Your 'Ah-Ha' Moment

UltraTacks · December 2016

Today.....will start in 2017

PurpleSnack · December 2016

I don't remember an aha moment as I was always fat and never liked it and often thought about or intended to lose it. I lost a few pounds without trying just walking too and from college. I felt better about myself and was cocking for myself as I had moved out and decided that it felt so good I'd make a conscious effort to lose weight.

Motivation was that I had always wanted to be a UK size 12 by the time I turned 21. I was sick of being the fat friend in the group.

My mindset was that it would be much easier for me to lose the weight while I'm young rather than being stuck with it and it being twice as hard to lose when I get older. I was looking at short term goals and trying to lose 2lbs a week. I decided there was no point in being skinny and miserable so I had a little bit of chocolate everyday and if I really wanted a takeaway or something, I'd think about if it was worth it. If I still wants it I didn't deny myself. I also had the mindset that hunger is not good so I tried to fill up on healthy food to avoid getting hungry because when I'm hungry I'm more inclined to give into foods I shouldn't have

daworley · December 2016

I had gone to my Dr. and my fasting blood sugar was 109, cholesterol was elevated and blood pressure high. I have a son who is also an MD and he said that my health was still in my control at this time and that it is ridiculous to have lifelong serious health issues because I didn't want to work out or lose 20 lbs. Something about that "it is in your power" resonated with me. Ah ha!! No looking back 40 lbs later!

riffraff2112 · December 2016

A collection of many. Mostly pants not fitting, not liking my refection or pictures.

pdxwine · December 2016

My Ah ha moment was my Dr telling me that I had high blood pressure and needed to take off at least ten pounds or go on meds.

She told me that a heart attack was a reality, if I didn't get my BP under control.

So, I left that day and instantly got serious about this.

I was once very thin and then packed on far too many pounds.

Two years later, I am 104 pounds lighter (8 more pounds to goal). My BP came down, but alas, has gone back up so I am on meds, even with the weight loss.

But, I am almost back to my original weight and can now wear my old clothes. I kept everything and yes, most of it now fits. Yea! Fun to shop in my own closet.

vanmep · December 2016

Two things got me going. A friend who probably weighs about 100 pounds told me that long before I had met her, she weighed 176 and had lost weight by walking. I weighed 173 when she told me this, and for some reason it all just clicked then - if she could do it, why couldn't I? Secondly my brother challenged me to start logging MFP. He told me not to worry about meeting my goals, but to commit to logging every single thing I eat for one year. He quit after a couple of months, but I just jumped right into it and I love the knowledge that it gives me. Like many other people have posted, I always thought I ate very little and ate very healthy. It was when I started logging that I really started to understand what I was actually consuming and how I needed to change. I think it is both this new knowledge as well as the CICO philosophy that has kept me going at it. I haven't really given up anything. I just control my portions now and I have stopped mindless eating. I started on January 3, 2016 and I will be committing to exactly the same thing on January 3, 2017 and probably for the rest of my life.

lulalacroix · January 2017

My "aha" moment is just being tired of being overweight and unhealthy. I'm not getting any younger and I would love to live an additional 40 years.

cmoll520 · April 2017

For me it was early a picture. I'd known for awhile that once my youngest stopped nursing I needed to get my act together but then a picture from Nov 2014 really convinced me. I was heavier than I had ever been- about 176lbs. I decided Jan 1 would be the day. I lost 55ish lbs between Jan 1, 2015 and May 2015. I have maintained that loss since then. Never going back.

juliemargaretkim · May 2017

This.

uberleelee757 · May 2017

When was your 'AH-HA' moment that made you decide, 'ahhhm okay it's time to do something about this weight?

A little background: I lost 50 lbs in a little over 6 months doing Zumba Fitness back in 2012. I didn't change my eating habits...didn't think I had to, and the weight just kept falling off. It was great. I stopped doing Zumba and working out in general back in 2014 (oh, life!) and the weight gradually came back on. It just didn't click that the foods I was eating (and wine

) was packing all the weight back on. I feel horrible when I look at all the progress that has gone down the drain, and I know I can't beat myself up about it. I am just 7 lbs shy of my weight the day I gave birth to my second child. Unacceptable.

