WHY did you gain weight?

Food is very comforting to me. Growing up I did most of the cooking for my family, it was what I was good at and something that I could totally control.

I had (diagnosed for years) mild depression & anxiety and food was my way to make myself feel better. Once I got help with that I stopped gaining weight, but I maintained at a high level for a long time, because it just seemed like too much work to lose it.

Then being told "You have PCOS, and that will make loosing weight very difficult" was enough of a turn off for me. I thought, "So, losing weight for me is going to be harder than for someone else? F that, I'm just going to comfort myself with food instead, because getting healthy just seems impossible with the odds stacked up against me"

Now I'm in a really good spot mentally, I've really worked on getting myself into a good place lately that I'm able to focus on myself. I am very certain that being in a better place mentally has helped me out a lot this time around.

Why I gained: When we eat foods we like, the brain releases dopamine, which rewards us for eating them. These are usually fattening foods. The flavor is great and the dopamine rush feels good, so I overate those foods.

Now I have to realize it's just not worth it and abstain from sugar and junk, and replace that stuff with reasonable quantities of fruit and such.

Annie_01 .. Life can be so hard sometimes. Everyone has their own journey and their own path. it is so hard to not get wrapped up in other people's journey and not allow it to affect us. Especially when it is our own family and their particular journey. But that is one thing I try hard to remember is that I have my OWN journey to fulfill. You are as deserving of your own life and your own path as any of us are. Good for you for taking control of it. You can do it!!

Life can be hard...at the end of the day however...no matter how long it takes...you can win this battle.

I usually avoid these types of threads. Not because of the stories that are shared but there is always someone that comes along and uses that line...it is an excuse to eat...or...all it takes is will-power.

There are times in life that there is just not enough will power left at the end of the day. You used it all up just trying to survive...

Excuses...not so much...none of us said...oh I think that I will use my experiences to have one more piece of cake.

Where will power comes in to play...is to recognize what is going on in your life...taking the steps to change it...learning to care enough about yourself to take those first steps.

I don't know...as I said...I usually avoid these types of threads...someone will say something that just sets me off! Until you have experienced someone elses life...I don't think that you have the right to pass judgment on them.

If I had the choice of doing my life differently...I would...but I don't...none of us do...all we can do is change our future. We don't have to be the victims.

I'm sorry I ranted...but for someone to be annoyed...just got to me.

For me it comes down to will power. And I have no idea why some days I succeed and some days I fail.

YES. I feel you on that.

That is my pet peeve! The assumption that people are fat because of some unresolved "issue." And that they will inevitably gain it back if they don't resolve that issue.

I CALL BULLSH*T! I'm sure there are people out there who do have some unresolved issues and they've used food to self-medicate. Or something. I'm sure they exist. But it certainly is not universal to all overweight people.

I'm fat because I chose to eat too much and lead a sedentary lifestyle. It's that simple. I'm not an emotional eater. I'm not a binge eater. I just like food and I like high calorie food and I didn't exercise.

I've been fat as long as I can remember (seriously… as long as I can remember), so I can't blame some traumatizing event like when my dad got cancer or when my mom died or even some major injury that put me out of commission. I've tried to blame medical problems (thyroid, Cushings Disease, etc) in the past, but nope. Doctors ruled all those out.

I admit, I have all sorts of "issues." But absolutely none of them is to blame for my being overweight. I ate too much and moved too little. Then end.

Because french fries, cheese and ice cream are yummy (not at the same time). Oh and Bacon!!

It started when my mum and dad divorced, I stayed with my dad because my mother had cheated on him and I felt sorry for him. He worked 8-8 every day and when my little sister came round we would go through his jeans and cupboards and a little box he kept money in and go up the shop and buy as many sweets with it as we could and that made me happy. Then dad started sending me to my nans at the weekend while he went out and my nan loved to me feed me everything bad (she wasn't aware I dont think) I wasn't even aware. Went back to mums with this terrible urge to go and buy lots of bad things all the time, she told me I needed to lose weight but because she was a cheating **** I didn't care what she said. Lol (My 12 year old brain would of thought like this, I am of course old enough to understand what went on, but at the time they were my thoughts) Basically I got into the bad habits when I was young and not aware or even concious of my weight ( was still very active but ate so much it didnt matter) and then by the time I got older I was never that much bigger than anyone else until pregnancy at the age of 20 when I became out of control. So actually although the habits formed when I was much younger and not aware of what I was doing. I have had around 8 years of being aware of it all and how to change it and have not. so really I gained weight because of the lifestyle I was given but was never taught what to do about it until it was too late, then I gained the knowledge myself of what I needed to do but just didnt do it. I met my fiancee 6 years ago and we got fatter together, thats another problem for another day...... But basically I could of sorted this out 8 years ago but I just liked food.

