it was mostly me stuffing my face because I was lazy about learning about nutrition...in a nutshell.

rebeccas207

I've never been overweight however I believe control has a lot to do with where I am now. I was cheated on in high school which led to an unhealthy relationship with food (trying to control something). Once Pandora's box was open it hasn't stopped. But rather than too little nutrition, I eat large amounts after class, work , home bored ect. (food controls me). I then feel bad and vow to be super healthy and exercise tomorrow. Then tomorrow becomes today and I've done it again... the cycle repeats, weeks- months -years. the lbs slide on, the depression thickens, I isolate myself and set myself up to be even more inactive and bored so ... eat! It helps just to say or type it out!
I need to meet up with friends rather than put it off, I need to be busy, work more,get out and have more going on in my life than food! I keep waiting to lose weight to take a fitness class... I know silly, but I need to just go!

MaryLouRoyal

I actually lost weight when I started college in '09. I'm not sure how much, because I never paid attention to the scale; I just noticed that my pants size dropped.

I had untreated anxiety and depression. During high-stress times, I could go as long as a week without eating any meals...maybe a snack somewhere that a concerned friend would insist upon, but nothing substantial. My best friend once threatened to take me to the hospital! I didn't have an eating disorder, I'd never cared much about my weight. I would just be so stressed and anxious about other things that I wouldn't be able to keep anything down. When the stressful situation would back off, I'd eat normally again, and my college diet was so bad that I maintained a healthy weight through most of college due to the unintended balance in calories.

Last year, things got so bad, I finally sought treatment. Now I'm mentally much healthier, but I was so happy to be eating again that I went overboard, and my schedule often isn't conducive to exercise. I knew I was gaining, but I was focused on getting my mental health on track first. Then I stepped on my roommate's scale one evening out of curiosity, and got my wake-up call.

I shouldn't have to sacrifice my physical health for my mental health! It's time to become the master of both. Exercise is also good for the mental aspect--my goal is to someday not need the antidepressants anymore! That will take a while...the schedule as a grad student isn't any more conducive to exercise than the undergrad schedule, but I'm trying to make time for it! Also eating a lot less...so, slowly but surely losing and feeling very happy about it!

SF2514

Illness, medication, bad food choices, and laziness.

thatjeffsmith

I ate and drank whatever I wanted, and quit exercising.

Bad combo.