Feel like giving up

In order to give good advice ... are you Male or female and how tall are you?

Only you can decide if you want to change. Once the decision is made ... only you can keep deciding every day to keep doing it.

If you've been eating unhealthy and gaining weight for 5 years ... it's going to take a full year to reverse the damage you've done. Go into this mission informed that it takes a looooong time to lose weight.

OK. You posted here. Which means you haven't quite given up. So, tell us, what are you hoping for from this thread. Most of us can be much more helpful if we have some basic information (based on the pregnancy comment, I'm inferring female) about you and some idea of what you want back from us.

What would giving up accomplish? You are young and have so much life left that stopping now won't fix anything. Sounds like you have figured out what has gotten you to where you are now so why not change it. Improve your diet and activity.
Also given some key words in your initial statement I would also consider counseling/therapy to help with what sounds like depression.

Fundamental: The idea that exercise is integral to weight loss is missguided. Just put less stuff in your mouth. you WILL lose weight. controlling what you eat is 100% of the solution to weighing less. they key to controlling what you eat starts by KNOWING what you eat. buy a food scale ... don't even change your eating habits for a week, just start weighing every single item that goes in your mouth.

now, looking better, feeling better, etc ... that's where exercise helps. but it has to start somewhere. start by eating less.

as for motivation... unpopular opinion warning: I rely heavily on self loathing. when i am hungry i tell myself that this is punishment for my past bad behavior of eating too much. i get angry at my past self and it motivates me to NOT be that person anymore. only through willful BAD actions will i gain weight. putting too much food in my mouth. if i do nothing ... if i lay in bed and stare at the ceiling for a week because my depression is too much ... i will lose weight. so through total INACTION weight loss happens. and through a choice to perform a BAD action that weight gain happens. I'm not sure where MFP's policy's come down on this, I'm just giving you what works in my own head form my own personal experience. Some people love themselves and it motivates them. i don't think that way. i pay a punishment of hunger for having been a sloth ... and eventually will pay my debt back and will be able to eat maintenance calories.

it's a complete fallacy to say "i didn't work out so i gained weight".

Hemlock91, I completely understand how you feel! That used to be me. Before I started my weight loss journey, I was 355 pounds, obese, depressed, and rarely ever went out to do anything except maybe get takeout/fast food/ junk food. Then one day I was down to my last pair of pants so I headed into the local plus size clothing store only to discover that I had gone up TWO sizes in a matter of months! So I went home that night and decided I was going to make a change. Did it all on my own, started with home workout beginner yoga videos on YouTube and ate healthy foods. Now it's two years later and I've lost 125 pounds.

This can be you, too. You can do this! You are so young and have your whole life ahead of you! Please don't give up. Weight loss is hard, sure. But it's not impossible. The fact that you're on MFP and making the effort puts you way ahead of all those who aren't even trying. You're trying to live a healthy lifestyle and for that, give yourself some credit. Don't be so hard on yourself and give yourself some love- you deserve it!

I am 5'5" and just turned 50 years old in September. The first time I realized I needed to lose weight was probably around 2000 I weighed 160 lbs. I didn't do anything about it. In 2006 I finally did something after getting up to around 180, lost around 20-25 pounds, started feeling good about myself then changed positions at work and gained it all back. Move forward to 2009, started again around 180. I quit smoking and was petrified I would gain more than I currently weighed so bought a Wii and started working out. Lost again this time 25-30 pounds. I got depressed, marital issues, empty nest, just life in general. Gained back up to 199 by April of 2012. Was going to be going to see my Dad for the first time in 3 years, he was quite judgemental about people's weight so I was determined he wouldn't be able to judge me. Got down to 168 lbs by November. As I lost I got rid of all clothes that became too big and all clothes except pajamas that had elastic waists. I wasn't going back there again.
Then I was called home because my Dad was so ill. He passed in December. Deep depression, still having marital problems until this past February I found myself at 202 pounds. I couldn't do this anymore. I had been unemployed since August 2017 and had been living in pajamas. I got a job and realized I had no clothes that didn't feel like they were cutting me in half. I realized I needed to get back at it. Today I am around 180, I am hoping the slow speed this time and making more subtle changes that I can live with long term is the key. Good luck to you. If you want advice my first suggestion would be to throw out the sweatpants, that really helped me a lot.

73CL350 wrote: »

Sad that the OP hasn't even logged in since this was posted : (

Guess she gave up:(

I wonder if this person realized that so many of us were in the same boat, but made the commitment to a healthy lifestyle? Even if I never drop another pound, I am grateful that I changed my life and am now much, much healthier.