What inspires you to keep going with your weight loss?
ElleHeart22
Posts: 27 Member
I'm getting back to being serious with my weight loss and I'd love to hear your story or reason of inspiration so I can find some more of my own. 
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Replies
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My son is about to turn one and I still need to lose my tummy. My old clothes motivate me because I want to wear them again!3
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My motivation is very simple..when I step on the scale every Monday morning and the number is less (hopefully) than the previous Monday, that's all the motivation I need to keep on going.14
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Depression/life control after a very *kitten* period during which I also regained some weight. Plus it's cheaper to lose a few pounds than to buy new clothes
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Every time I see progress. Lift heavier weights, drop a clothing size, new weird thing that I couldn't do when I was bigger, hitting goals (big & small). Also, I keep an old picture of myself to remind me where I started and how bad I felt when I was obese (mentally & physically)4
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I have lost 71 pounds since July 2016. I love the way I feel and the way clothes fit. I love that my type 2 diabetes is under control A1C went from 8.5 to 5.9! I love life!
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The way I feel has helped me massively! Before starting I had severe Generalized Anxiety Disorder which stopped me from leaving the house for two years except to go to the doctor to get medication that didn't help all the while I salt in my room and ate the worst foods and absolutely hated the way my life was going but its been only four months since I started and my anxiety has shot down to the point of where I've started a course for the first time in years, leaving the house almost everyday,reconnecting with friends and seeing that there's more to life than constant fear and I genuinely believe that eating well and losing some weight has been the thing that helped the most. Now of course my anxiety hasn't disappeared because it is an illness but its manageable and I am capable of disregarding the fears quicker than before and that's only 40 pounds down I've still got a long way to go but knowing what's waiting for me if I stop has made it almost impossible for me to go longer than a day or two off the plan. I wish you the best of luck with everything. You can do it!!21
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I dont want to go back to 387lb and unable to walk the length of a room even with a stick
Im not where i want to be yet but i have a son who wasnt possible at my highest weight who i hike with on my back.
I want to stay active with my children17 -
Hi. My friends are very skinny and I feel like I'm 600lb when I'm around them. Also I watched ''My 600lb Life" few days ago and If I don't control myself, I'm going to be fat and unhealthy.1
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For me, motivation needs to be ongoing, little and often. I have to give myself constant encouragement, feedback and inspiration because my body is giving me constant "feed me" messages and my environment gives me constant "eat more" messages. I weigh myself each morning so that motivates me because I think to myself, "If I eat XYZ, what is going to be the number on the scale tomorrow morning? (I know hormones and carb intake affect scale weight and I take that into account). I have to plan lots of little rewards for myself and set very small targets to reach. I try to think of non-food rewards. Especially good is a new audio book because that encourages me to get out and walk and run while I listen to it. I listen to diet and health books and workout books to remind and inspire me to stick to my goals. I try to wear shorts a lot because seeing my bare skin reminds me that I have a BODY that needs looking after if it is going to stay young and healthy. I pack my purse with things like sugarfree gum, vit c tablets, cans of tuna or salmon to eat if I need food and I'm not at home. I stock my car with my workout bag and running shoes so I can exercise whenever I get a moment, no excuses. I keep a daily journal and I set my alarm to get up early so I can write in my journal my goals for the day (I have lots, LOL) and I have paid and entered a half marathon a few months from now so I have a goal and target to strive for. That really motivates me to stick to my running goals.