Had two babies and gained a lot of weight with both. Ate way too much and didn't move as well.

I ate more and refused to exercise

This ^^

Because the nicest foods are the ones that do us the most harm. Because I was uneducated about food. Because I did not know what a portion was. Because I was brought up to empty my plate. Because manufacturers put more and more sugar in to make it more appealing. Because I did not exercise. Because sugary foods make us hungry. Babies. Not eating properly while pregnant or exercising after. Clearing the kids plates. English, cold winters evenings in front of the TV. Cheese and biscuit suppers. Cheese and wine suppers. Alcohol. Cakes. Chocolate. Chocolate at the counter when we pay for groceries. Ice cream. Soda. Too polite to refuse food when offered. Because junk food is quicker and cheaper. Because I was greedy. Because my mum told me I had my dad's genes and wouldn't get fat. Because I was lazy. I had a really really sweet tooth.
Because any social event revolves around food or drink or both.
Because of my husband, if he fancied a snack I got one too, and vice versa. Because I used to drown everything in sauce. Because when we were poor we ate pasta every second day.
The list is endless and I have had to address each and every item on it. But I have done it, and I am fitter and healthier than I was 2 decades ago.

I was at college and making my own money I started getting take aways and stop going to the gym, this carried on whilst I was with my ex (he put me down a lot). Simples. But now I am happy, I have an amazing supportive husband and now its my time for me to get fit and healthy

That is my pet peeve! The assumption that people are fat because of some unresolved "issue." And that they will inevitably gain it back if they don't resolve that issue.

I CALL BULLSH*T! I'm sure there are people out there who do have some unresolved issues and they've used food to self-medicate. Or something. I'm sure they exist. But it certainly is not universal to all overweight people.

I'm fat because I chose to eat too much and lead a sedentary lifestyle. It's that simple. I'm not an emotional eater. I'm not a binge eater. I just like food and I like high calorie food and I didn't exercise.

I've been fat as long as I can remember (seriously… as long as I can remember), so I can't blame some traumatizing event like when my dad got cancer or when my mom died or even some major injury that put me out of commission. I've tried to blame medical problems (thyroid, Cushings Disease, etc) in the past, but nope. Doctors ruled all those out.

I admit, I have all sorts of "issues." But absolutely none of them is to blame for my being overweight. I ate too much and moved too little. Then end.

Well good for you.

Last year I went from having a fairly active job with lots of walking to a desk job. Then I had a hysterectomy for cancer and my lack of hormones made me anxious and depressed. Then my father in law died, and I felt even more depressed. So pretty much a combination of that and sitting around too much, combined with eating all the wrong stuff.

No major psychological trauma in my life, I had a storied childhood that most people would dream of, but I did have some lazy/messy/needy tendencies that my parents really didn't discourage enough.

I can look back and pinpoint 3 possible contributors...

My mom passed when I was 27, and in the year leading up to that and following, I self medicated with beer. Wasn't unusual for me to drink 8-9 beers a night, every night, by myself in my apartment during the week, then go out partying on the weekend. She had been sick a long time, so I just assumed she would get better like she had every other time. When I knoew that wasn't happening, I comforted myself with copious amounts of alcohol.

As I gained weight throughout my 20's, I lost confidence and self-worth, and stopped getting male attention like I used to. I became desperate for affection, which guys can sense and avoid. I couldn't get a boyfriend to hang around much more than a few months, so I became a guys-girl. That girl all the guys want to hang out with, maybe try to sleep with (I didn't go there) but not date. Instead they would talk to me about the girls they are dating. I tried to keep up with them drinking, because hey, at least they still liked to look at me and get drunk with me, but that often included late night trips to fast food or breakfast diners.

I also worked for a minor league sports team for 3 years. While it sounds fun, it pays crap. Sponsors would provide free meals to the players, and as office staff I would often eat those free meals as well because I was broke. The difference was I wasn't out on the field running off the cheap pizza, fried chicken, pasta bars, and hot wings. I was sitting behind a desk, in an office surrounded by big burly guys. I didn't realize the difference between trying to fit in and trying to keep up.

There was also a good bit of denial. I just didn't realize how fat I had gotten. I knew I weighed more, but I didn't necessarily think it was that noticable. hahaha...I was wrong.