My a-ha moment was just 3 days ago. I went to Denny's with my mom for breakfast. I had the supreme skillet...it had home fries, sausage, bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, and two yummy over-medium eggs on top. Talk about delicious! I downloaded MFP about a month ago, but never opened the app because I thought I needed a FitBit or some other tracking device in order to use it. I recently started researching calorie counting and learned that you need about 2500 calories to maintain your weight. Anything over that, you'll gain weight, and if you want to lose weight, you have to consume less than that. I had no clue....MIND BLOWN!

So, back to the day I ate the Denny's: Something told me to open up the MFP app. I entered my foods which included the Denny's, a few snacks, and my lunch. OMGEEEE! That Denny's bkfast was 1200 calories which was the daily allowance MFP suggests for me to lose the weight I want in the timeframe specified. I ate all my day's calories in one meal....SMH! I told myself, "never again."

What made a difference this time which differed from previous attempts to lose weight &/or get healthy? (motivation)

I just started this journey, and so far so good. What's different is the knowledge I gained from the internet! Learning the science behind weight gain due to eating, has really changed the game for me. I am making smarter choices and not sitting around aimlessly snacking all day. MFP is soooo awesome. I swear it's a Godsend. I love holding myself accountable. I am looking forward to success!

How much impact do you feel that a correct mindset has on the level of achievement?

You have to be in the right mindset in order to achieve your goals. I am so glad that I have decided to love myself more than I love food. Best wishes, everyone!

Macy9336 · May 2017

Mine was a different kind of a ha moment. I started to smoke in college. I then got lots more asthma attacks...several times while doing my martial arts to the point Sensei had a talk with me. That was my ah hah moment of realising that smoking and asthma are just not compatible. So I quit smoking. But the ah hah extended to other things like my twelve pack of beer binges, and pizza scoffing habits...i was on my way to a freshman 15 if I didn't stop. All the martial arts, rock climbing and mountain biking weren't going to let me live that lifestyle without it impacting my body. I got serious about my health in all areas and at age 18 went back down a path of being healthy and never looked back.

hcdo · May 2017

When I ran a marathon and didn't lose an ounce with all the training and actual race. I finally realized that (duh) you can't just eat whatever you want in gigantic quantities just because you work out. I wish I could say I'd started eating better then, but the truth was I still felt like I "deserved" the treats that I wanted, and had a lot of emotional crap attached to all of it. Still working on all that, actually. It's a life-long process.

Prahasaurus · May 2017

I started working for a new client in January after working from home for 2-3 years. I completely let myself go. Over Christmas I really hit the cookies and cake hard, adding around 2-3 kilo over the holidays (about 5-6 lbs). I then went shopping for new clothes in January and discovered I needed size 42 pants. I had been wearing older pants while at home as I went from a size 34 to a 38. But having to buy 42 pants was just too much. I told the shop assistant that I would be back soon to purchase much smaller sized pants.

I logged back in to MFP that same day and set up my calorie intake to lose 1 kilo per week (just over 2 lbs). I had used this site before, lost weight, but then drifted away. I returned exactly 142 days ago (just over 20 weeks), and I weighed 106 kilo. Today I weigh 86 kilo. So that's 20 kilos down in 20 weeks, right on plan.

In April I returned to the shop and bought some sized 36 pants. Last week I was there and bought sized 34. Yes, the lady was still there, and yes, she remembered me.

priyamvada_k · May 2017

My Ah-ha moment was when LDL cholesterol went up to 159 (healthy level is below 100); 159 put me in risk for heart attack. Also A1c level went to a pre-diabetic level of 5.9 (healthy level is below 5.7). Decided to drop pounds and regain health, and started MFP. I had had a previous MFP start but I had given up midway. I didn't think of it as a big deal, as I am a vegetarian and don't eat fried foods. Have a big a weakness for sweets, though. When I added up the calories in MFP, it was a revelation about portion control. Have been tracking calories and macros ever since and it has helped so far (lost 15 lbs). Hope to get to my old healthy weight.

