Why did you get FAT & why did you decide to turn it around?

I gained a lot of weight going on medications.Although I recognizedthis, I didn't do much to offset it.
Honestly I thought it meant I had to be this weight...but it does not!
I joined mfp awhile back but was never really consistent nor did I lose weight.
Now I'm determinef to get this weight off of me---especially after seeing recent pics and fitting into clothes

I don't know why I got fat initially. I remember being fat when I was 5 and my doctor trying to put me on a diet when I was 7. I know (now) that even though he meant well, that put me on the road to an ED in my early 20's. I know that deciding NEVER to diet again rather than go back to the ED, then having 4 kids made me fat (196 in June 2013).

I decided to turn it around because while obese was healthier than bulimic, it wasn't healthiest and I don't want a knee replacement, at least not yet. I don't want it ever, but my left knee will likely need it anyway. It's a hot mess inside according to MRI. I also think my insurance rates are going to be based on my BMI and lab numbers eventually. They are already based on my participation in an employee wellness program. So I searched for a calorie and exercise tracker for my phone, picked MFP because I know a friend had used it with real and continuing success, and here I am 32 pounds later (I was 192 the day I logged here): 10 pounds from my goal of 150 and 4 clothes sizes smaller.

I got comfortable and lazy. My health needs to be improved.

For the lst few years I was eating my stress away. And I was lazy, so i got to 175 lbs. I decided to turn it around after my new friends did not recognize me on a picture made three years ago when I was 140 lbs.:frown:

I got lazy during recovery from surgery

I grew up as a slim girl and started gaining gradually from my mid-twenties on. I am blessed that I have no health problems at my age....I take no medications. I love sweets, and over the years that has put the weight on. I have never tried counting calories, so now I will try it. I have done low carb in the past, and it worked. But it is hard depriving oneself of all foods containing carbs -- for so long. Now I'm in my fifties and back in college. I am very overweight and going to school to become a registered nurse. I need, and want,to lose weight because I will be on my feet a lot. Also, I need to set an example to those I am serving in the health field. I do not want to be an overweight nurse. This fact is what's driving this desire to turn it around!

it all started for me when I was a senior in hs. spent all day in school easiest was fast food. then I started losing people out of my life which I turned to food. I have a deep relationship with food. because food will never leave me. the more I started getting hurt by people the more I turned to food. I tried several times losing weight and while I was doing good I would always just give up. but now I cant. I became my heaviest (heavier than when I was doing well beginning of the year and gave up in may) gained about 20" in my waist. cant wear a lot of clothes started shopping at those xl 2xl 2xl stores, and I thought to myself **** this. I need to stop. plus I got my brothers wedding in 2015 I need to look good lol

I've been thin most of my life - the two times I was heaviest were with my first pregnancy and then with surgery. I gained 70 pounds with my first child because I was 17 and my mom told me to feed my cravings. So I basically ate whatever I felt like eating and got pretty big. After I had him, I got pregnant again five months later and still hadn't lost much weight. I only gained 35 pounds with that pregnancy but when I went to buy jeans after I was recovered I would have had to buy a size 14. I said absolutely not! And spent the next year working out to home aerobics tapes a couple of hours a day. I got actually too thin for a while. Then, years later, I had back problems that forced me into a wheel chair for a year. I gained about 20 lbs. After I had surgery, I started walking on the treadmill and lost that weight. Four years ago I had more back problems and gained that 20 lbs back. After surgery again, I was able to start working out again and lost that 20 lbs again. Now, I make sure every day I exercise and monitor my calories. This past year I had an IBD flare and found out I have multiple food intolrances and have to battle the other way - fighting to maintain my weight without getting too thin. I never thought that would be the case in my 40s.

