Anybody LOST a lot of weight then GAINED it all back?

I lost about 60 pounds a few years ago but gained it all back plus more. It was mostly because things in my life changed and I no longer had the time or the money to continue the eating and exercise habits I had built. My priorities shifted and I stopped focusing on taking care of myself which was a huge mistake.

Between 2009 - 2012 I lost nearly 100 pounds eating mostly vegan and sugar free. In October of 2012 I happily gave away all my fat clothes. Then from Nov 2012 - Dec. 2013, I gained back 50. Fifty!! I'm so ashamed and angry at myself.

What first threw me off in Nov 2012 was hosting Thanksgiving dinner. Early in the month, I began experimenting with recipes that were high in carbs and fat. I intended to only taste and not eat my cooking, but it was honestly more than my willpower could handle. I had spent a long time cultivating a palate for healthy foods, and was very happy eating healthy foods -- until I began sampling my cooking for that Thanksgiving dinner. Then I foolishly made the promise that I would be good again after Thanksgiving, but I did a lot of damage during that three week period, becoming addicted to sugar and high fat food again. Then in December, everyone kept giving me boxes of chocolates. :noway:

I tried many times over the last year to clean up my act, but my attempts never lasted long enough for me to really feel like I was on solid ground again, happy to be eating healthy the way I used to be.

Here I am again, on day four, determined once more to embrace a healthy lifestyle. What worries me is that I continually have to prepare dinner for my hungry teenage boy and husband who eat differently than I do. I think one of the reasons I gradually gave up on my healthy eating was that it took so much effort to prepare two different meals every day.

I remember some days when I'd put a meal on the table for the family, and there wasn't much there I could eat. I'd have some green beans, grab an apple and a grapefruit and call it dinner. I remember other days when I put a healthy dinner on the table and got angry glares from my husband, and groans from my son. Obviously, good planning is key, but life comes at you fast some days. I know I have to be willing to spend more time in the kitchen, which is not something I enjoy EVERY day. But if that's what it takes, I need to embrace it, put on some good music, decide to be happy about it, and start losing again.

I've been up and downer too. After high school I gained 30 pounds, lost it, gained back about 15, lost that x 2. Then in the past year I gained all 30 back, but I've made the commitment to change my lifestyle. I eat just because I can - bored, happy, sad, anxious. It's a cycle I need to break.

I lost 10-15 pounds and gained it back several times over the years before I got serious about this. I failed before because I was doing low-calorie diets for a while and the going back to my previous habits. I suspect that's why most people fail.

Dropped 252 lbs. As of last Thursday I gained 102 of that back.
Turning that around NOW, and have lost 6 lbs since Thursday AM.
I realize that's all water, and now the tough part starts.
Saddens me that I have to do this all over again, but I happy I put an end to this before I am 502 lbs again.

I lost 97 pounds and kept it off for over a year. Fell back into my old ways and gained 67 back. Am here again at day 1

10 years ago, I joined weight watchers when I hit 220 pounds (I'm 5'6). I lost 70 pounds in six months and felt great. I ran a marathon a year after I joined weight watchers. I weighed my food, wrote everything down, etc... Then, I started dating my husband and our dates typically included going out to eat and drinking (which led to snacking). I stopped running as religiously. We got married, and I was probably up to 175-180 from my 150 weight watchers success. Fast forward 4 years. I had two kids. I wasn't running at all at this point. I was probably around 200 again. We moved. I took a new job and found myself working 12-14 hours days, 5-7 days a week. Gak! I started half-*kitten* walking at the end of this summer. I started doing lc/hf on 12/01 at 234 pounds. 36 days later, I'm down to 216, working my way back to 150. To me, this taught me I can never get lazy. I need to eat meals to sustain myself and forget about all the other crap I mindlessly put in my mouth.

About three or four years ago, I lost ~80 lbs but hit a plateau and couldn't drop below 200 lbs. I was doing it 100% on my own so didn't know how to bust it. I dropped to below 1200 cals a day, but that was unsustainable and wasn't working either, so I stopped trying. I maintained for a couple years, but it slowly, slowly crept back on and before I knew it, I'd gained ~60 lbs.

When I found MFP, everything clicked into place and I've now busted that old plateau to smithereens. I also learned that I'll probably have to track my food for the rest of my life.

I have done the yo-yo dance all my adult life. After all these years I feel like I get it. You are right about tracking what you eat. I too will probably do that for the rest of my life. You really have to change you life if you want to keep the weight off.I gained it back because I went back to my old habits.

I lost 90 lbs very fast taking crazy diet pills. I then had a major bad life event and gained back 112. Now I am doing it the right way slow and steady no fad, diets not crazy food. NO quick fixes!

I have lost and gained the same 50 lbs over and over again. I am very tired of contantly thinking about food. I don't think the problem is not counting calories or not exercising. I don't think I will ever lose the weight until I get my head on straight. I use food as a crutch and to comfort myself because I don't feel good about myself on most levels. I use eating to deal with my emotions.

I lost 60 lbs a little over a year ago. Over the last year, I gained back 75lbs. I'm currently at the heaviest I've ever been (I'm 33). Making the decision to get back to where I should be.

Science tells us that 95% of people who lose weight gain it back. It's the least scientific method there is. Imagine if you had cancer and the chemotherapy they gave you was only 5% effective, and you had to keep taking it your whole life without success. That's how dieting feels to me.

So invariably, yes, the majority of us with regain our weight. I have just done that. I lost over 20 pounds on a low-carb diet, and have now gained back 12 pounds. There is so much shame involved in that. And it's a disincentive to lose more weight.

I read once that the diet that is most likely to lead to weight regain is the low-carb one. So I'll steer clear of it in the future. I do find I am craving carbs almost uncontrollably, whereas in the past, I used to be able to at least occasionally control my cravings. Perhaps that is a biological or psychological reason from denying myself bread, potatoes, cereal, desserts, and pasta for most of a year..

Sorry I can't offer you any magic bullets. I think you just have to make up your mind to eat less and exercise more. Not sure how to get that process started. It may be different for everyone, and finding success must be individualized.

Don't let my weight regain and that of the others here on MFP stop you. Try, try, try. As hard as you can. You may be one of the lucky 5% who keeps it off.

Good for you! Keep it up1

bump!