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I think I keep going because I don't see anything I've done to lose weight so far as temporary - I want to be a healthier, happier person, and that means eating more mindfully, pushing myself to move more, and keeping my nights out to a reasonable level. I gained much of my weight fairly suddenly during a mental health crisis a few years back, and I never got used to those extra 70 lbs - it was like walking around in poorly fitting clothes (sometimes literally). Now I can see the halfway point coming in the next couple of months and it feels great.5
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There are things I want to do that require me to be fit. Accomplishing those things is important to me, so weight control naturally falls out of that as a byproduct.1
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I'm an old guy. I've been fat, obese, muy gordo, and any other way of describing too danged big. I already know how to do that. Now, I want to live slim, healthy, and any other way of thinking of life as something to be wanted.5
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the fear of dying and the fear of being put on BP meds-my BP is fairly high and i know im pre diabetic...that's pretty good inspiration!1
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Vanity, pure and simple vanity.16
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I am just starting again and have been concerned about keeping my focus this time around. I have always been motivated to lose weight I just let barriers get in my way (I am Mom of 3 little ones so definitely have barriers). In past I decided to just complain about the difficulties instead of finding ways to work around it. I am not going to fall into that again. Life is busy but I look at each week and schedule exercise time and treat it like a job. I have to do it even if I don't want to. I have also been arming myself with information. In past I tried to just cut calories and just be hungry and that doesn't last very long for me. I am studying foods and how how our body reacts. I started because of some family health issues and the more I learn the more determined I am to put the right foods in our bodies. I am also learning that you don't need to feel hungry to lose weight. My hope is that information and a serious plan will help me prevail. In past I just wanted to lose weight but wasn't armed and ready for the battle. It is hard when you start out because the work is hard and different from your normal lifestyle and the results are slow. I think once we start reaching milestones that will help us keep reaching for the next and our new lifestyle will become more of a norm or habit. I hope you find what will keep you going. Friend me if you want.4
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I am terrified of becoming disabled, but may not have a choice as I have lupus and severe scoliosis. But I realized that being fat makes everything a lot harder. If you're having trouble moving, it compounds that. If you have trouble standing it can make it impossible.
Servere obesity, where I was headed, makes the body's organs wear down faster. It interferes with glucose metabolism and hormones throughout every system. It makes it harder for your body to fight infections and wounds. It can leave you completely dependent on others from something that would only set another back for awhile. It can be a factor in early strokes.it can literally cause your bones to separate and set the stage for recurrent infections. And it makes you physically uncomfortable all the time. Sitting, standing, laying. It gets in the way of doing the things I like to do.
And if you are disabled, it makes caring for you so much harder. It's difficult to assist someone who is 150 lbs and unable to stand on their own.. But now 300? Or more? My mom reached 527 lbs as a result of replacing cigarettes with food while being disabled and depressed. I wouldn't wish her life on anyone. A lot of her problems are due to losing the genetic lottery and prenatal exposure to des, but I realized three years ago what a profound impact her weight made on her life and my life and my dad's life, and it utterly terrified me to realize that unless I did something I was headed into that same hellish future.
I can't control if lupus takes away my independence or scoliosis puts me in a chair. But I can dammed well make sure I'm not hitting myself even more or putting undue strain and hardship on my loved ones.
I love my mom and I understand how she got where she is. But there's no way I'm going to give up on taking care of myself like she did; I see how much is at stake. So now taking care of me is a priority.
I lost 115 lbs and regained so much. And my mom is now down over 200 lbs as well. We can't undo the decisions of the past, but we can make the best of every day and work toward a better future.21 -
Just one little story among many. But today I was sitting in a local restaurant with my husband eating a burger for lunch and these two women came in and sat nearby. They were big ladies but not insanely huge or anything like that. I could overhear them stressing so much about how tight the fit was of the seats and booths and wondering how they were gonna get through all of the diners in the crowded restaurant to get their food. They did fit into their seats, and it only took a simple "excuse me sir" here & there for them to retrieve the food they had ordered...it wasn't anything seriously a problem, but I could tell by the time they got their meal they were sort of bummed out and feeling defeated by the situation and it made me so sad. It reminded me of myself for about 20 years when I was the same way. Feeling like everything was harder and life just wasn't as comfortable. At my heaviest I hit 300 pounds and to be honest, I could always do the things I wanted to do. But it wasn't as convenient or comfortable. I sat there today realizing there was a foot of space between me and the table in this (admittedly quite small) booth, because I'm average sized now and a "healthy weight" and so forth. I like fitting into the world so easily and I intend to do what I can to keep things that way.17
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Honestly, the vacation I'm taking in 3 weeks.
