Back At It!

billrosenberger · February 2017

Six years ago I weighed 350 lbs and my doctor said something to me that gave me the motivation to lose a lot of weight. My goal was to get UNDER 200 lbs. I didn't care if it was 199.9, I wanted to be under 200. Throughout the first year I managed to get down to 268 and I felt great. It was really nice to be able to see my feet again and be able to do a lot of things I hadn't been able to for many years. I started running during that time and ran my first 5k in just over 36 minutes. I ran another 5k and was part of a 5 person relay in a full marathon. But, for some reason I became unmotivated again. I was so happy with how far I had come, I think I became complacent. I started to lose interest in running and I started eating just a little bit more and "splurging" more often. The "eating just a little bit more" gradually became "a lot more" and I have regained all that I lost plus an additional 30 lbs. On December 5, I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes and tipped the scales at 379 lbs. So, I'm back it! So far I am down (at last weigh-in) to 355 lbs and feeling very encouraged. I would really like to start running again this Spring once the weather gets better and stays light a little later. That also allows me time to lose a little more weight first. I don't think my knees and back could handle it just yet. I was around 235 last time I started and even at that weight, it was hard on my back. By the way, I have an amazing C25K (couch to 5k) workout plan if anyone is interested.
I would really like to get to 300, no, make that 299, by the end of June when I'm taking my family to Myrtle Beach for a week. I know that's a pretty lofty goal, but I think if I can keep up what I'm doing now, plus start to add some exercise, I can get there.
Anyway, I wanted to share my story in hopes that you would also share yours and hopefully we can encourage one another. Let's share our successes AND our failures (there will be failures and set-backs along the way). I really want this group to be ONLY for people like me, who need to lose 100 pounds or more.

Nikion901 · February 2017

Hi ... I was all set to click the 'join' button, because as of this mornings weigh-in I am exactly 100 pounds over the weight I was after I gave birth to my child ... 51.6 years ago. Then I read the heartfelt story by OP and realized that I'm not really in the category of folks who are being looked for ... because I seriously doubt (and therefore I won't) get back to that weight again. I'm actually trying to get back to about 160-175 ... and that is 65-80 pounds from where I am today.

Still, I'd like to share today, and this will be the place.

I am dissappointed in myself this week, and that feeling has been growing stronger every day with remorse being thrown in today. That's because a pattern that I have been struggling with for the past couple of years has repeated itself ... one again.

Once again I was unable to halt a week's worth of high carbohydrate intake to put me back 2 weeks in weight. .. I was the same weight this morning (on 2/20), that I had been on 1/30 while in a losing weight run. This is the first week I am showing a gain, and that's what scares me. In my previous records that kind of thing often leads to more gains instead of a reversal back to weight loss. The last such experience I had was last quarter (October through December) ... I started that quarter weighing exactly what I do today, after the previous quarter showing an almost 5% body fat/weight loss. I was so pumped and ready to finish the calendar year with at least another 12 pound loss. Instead, the third week in I had a weight gain similar to this mornings. That continued with another 4 weeks of weight gains, then some up and down, leaving me to finish out that quarter having lost all the momentum I had achieved in the prior quarter ... I was back to where I had started 6 months before! And that is how I started this year!!!

What is it about us overweight people that causes us to slip back into exactly the behaviors we know very well will cause us to gain weight? Oh, I've read the scientific studies on weight loss ... all about the different possible conclusions taking the mind and body into account as the reason behind it. But ... it wasn't our brain and metabolism that misfired back in the beginning ... when we were packing on the pounds to start with. It was our own disregard for healthful eating behavior and committment to an active life style. Now we reap what we have sown. Many of us are turning to cutting out parts of our bodies in an attempt to make the weight loss journey more possible.

I refuse to do that. I don't care what the recent medical evidence is about removing part of your body ... mainly most of your stomach .... will suddenly cause Diabeties Type 2 to dissappear, that you will lose upwards of a hundred pounds and keep it off without any trouble .... because even more recent medical studies have shown that this is not true, Certain kinds of anatomy alteration do not lead to reversal of diabeties. Even the one that is supposed to doesn't keep you diabeties 2 free unless you continue to adhere to a low carb/low calorie intake. People who lose weight often don't lose anywhere near the amount they had imagined they would. People often regain ... even to the point of regaining more than they ever lost in the first place. And ... they are left with a life long alteration to their anatomy and ability to uptake nutrients that will plague them whether they become thin or get fat again.