MrsBoney12 · May 2017

My a-ha moment came when I had a blood test and was told I was pre-diabetic. The doctor didn't even give me a chance to fix it with diet and exercise, she just put me on diabetes medication. Because of this, I assumed I was just that bad (turns out she was just that bad...she should have given me that opportunity). Coming from a deeply-rooted diabetic gene pool, this was enough to cement it into my brain that a lifestyle change was needed! Less than four months later I am down 35lbs and my new doctor took me off the diabetes medication because it was causing other health problems because I don't need to be on it! Although I'm still far from my weight goals, I feel much healthier. I have found that I actually enjoy exercising in the form of running and cycling...and strength training isn't too bad either!! I finished a 5K in record time for me on Saturday, and on Sunday I kicked off my training for a duathlon in July. Through much prayer and dedication, I'm on my way!

lady_ghost · May 2017

When I got a good look at myself naked front and back. Was disgusted.

SDR1970 · May 2017

Two things: [1] Discovering I'm on Google Street View, clearly walking towards and entering my office and being too embarrassed about how I looked to tell anyone. [2] My girlfriend giving me a "gift" of imported British biscuits (which I'll admit I was homesick for but never requested) after I'd expressly stated the importance of my need to loose weight. I decided I and everyone around me, enabling poor choices in meals & snacking, had to stop that behavior and be firm to the point of harshness about it.

SummerSkier · June 2017

When I bought some cat litter at the grocery and could barely lift it at 24 pounds. I thought "how the hell am I carrying this much extra weight around?" Now every time I pick up something like a gallon of water or the cat litter it motivates me to keep working to get that "dead" weight off my joints and muscles....

Gutcutter500 · November 2017

It is difficult to tell a patient that he/she had to lose weight when I weighed over 300 pounds. I lost 93 pounds about 2 years ago but the weight just came back because I resumed eating as I had before the program. It felt hypocritical, so I started a ketogenic type diet plan and lost 91 pounds in 6 months. I don't know if giving it's name is allowed so you can PM me to find out. I logged all food and activities in paper logbooks (7 in all). Towards the end of the program I found MFP and MapMyFitness. I had already been using MapMyRide and MapMyWalk. It integrates with my FitBit Surge wonderfully. I have used Fitbit products for more than 5 years. My program has a 3 year followup period and my initial goal is to keep it off for 1 year, then 5 years then hopefully forever.

Unknown · December 2017

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psychod787 · January 2018

Mine was when the doctor told me I was going to be dead soon or with Weight loss surgery, also a fasting blood sugar of 339. Also when I could not walk 40 yards without my knees and ankles hurting. I was 33 at the time.

mortuseon_ · January 2018

Even the Snapchat filters don't hide how chubby my face is. I think that was the real 'hit' lately. but I've been wanting to get back into it for ages, just needed to do it healthily...

sgt1372 · January 2018

190# is my trigger to take action b4 hitting my red line at 200. Hit this trigger twice in past 5 years.

Dropped 35# from 192 the 1st time and 36# from 196 the 2nd time. Been maintaining at 158 +/-3 for the past 14 months.

Gained the weight back the 1st time due to injury, surgeries and lack of discipline. No excuses this time around.

davepollack · January 2018

My ah-ha moment wasn't about my weight as it was about exercising. It was actually a nightmare of a medical emergency. Opened my eyes to an overdue lifestyle change.

Happysoul0317 · January 2018

Mine was seeing my wedding pictures from this past September. I looked like a short, round blimp in a dress. Oh my god I couldn't even believe that I let myself go to that point. Being laid up with a back injury didn't help, but I could have and should have adjusted my diet. So, after hitting 160lbs (I'm like 5' tall), I nearly passed out after seeing that number on the scale. I got really p****d off at myself, and I decided to take charge now. I don't need to see huge numbers of weight loss every weigh in, but I hold myself accountable if I don't see any weight loss. It's my body and it will look the way I want it to look. I want to look healthy and strong. That's that.

kgilbert75 · January 2018

My 1st ah-ha moment was in 2010 - I was the heaviest I'd ever been and saw some pictures of me that made me feel so ashamed of myself. I lost 75 pounds and managed to keep it off until 2015 when I got divorced and couldn't be a stay-at-home-mom anymore. I've gained back 40 of the 75 pounds and am feeling pretty uncomfortable. Today I had my 2nd ah-ha moment when I was getting dressed for work and my pants split when I bent over. I think it's time to take control of my body again!

HDBKLM · January 2018

tomteboda wrote: »

I take care of my mom full-time. She's 59 years old and entirely dependent on other people for almost everything. She has cushing's syndrome and over 100 lbs of nonoperable fibroid tumors in her body, and after she was immobilized by a stroke the weight just piled on, going from a hefty but manageable 350 to 500.

