What Has Been Holding You Back?

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samm1ches
samm1ches Posts: 8
in Introduce Yourself
My name is Samantha and I have been a constant excuse maker.

I feel remorseful. Growing up I never had to worry about my weight. My friends always told me I was lucky. The truth is I was always active. When I became an adult my activity level dropped immensely and I went from 5’8” and 135 lbs to 205 lbs. I was able to face the challenge and dropped down to 150 lbs. I kept the weight off until two pregnancies under two years. Even though I wanted to lose the weight our family fell into the hustle and bustle of everyday life and I am now sitting at 215 lbs and miserable.

I miss the person I was. I miss roller blading. I miss riding a bicycle. I miss going to the gym. I miss being confident when I looked at myself in the mirror. I have made up my mind I will be that girl again. I will instill in my children the healthy habits my parents once instilled in me.

My goal is to (hopefully) fit into a pair of jeans from high school which I finished in 2006.

What held you back from losing weight?

Replies

  • BlondeButtercup127
    BlondeButtercup127 Posts: 750 Member
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    Denial.

    Welcome and best of luck on your journey!!
  • Fasttrack2freedom
    Fasttrack2freedom Posts: 122 Member
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    Biggest thing holding me back is me. Time to get this party started , 180 days till the new me :)
  • biancagetsfit94
    biancagetsfit94 Posts: 16 Member
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    Denial held me back. Telling myself that I didn't need/couldn't eat healthily. Convincing myself that I was thinner than I actually was. Procrastination held me back. Pushing off trying to lose weight over and over again. But the best thing that I have done is recognized this and accepted it. Samantha, you can do this! Good luck to you.
  • rob95syd
    rob95syd Posts: 5
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    What held me back was a lack of knowledge, of what I actually had to do to loose weight. Mfp really has helped me stick to my plans and slowly win the race.
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,741 Member
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    For me it was denial, complacency, and total ignorance about calories. I seriously had no idea at all how many calories I should have been eating (if you asked me 5 yrs ago I would have guessed anywhere between 1000-3000? No clue) or how many calories were in specific foods...you could have convinced me a Snickers bar had 150 or 750 calories, I did not know or care.

    Also, OP...I know we're all different. I weigh 173 and still don't run nor can I even imagine running long distances...some people on my friends list are well over 200 and run all the time, they are tigers but I can't relate. However, even I walked 4 miles a night no problem at 307 lb. But why not do some bicycling or even roller blading now, if you enjoyed it before? I know 215 is a higher weight than you're used to but surely you could get back into some of those things even if you feel a bit off your game. Good luck!!
  • Janie5605
    Janie5605 Posts: 182 Member
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    every excuse in the book held me back. denial, laziness, stress...you name it i could argue my way out of a diet no matter what. But for the first time in 7 yrs my life is stable and more or less stress-free. My husband will officially be medically discharged from the air force in two weeks after being hurt in a plane crash. super good excuse to gain 40 lbs right? i seemed to think so! but now its time for me to get healthy so i can take better care of him, myself and any future little ones we add to the family.
  • succeedin2
    succeedin2 Posts: 501 Member
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    For me it was a hectic schedule and then just getting back on track. Excellent support system on MFP for those who offer two way support. Welcome
  • iwonarn
    iwonarn Posts: 52 Member
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    My job is holding me back... I currently work 86 hrs overnight shifts as an RN... Not much time to myself... Hard to go to the gym like I used to!
  • susiemelindy
    susiemelindy Posts: 3
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    What has been holding me back? Not caring anymore, too busy, thinking it would be too hard. Not facing up to the fact that exercise can help depression. I'm just figuring this out! Wow! I've been terribly lazy, lazy and more lazy! I think I have enjoyed wallowing in self pity! Gosh, this form of writing is good because I just figured this all out. I know there is more, but gosh, I need to move!
    Thanks for this question! I've only just begun...hopefully staying in tune here will help! Thanks again! :heart:
  • maryanne2000
    maryanne2000 Posts: 13 Member
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    The belief that I would fail.
  • Bghere1
    Bghere1 Posts: 78 Member
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    I think it is a great thing anytime, anyone gets back into looking out for themselves. This thing we do here is a selfish thing. a good selfish though, where we benefit as individuals and those whom we love benefit also. I have always been the skinny kid, then in my thirties I was in the best shape of my life. As the next decade started to loom ever closer I noticed I could stay the slim guy I was unless I took an active role. I do lose the pounds pretty quickly when devoted to it, but for me it is the time constraints that kill my efforts. I work weird hours as it is, and they are long hours to boot. 12 on and 12 off. Doesn't leave a lot of time to accomplish things most times, but I will keep trying. Good luck to all of you.
    BG
  • Happy_10yr
    Happy_10yr Posts: 287 Member
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    Work is very hectic and I've a lot of life changes. I've gotta re-focus and re-energize myself. I'm lucky to have team mates who help keep me engaged.

    I just gotta get back in the game and create some me time.
  • CindyMarcuzAdams
    CindyMarcuzAdams Posts: 4,006 Member
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    What held me back? So much. Depression for one. It is such a catch 22. Depressed about being over weight, and being overweight causing depression. Such a vicious circle. I think I have my depression in check so now its time to get my weight in check. It hasn't been easy. I have been overweight my whole life. Its what I know. I was comfortable having excuses as to why I was overweight.

    No more excuses. I am 4lbs away from being just overweight. No longer obese. 13lbs away from onderland. I am so excited but also impatient to get there. Its been years in the making so whats a bit more time I guess. Slow and steady she goes.
  • abradshaw6001
    abradshaw6001 Posts: 4 Member
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    Welcome! I know EXACTLY how you are feeling! What held me back has been a herniated disc in my back and being put on prednisone that completely changed my body! But, I'm working on this and my goal is to hopefully lose 2 pounds per week! I'm hoping to stay motivated and live day to day instead of looking WAY off into the future. If you do the math, 2 pounds per week for 52 weeks is 104 pounds gone!! :) Those are a lot of weeks but they will be gone before you know it and what better place to be than 104 pounds lighter by the end of that time frame! :) I'm currently at 229, which I have only been that BIG when I carried my children. The baby weight came off SO much easier than this prednisone weight has! :/ Plus not being able to run or workout like I used to is a bummer, as well. But, if all I can do is walk then walking I will do! The big picture of weightloss and maintaining a good weight is the calorie intake that we consume. Exercise is great and we need exercise. But, you don't have to become a bodybuilder or do extreme exercise to see the pounds and inches come off. If all you can physically do at the time is walk, then go walk. Work at YOUR pace...not the pace of everyone else! :) And, best of luck!
  • CrimsonDiva7
    CrimsonDiva7 Posts: 171 Member
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    Time constraints...my work schedule leaves little to no time for consistent workouts like I did in the beginning of my journey. Now I try to workout whenever I can but it's a struggle.

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