So .. instead of going 'that route' I struggle with my eating and activity behavior. I also seek to join groups that have people of a like mind struggling with their own journey.

I may never get there, but maybe I will.

sand86802 · February 2017

Hi there,

I saw that group and knew that I had to join.

Ive been down the yo-yo route so many times before I have lost track. Since I hit puberty it has been a downward spiral (or upward depending on how you look at it). In 2004 I passed 100kgs (220lbs). In 2008 I struggled with depression and binge eating and things just got terribly messy for a while.

I am in a much better place now but still yo-yoing. I joined MFP on January 10th at 318lbs and am now down to 296. I really want this time to be the right one and just keep moving in the right direction.

billrosenberger · February 2017

I think for me, recognizing that food is an addiction was what helped me last time. Almost 15 years ago, I quit smoking, and that was very difficult, but this is far more difficult. See, I can live without cigarettes, but I have to eat so that makes it harder. When I started putting so much weight back on, I also slipped into depression, which made me want to eat more. I am determined, however, to lose this weight and keep it off this time. This has been a lifelong struggle for me and it will always be a struggle. There will never be a time when "I've made it, I can stop now". I will always have to fight the urges and the cravings. I will always have to limit my carb/calorie intake. But that's okay, because it will be worth it. I wouldn't have said that a year or so ago. At that point, I didn't care if I lived or died. I almost wished for a heart attack or something, just so I didn't have to deal with it anymore. But thank God, my wife gave me just enough of a push to at least talk to my doctor about the weight and the depression. Thank God I had dear friends in my pastor and his wife, that they gave me encouragement when I didn't see any possible way out of this. I not only want to get to where I was 5 years ago, I want to reach my goal.....and stay there.

adamb0575 · February 2017

Hi just saw your group, I am a fair way into my journey I wanted to lose 54 if (about 119lb). So far I have lost 42kg (92 lb) but am finding it harder and harder as the finish line gets closer. My motivation was my kids and not being able to do stuff with them and my daughter asking why I was so fat. I didn't want to be the dad sitting down on the sidelines watching his kids because he was so big he couldn't take part so here I am nearly 12 months later. Anyway just looking for that little extra motivation I need to get to the finish line and stay there

billrosenberger · February 2017

Hi Adam, thanks for joining. Wow, you've done an incredible job. I totally get it! I promised my kids for several years that I would take them to an amusement park, but I never followed through with it because I couldn't ride the rides with them. I was too big to fit into them.

I know what it's like to struggle near the finish line. When I ran that first 5k that I talked about, I had about 1/4 mile left and my tank was empty. I thought about walking for a couple minutes, but I remembered when I first started training I said my goal was to run the entire race, not walk any of it. I was so close, but my body was totally spent. Just then, I rounded a corner and I could see the finish line about 100 yards away. I knew at that moment I couldn't quit. I had to keep running. I was almost there. Somewhere deep inside of me I found the strength to not only keep running, but I sprinted that last 100 yards and almost collapsed as soon as I crossed the finish line, but I didn't collapse and not only did I cross the finish line, I ran across it. That was probably one of the only times in my life that I felt like I really accomplished something. I set a goal for myself, an almost impossible goal, and I reached it. Don't give up! See the finish line ahead of you and dig deep and find that strength to sprint the rest of the way. You've got this, Adam! Picture the joy and the pride on your kid's faces when finally get there. Keep fighting, keep running!

adamb0575 · February 2017

Thanks Bill, awesome story and yeah spot on just have to keep going to achieve the goals

bruk_mike · February 2017

Howdy Folks,

So the story is, after lots of eating and drinking this last Christmas I decided it was time to stop drinking. Soon after, I went to the Dr and my weight had actually gone down a few pounds from the last visit. This was the boost I needed to get motivated to get on the way to a healthier me.

SW-367 (1/9)
CW-340.5 (2/19)
GW(current)-225

Wies1972 · June 2017

In 2006 I was diagnosed with high blood pressure and was given beta blockers. My BMI was 38. Now that were some alarm bells. I got active and started counting calories. In 6 months my BMI was 25 and I could stop using the beta blockers. Staying active and watching my diet proved to be no fun and even pretty hard. Now, 11 years later, my BMI is 40. So here I go again.

100 Pounds or More Weight Loss Encouragement

Back At It!

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