She has a lot of health problems, with multiple sclerosis, SLE, and diabetes and all the problems that result from them. She's going blind and deaf, she can barely transfer from her chair to a toilet, her feet are absolutely a horror from edema and wounds that wont' heal. We have to wrap her legs every day, and wash and tend for all her sores. Neuropathy ,means she can't feel anything below her upper arms or legs, and she has terrible heart pain as well as random muscle spasms all over her body. She suffers greatly. No person should suffer like that.

Her problems are not caused by her weight, they're caused by her malfunctioning immune system and the genetic changes brought about by exposure to a drug her mom took in utero. But her weight is making everything A LOT HARDER. I can't lift her, even with my dad's help. When she falls, we have to call 911 to get help. I can't handle her wheelchair alone, so she can only go places when my dad, who is 60 years old, can help! We can barely get her into the car right now to take her to the doctor. She's too heavy for one of those cars that has the lift-chairs, and we can't afford a motorized chair for her. We can't afford one of the expensive motorized recliners for bariatric people either, so every time she wants her feet up or head back, I have to do it for her. You cannot imagine how frustrating that is for her, to be unable to do anything for herself, and she's a very independent person. Its not exactly easy on me either, because she often needs help at least once every hour or two around the clock, and this has been going on for years.

Ma suffers every single day. It's terrible to watch. NOBODY should suffer like this. And her weight makes taking care of her SO MUCH HARDER. It has a clear and terrible impact on the quality of her life. She'd still be in pain and miserable if she was smaller, because the diseases she has are her body self-destructing. But the weight makes it worse.

November 2014 I realized I was headed down the same path.

Like my mom, I have systemic lupus erythematosus. Over the past decade I suffered several serious injuries to my back, including one at the C2 vertebra which completely immobilized me for months. Then my immune system started attacking my heart, making me very sleepy (20 hours a day sleeping!). My weight went up, and up, and up... and I did nothing. 165 turned into 175.. to 185.. 195... 205.. 225... 235... 245... 255... I held there for a couple years until the heart problem. I was hiding from the camera. I knew I was fat, but I was tired all the time and I just didn't have the energy to be active like I always used to be. And then I stepped on a scale and it read 270.

My heart skipped a beat. 270. What. the. heck. I numbly went back to my bedroom and wept.. and wept... and wept. Because suddenly I knew.. I was going down the EXACT SAME PATH my mom had been on. What happened if my heart didn't get better? What happened if I needed someone to help me? How could I do that to someone else? I always had a functional definition of weight: your weight is fine, unless its preventing you from living the life you want. Lupus changed the equation for me. It took away my ability to do things; and I realized my weight was NOT HELPING one bit. It was putting a lot of extra strain on my heart.

After a couple days of complete devastation, I logged onto MyFitnessPal. I wasn't ready to commit fully, but I started paying attention to what I was eating. My goal wasn't even to lose weght yet. It was to STOP GAINING. Nevertheless, despite not logging, in the first 2 months I lost 15 lbs.

I had a doctor appointment in January and was put on a drug to calm my immune system down. That day I started logging everything I ate. In May my heart was strong enough I could go on short (15 minute) walks every 2-3 days, and vacuum my house every 2 days (believe me this was exertion!). Over the summer, I became stronger as my heart recovered from the prolonged attack on it, and the walking increased.

I've now lost almost 75 lbs. I'm aiming to lose 23 more. Walking is so much easier than it was, not just because my muscles are more conditioned, but because I'm not lugging around a large Irish Setter in fat. My back is getting stronger than it's been in a long time, so much stress was taken off that as well. Everything else that's improved is just gravy.

Oh, and my mom? She's lost 100 lbs along with me, because I was paying attention to my my diet and by association hers as well.

I realise this post is 2 years old but I've only just seen it. @tomteboda I've seen you on the boards plenty since I joined MFP this past May, and it's been clear to me that you're a success story. Knowing about your success has become quite a lot more poignant upon hearing your (and your mom's) back story. I just wanted to take a moment to express how pleased I am for you, and to wish you continued good health.

neraulia · January 2018

When was your 'AH-HA' moment that made you decide, 'ahhhm okay it's time to do something about this weight?'
What made a difference this time which differed from previous attempts to lose weight &/or get healthy? (motivation)
How much impact do you feel that a correct mindset has on the level of achievement?

