Really, what are you looking for?

Honestly, I get where you're coming from. There are days where my main (or sole) motivation is looking in the mirror. I definitely think that can be a good factor, and it's definitely not selfish as long as we don't push it on others excessively.

In addition, for me, lot of the time it's little things that I can do better than I could before I started losing weight, like running up a bunch of flights of stairs when I'm in a hurry or fitting into old clothes. A few years ago, I never thought that I'd lose much weight, mainly because I never really got to a very bad point with it. I was just heavyset, not excessively (in my opinion), so I didn't think the motivation really existed to go the distance. A lot of experiences since then helped me to form new outlooks that led to more significant weight loss, some of them more personal than others.

This is definitely a good topic, I'm interested to see what others have to say!

I do it equally for health and appearance.

I have health issues, diabetes and primary for that... However, I am very seriously divorcing my husband and also am doing it to build confidence and to be "date" ready when I am "date" ready.

I currently live on a sailboat and someday hope to sail it across many oceans. That will go a lot better if I am stronger.

Plus, my husband has agreed to take an acroyoga class with me when I get down to his weight!

I did it for both..I like the strength I've gained and the way that I feel..and I also like the ability to wear what I like and how I look. The mental benefits that have come with this (I.e. discipline) have also benefited me elsewhere.

Overall, just sorry I didn't make the choice to be like this sooner. But it is what it is...and I'm here now.

There's a beautiful lady I've known for the past 35 years. Her husband loves her just the way she is and she has no one to impress. Her daughters are beautiful and successful and every one of them has always been perfectly slim, right in the middle of their healthy BMI. She's still gorgeous and pushing 90.

I dunno, maybe that's worth the effort.

More energy. While I've always been bigger, I'm creeping up on 30 and just can't wake up in the morning like I used to. I'm exhausted and in turn, it causes more stress. I never minded being a little fluffy (I'm midwestern corn-fed as they call it)...but when I can't stay awake after the kids go to bed, or wake up bright and early like I used to...it's a problem.

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At first when I started working out, I did it to fit into this really cute dress that I bought and at the time, my life was a general down so I decided to work on myself. Through working out, my self-esteem got better, my health got better, I loved the look of me working out and looking at the changes in my body. TMI but my period got constant which is one of the best things to happen to me. I look for both looks and health to be honest.

Health issues have cropped up. But in the long run, I would like to keep up with my young kids. Being thinner and able to buy smaller clothes would be a nice bonus, but is not a huge motivator or I would have done this a long time ago. And my husband liked the cow enough when it was heavier to date it, marry it and have kids with it, so I have no one to impress He doesn't care either way.

The biggest thing for me was my health. I had a lot of really nasty blood work going on and my big fat *kitten* was also putting me at a higher risk for all kinds of other *kitten* on top of what I was already dealing with. A few years ago when I went in for my 38 year wellness exam by doctor told me that if I didn't get my *kitten* together I could most likely look forward to being very sick, if not dead by my early 60s....unacceptable as I had at that time a 3 y.o. and 1 y.o. boys...not to mention, I would really like to spend my retirement years traveling around with my wife, not laid up in some hospital or six feet under.

As things progressed and I started dumping weight and started seeing my fitness improved, it reminded me of how good it really feels to be physically fit...I was an athlete for most of my young life growing up and always really fit...it felt good to start getting some of that back...and while I'm certainly not in my prime, it does feel good to be competing again even though I know I'm not going to win...it's just fun to get out there and compete.

Also, as I leaned out and my health markers improved, things did start to become more vanity oriented...and actually both my wife and I (she lost a bunch of weight too) were like, "why the hell didn't we do this sooner...we're *kitten* hot as *kitten* now." In our early 40s, we look a lot younger than some of our peers of comparable age now.

My biggest reason for losing weight is because I am 100% fed up with hating the way I look. I'm doing this to feel better about myself and to also avoid the diabetes that runs rampant in my family.

When I started, appearance was the main thing. I don't think there's anything selfish about it - you have to live in your body, and if you're not happy with how it looks or how you feel in it, that's a big thing. I want to look in the mirror and like what I see instead of hating it.

Along the way though I've picked up some more goals other than just appearance. Like, I want to be strong. And athletic. I want to be a good runner. I want my flexibility to improve. And I want to just take care of my body, fueling it with good stuff and seeing what I can accomplish.

laurabjennings9 wrote: »

I'm curious what people are really looking for when it comes to weight loss and physical health. I'm 24, happily married and my husband is perfectly content with the way I look, and he has been the entire 5 years we've been together. Suddenly I have this incredible urge to be thinner, because I think it will increase my looks. I want to buy cute clothes again and feel more attractive, even though I have no one to impress. Is this totally selfish? I also want to be healthier, but overwhelming so, I just want to look nicer. What are you trying to accomplish by being healthier? Looks or health? P.s. I think anybody can rock their appearance no matter what the scale says! It's just a number!

I'm living the same , he even misses my tummy and love handles ... Buuuut I want to go back to my old me, feeling better, liking the way I look. He supports me no matter what, even cheers me when I have a NSV! I don't think it's selfish at all