What's holding you back?

Misinformation.
I believed the hype from such "health" magazines as Shape, Fitness, etc. I was afraid if I lifted heavy weights, I'd "bulk up" and look like a female bodybuilding professional, but with fat on top. I believed I "build muscle really fast" and that I knew the right way to "tone" my body by doing light weights for lots of reps.

I also refused to adhere to a diet long enough to create results. I sought a quick fix, and would do crash diets for 1-2 weeks, see that initial water weight drop, think I'd "done enough" then go right back to my habitual eating.

I educated myself. I asked people whose physiques I admired, and I got the information I needed to alter my own body.

Laziness, fear of commitment, misinformation, and lack of motivation.

Friends. I live with a long time friend and his wife and kids. No room in the fridge for me so I either eat whatever they're having or go to a restaurant. Makes it impossible to plan my meals. I didn't even realize the problem until recently when I looked back on my situation when living alone a few years ago where I was four pounds over my goal weight while making it a point to get extra calories because my focus was on building muscle back then.

Fear of failure. I've been yoyoing on the same 10 pounds forever. I feel like a million bucks when I am just 10 lbs lighter (at 150). But for some reason I let myself - stress eat- even though gaining the 10 lbs back causes more stress.

Vicious cycle. I am going to have to burn the weight off with more exercise! Thank you daylight savings!

So far everything has been going smoothly but I know something that derails me is getting out of my routine. Like if I go on vacation and take a few days off working out, or go camping, or to get-togethers with lots of food. I worry about getting way off track this summer.

I also always thought I had to eat healthy ALL the time, never have pizza or chocolate in order to lose weight. This time around I've been eating everything I like and it's been much easier to stick with.

Fear that losing my fat insulation would let X in that would hurt me.

This - and just not wanting the attention from the opposite sex!

Two things.
The first is laziness, it takes far more effort than some people are willing to admit to change the habits of a lifetime, especially when your entire family think eating that amount of food and doing so little is completely normal. When your entire family think being obese is an inevitable part of our genetic parcel it's easy just to shrug your shoulders and go with it.

The second is a very deep rooted fear that losing weight won't make any difference to my life unless I work on my self image, and I find not hating myself a little harder than reducing portions and upping my physical activity. I don't want to put the effort into losing the 80lbs+ I want to get rid of only to find I'm just as miserable as I am now, but without the ridiculous comfort blanket of being fat. I use my obesity as an excuse for why I'm not more social, and if I take that away then I may have to face up to the reality that my fat was not the issue, and that is scary.

Fear. Plain and simple. Fear of failure is the biggest, but I also fear that losing the weight won't make me happy like I think it will.

I can attest to this one for sure. And laziness, in the sense that its easy to throw a boxed dinner the oven while I laze around and watch tv. We get accustomed to these things, and its hard to break the habits.. but my health depends on it so I gotta stop it now.

Being lazy...no motivation...not sure if what im doing is the "right" way to do it...my family doesnt have weight to lose...so they complain after the food that I've cooked.

Fear holds me back, with many things in my life. I'm a worrier so I constantly think of the what ifs, instead of thinking positive