Regained it all :/

I know how you feel. I haven't gained it all back but I've gained back 68 pounds after losing 126.....after having weight loss surgery! Last month I felt terrible. I didn't tell many people about the surgery which was a very bad idea because nobody held me accountable, it wasn't out in the open so they couldn't criticize me if I failed. Man, I was so wrong about that idea! Dumb, really dumb...set myself up for disaster. Two things: slider foods and alcohol. It's been a tough couple of years. But now I am getting back to my healthy lifestyle.

Baby steps. That's my best advice lol. Whenever I try to get back on track, I go all out - planning meals, counting calories, going to the gym, look for exercise classes - but I end up burning out and then feel more of a failure. This time I am concentrating on my diet first. High protein, low (ish) carb. I've held myself back from the gym this week until I am absolutely set with planning and tracking meals. Tracking does wonders! If you need help/support/motivation feel free to send me a message! Good luck!

I was a Junior in high school and decided I was tired of being the fat girl. I started just shy of 200 lbs, I told myself I would never see that number. I lost about 65lbs fairly quickly (6 months or less), putting me at a new low of 135 (I am 5'1'')
I wouldn't say it was easy of course, but I was very motivated, and it went by quickly. Unfortunately, I wasn't at this weight for very long.
After a medication change I gained a few pounds, and I got very upset and depressed. I stopped running and stopped logging my food, so of course the weight started coming back on very fast. Pretty soon I was 180 lbs, and too out of shape to run. I started lifting weights at this time, and over the next 2 years gained another 35 lbs, putting me at 215. I did gain a good amount of muscle, but you would have never known it. I looked terrible.
I've been struggling the past year to get back on track. I feel like a failure.
I totally agree that it is harder to lose it the second time. I think for me, it gets in my head that "I've done this already" and I don't want to any more...
I was recently down about 30 lbs from my heaviest, and in a month I gained 20 of that back.
I guess this isn't a super motivating story haha.. But I'm starting again again again... This time, WHEN I reach my goal weight, I will take more care to learn about how this whole maintenance thing works. Even on the way there, so I don't go backwards again before I even get there.
It's not easy. Gaining it back is easy though. But that was the best I have ever felt physically, and I want to get back to that!

Hey, Feel free to add me people, looking to motivate others and keep myself motivated too. I also run a healthy recipe swap club if anyone's interested?

I'm glad you're doing well and have your energy back! That's great!! Don't beat yourself up about gaining your weight back...about half of the people in the USA are trying to lose weight and a good portion of them will gain their weight back plus some. Nobody on MFP though because we're all following the guidelines, getting our calories in and watching/balancing our macros...right??? We're doing it the right way! If we learn from this and live by this, we will be normal weight forever!! This is NOT really a diet! I was a yo-yo dieter. I was told when I was young I was fat. My mom took me to the doctor and told him "do something". So before I was even a teen, I was put on thyroid pills for weight loss. Then my mom bought me a record, "Go You Chicken Fat Go". She also bought me these fiber tabs that was supposed to fill my stomach before a meal so I would eat less. She refused to buy me clothes, she said I'd have to go to the "Chubby" section. So as a teen, I had to sew my own clothes and deal with the ridicule from classmates. My mom was a good baker. She baked every day. Everyone got desert but me. SOOO...I started sneaking food. I started binging. I started buying diet pills. I went on every fad diet I heard of. Yeah, I lost weight but I couldn't keep it off. Old habits die hard. Once I joined WW and lost 70 pounds. I felt great! I was going to a gym and working out, it's the most fit I've ever been in my life! I swore I would NEVER gain it back!! Then I fell and broke my back. No more exercise. Depression set in. Yes, I gained it back. It took 2 years for my back to heal. I've had 2 more episodes of losing the weight and major life struggles have made me weak and I gained it back. Now I'm here because I NEED to lose it for health reasons. I NEED to learn HOW to eat! Not even WW taught me that. You don't monitor carbs, protein, fat, calories on WW. It's points! Yes, it makes it easy...TOO easy!! I was on WW when I first got sick and my Gastroenterologist told me to quit!!! Well, anyway, you're in the RIGHT place...doing the RIGHT thing!! It will be gone forever this time!! You just hang in there and monitor both good days AND bad days! Let's face it, we're all human, we're gonna have some bad days. But we track it and do better the next day! We don't give up!! Good luck to you!! Feel free to add me as a friend...and others too if I haven't bored you by now!! LOL