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I just want to get lean enough to feel comfortable to bulk again. Basically I am losing weight to gain weight. Yup.... 8
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I have thought a great deal about this subject of late, especially since with today's weight in (Sunday's are my day), I have now creeped to within 10 pounds of goal. I used to fool myself into thinking my motivations were purely health related but the truth is most of them are purely a vain desire to be, well, desired. My quality of life has increased immeasurably compared to a year ago when I started, and It's something that is strange but also intoxicating. In short, people notice me now.
As an example, Just yesterday I was sent to pick up a bulk order of BBQ brisket from a restaurant for a family gathering at my parents place. After I told the hostess the name I grabbed my phone to kill time and had a seat. The hostess kept asking me questions in an attempt to strike up a conversation, and I would look up from my phone to respond. At first I thought she was just being pleasant because that is her job as a hostess, but then it slowly began to dawn on me (and I do mean slowly) that this was not work related at all, she was interested. After I stopped paying so much attention to my phone and began paying attention to her, her flirtations became more noticeable and I was loving every second of it. She stapled a business card to the restaurant on the sack of brisket and after I got to the car I noticed it had her name and phone number written on the back of it. As a guy that has been overweight most of my life, situations like that are about as unknown to me as piloting a lunar lander, and I am sure it was way more awkward than it should of been. For many guys, such situations are probably old hat and quasi-routine. You have NO IDEA how good that exchange made me feel yesterday. I was floating on cloud 9 the entire day, even though I still have not found the courage to text her:)
If these desires make me self centered or an awful person, so be it I guess, but for the time being I plan to bask in being "normal".31 -
I think that what has brought me back from maintenence to logging at a deficit again has been curiosity. I'm about 20lbs from my goal weight, and I feel and look fine. But having been overweight my whole life I wonder what it would feel like to be at that goal weight, to know my body is not only "normal" when it comes to BMI but absolutely perfect (any lower would put me at underweight). Will it make a huge difference on my self esteem? Will it change what clothes are available for me or how others view me? I don't know. And I want to find out!7
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I'd say 90% for health-related reasons. I have chronic knee and hip problems from an accident several years ago. My weight has only made it worse. I am tired of being tired and don't want to be in physical pain anymore. Also, I want to live a long healthy life to bounce my someday grandkids on my knee and travel the world! And thank you for asking this question. Definitely gives me a boost of clarity to avoid night snacks 5
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@JustRobby1 text her! Haha10
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Being overweight has made me anxious, depressed, self conscious...and even self-loathing at times.
But I'm becoming more health aware as I'm getting older (43). My reasons have shifted away from not only what I / other people think of me but have also become about longevity and being in the best possible shape I can be for my wife & family.
Yes, there are still vanity reasons, who doesn't like to look good in the buff 3 -
I've been wanting to lose weight for a long long time. Like, ever since early college, so like 13ish years ago. So I think that's my biggest motivation....when you think about something that long without being fully committed it can really screw with your brain I'm also committed because I've never been this size before in my life -- I literally got terrified after stepping on the scale 3 weeks ago. I've gained like 30 lbs since last summer! That's insane to me. I am ready to do whatever it takes. 3
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Spite.7
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Feeling really unfit and generally rubbish but the final moment was the day the seat belt on a Ryanair was really really tight ... that was 243lbs ....and it's not just in your clothes you can see the inches of improvement:) still got 28lbs to go but I'm 66% there4
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I have a family history of Type 1 diabetes that I really want to avoid; I have a small son with whom I like playing and for whom I am setting an example; I hate the way it feels when my thighs bump my belly when I'm riding my bike or sitting at my desk; it's really gratifying to make these changes to and for myself deliberately. Oh, and because I do like the way fit looks.4
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What inspires you to keep going with your weight loss?
I have goals ... cycling goals and weight goals.4
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