As a child, I was stick-thin. In pictures, I was all arms and legs. Then puberty hit along with being very unhappy in high school, I turned to food for comfort. I was also not very physically active. By the time I was 16 or 17, I was in the 180's. When I went to college, I found my niche, became happier and more active and the weight just fell off. I maintained in the 140 range for a while (I am 5'9"). After my first 3 children, my weight stayed around the 150's (+/-). Then I had my 4th child (in my 30's) and barely lost any of the 35 pound gain after he was born. Then I had back problems which lessened my already limited physical activity and my weight just ballooned and stayed around the 200 mark. Back in 2006, I had enough. I had cortisone shots in my back, which worked wonders. I followed a diet that was loosely based on the South Beach diet and exercised. After 6 months, I lost 55 pounds. I felt fantastic and kept it off for 3 years by being careful with my diet and continuing to exercise. However, I started to get lazy. Less exercise. My children were now teens and I kept up with their eating. It was a gradual gain. So gradual, I hardly noticed until I had put on 20 pounds. Being tall, 20 pounds really isn't terribly noticeable. Then I came down with Lyme's Disease, followed by 3 bouts of pneumonia which required steroid treatment. Not only did the sickness contribute to the gain, but I gave up at that point. Next I knew, I was in the 210 range. I couldn't stand myself. I went on a trip and could barely fit in the airplane seat or really enjoy my trip because I was huffing and puffing just walking around. In January 2013, when I would no longer look down at myself in the shower or look in the mirror, something just clicked in my brain. I had enough of feeling the way I did. I decided there were too many variables in life that I couldn't control, but my weight was not going to be one of them. It's taken since January (and was much harder to do this time around. My body just didn't seem to want to let go of the weight), but I've lost around 65 pounds (depending on the day). I have a couple more pounds to go, but I feel great. No back problems, lots of energy. Eating well makes me feel better. I am committed to making this loss stick. I remember that feeling of failure after gaining all that weight I had lost and I never want to feel that way again.

I got into college and started making poor choices, beer, late night pizza, snacking on junk, overeating at most meals. Sports also stopped and I became extremely lazy. My gf broke up with me and that was the final straw, I began to eat my feelings. Now I'm 26 and in poor health and I want to change it for good. Being told you can have serious health problems at so young is a big motivator!

I gained weight after high school because I wasn't in athletic things anymore, then in 2009 I got pregnant and got pregnant again in 2010. Yeah, 2 years of being pregnant got me pretty big! Saw pictures of myself when my youngest was 5 months old and I looked like I was 5 months pregnant and still had to wear maternity clothes. So I changed that!!

I retired from being a fashion model at age 25 and resolved to never give another thought to my appearance again. I didn't care about my weight and put on 2 kg a year, every year, for over 20 years. Now 2 kg per year is not so extreme, it represents an average surplus of only 40 kcal per day. Shouldn't have really let it go that long though.

In August 2012 I was diagnose as type 2 diabetic. So it became a health issue, not a vanity issue. I've lost enough weight to reverse my diabetes, and am off the meds. Would like to lose some more because I think it would be fun to enjoy fashion again. Will have to get down to size UK12/US8 to buy something trendy and age inappropriate at Top Shop. That's a UK retailer that targets trendy teens.

I gained weight with my pregnancy. Didn't mind that, it was good for my daughter. I had gotten rid of more than 2/3 it before a poor choice in birth control packed it all back on. In a month. I was in serious denial, until I saw a scale. I honestly thought the scale was broken, until I finally realized that my clothes weren't fitting anymore. After that, I got depressed. I hadn't done anything extra to lose the weight in the first place and had no idea where to begin, so I just gave up. I walked around weighing more than I did when I was 9 months pregnant, and I hated myself for it.

After 4 1/2 years, I finally got sick of my pity party. I got tired of seeing myself in pictures, 60+ lbs overweight. Never without a corset. Ever. I've always loved corsets, but it made me uncomfortable to the point of panic just thinking of going out without one (not everyday, mind, but out to social events with friends and the like). I was tired of hiding behind corsets and dreaded seeing any picture I was in. I decided that had to change. I lost about 10 lbs before I found MFP by attempting to eat a bit better. I found MFP and here I am today. 1 lb away from my original goal weight.

Edited for typos. Bah.

I was overweight as a teenager, not sure why really as I walked everywhere, did sports at school, didn't eat junk. My parents didn't ever take us to McDonald's, KFC etc, and I don't try a take away until my 2nd year of university. I would hardly eat while I was at school as I was aware I was bigger than my friends, which probably ruined my metabolism a bit.

I lost weight at university though and carried on losing until I moved in with my now husband and did my teacher training. The combination of the stress of that, and eating bigger portions made me gain weight. Then I lost it all for our wedding, and after that pregnancy made me gain weight. I was good in my first pregnancy with gym sessions and eating reasonably healthily, but still gained weight unfortunately. I lost it all, got pregnant again, was bad in that pregnancy and didn't exercise and ate too much, and gained loads of weight. I lost lots in the first year after my 2nd child, then discovered MFP, and lost even more. I realised that I could eat more than 1200 calories a day!

I'm currently 24 weeks pregnant with my 3rd and keeping up with logging and exercising and hoping I won't be in a position where I have to lose tonnes of weight next April!

I'm pretty vain, to be honest, and don't want to look fat, so that's mainly why I exercise. I also don't particularly like junk food (apart from chocolate) so that makes it easier. I didn't put on weight in the past through junk, just too big portions of good, homemade food and not enough exercise. Now I think I'm pretty addicted to exercise. Plus having 2 young kids I rarely get to sit sill!