My now ex-husband was diagnosed with diabetes. I started to change my eating habits because he was forced to change his.
The biggest difference is that I became comfortable with slow progress. It took me seven years to go from 166 to 128. I had to take it a day at a time and deal with the emotional side of overeating before I could stick to any weight loss plan. I had to realize that it's OK to take care of myself and seek happiness.
Correct mindset is huge. Probably the biggest aspect.

HoneyBadger302 · January 2018

When was your 'AH-HA' moment that made you decide, 'ahhhm okay it's time to do something about this weight?
--Early 2015: I knew I had put on weight over the years, but the "Ah-ha" was when, no matter how uncomfortable I was willing to be, I couldn't SQUEEZE into my "fattest" work pants. Refusing to buy another size up, I had to wear skirts/dresses for like 3 weeks until I dropped enough to sausage back into my pants.

What made a difference this time which differed from previous attempts to lose weight &/or get healthy? (motivation)
--I decided that rather than trying to do it all, or dramatically change my schedule, I'd instead focus on food. Just had the realization that no matter what, I was going to feed myself, so that was the logical place to start since it was something I was going to be doing anyways.

As for fitness, which came later, it was after my pace racing started to pick up, but my physical abilities were holding me back. I literally didn't have the strength to get the bike to turn at a faster pace, I was maxed out (bike wasn't, I was). I was also getting more tired as my pace picked up. Decided that if I wanted a shot at making the pro ranks in the future, I'd have to get in shape and treat myself like the athlete I wanted to be.

I learned to "embrace the suck" and dealt with how horrible it was to work on getting back into shape (for most of my life until about 2009 I was pretty fit and weight had never been an issue, but I had active jobs that required a lot - then I got the dreaded desk job.....)

How much impact do you feel that a correct mindset has on the level of achievement?
--I think it's about priorities - humans will accomplish what they feel is truly important to them. Sometimes you have to set yourself up for the mindset, or remind yourself of it, but if it's a priority, you'll make it happen.

psychod787 · January 2018

HoneyBadger155 wrote: »

When was your 'AH-HA' moment that made you decide, 'ahhhm okay it's time to do something about this weight?
--Early 2015: I knew I had put on weight over the years, but the "Ah-ha" was when, no matter how uncomfortable I was willing to be, I couldn't SQUEEZE into my "fattest" work pants. Refusing to buy another size up, I had to wear skirts/dresses for like 3 weeks until I dropped enough to sausage back into my pants.

What made a difference this time which differed from previous attempts to lose weight &/or get healthy? (motivation)
--I decided that rather than trying to do it all, or dramatically change my schedule, I'd instead focus on food. Just had the realization that no matter what, I was going to feed myself, so that was the logical place to start since it was something I was going to be doing anyways.

As for fitness, which came later, it was after my pace racing started to pick up, but my physical abilities were holding me back. I literally didn't have the strength to get the bike to turn at a faster pace, I was maxed out (bike wasn't, I was). I was also getting more tired as my pace picked up. Decided that if I wanted a shot at making the pro ranks in the future, I'd have to get in shape and treat myself like the athlete I wanted to be.

I learned to "embrace the suck" and dealt with how horrible it was to work on getting back into shape (for most of my life until about 2009 I was pretty fit and weight had never been an issue, but I had active jobs that required a lot - then I got the dreaded desk job.....)

How much impact do you feel that a correct mindset has on the level of achievement?
--I think it's about priorities - humans will accomplish what they feel is truly important to them. Sometimes you have to set yourself up for the mindset, or remind yourself of it, but if it's a priority, you'll make it happen.

Damn fine answer!
I can relate to some of that. I had a job, I am a nurse, that kept me on my feet all day. I was still gaining weight, just slowly. I ate like crap. Then I got a night shift job that all I did was sit on my @ss and eat. When I look back on what I would eat in a 16 hour shift it blows my mind! I was eating 6000-8000cals a night sometimes! It amazing I did not weigh more than the 400lbs I got to! Talk about a binge eater! I now eat 3000 to 3300, 85/15 flexible dieting with macro counting. I actually stay fuller!

Your 'Ah-Ha' Moment

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