Morbidly obese

ezelf1969 · August 2020

I dont know what to say. I've let myself become this giant walking creature of fat. Limited mobility is slowly cutting me off from the rest of the world. How do you start. Where does one start? How do you change what you think your worth.

MaltedTea · August 2020

You can start by talking more nicely, gently, and patiently about yourself.

You're not your weight, after all.

Besides, you're here now and you're striving for better health. That's something to be proud of, imho.

🤗

SoaringOccamy · August 2020

I know it can be crushing to realise how much your weight is holding you back, but you should never give in to the idea that it somehow determines your worth. Above all you have to remember that you are definitely worth the effort to try.

Now, how do you start? You start with figuring out where you are. Maybe start logging what you're eating now and how much activity you can manage in a day. These will give you baselines to start making small changes. When I was at my heaviest, which was around 500 lbs, I was able to lose weight eating about 3500 calories a day. when I was in the 400's I was still eating about 2500 a day. You don't have to reduce your calories to 1200 to see results. This site will give you a figure to start with, but you can always try to finagle it a bit to where you're comfortable and still making progress. As you go, try to identify the things that consistently make you slip up. You will know to be careful around them in the future. For me, I find that if I am eating a lot of sugar I will be ravenously hungry all the time. I also know that I have a hard time stopping once I start eating chips. I am careful about when and how I eat those foods.

Then, try to do just a little more activity than you normally do. If standing is hard, try some hand weights. Maybe clap along to some music and chair dance. If you can stand and walk, figure out how long you can manage and then try to work your way up a little at a time. If you can climb stairs, maybe make an extra trip up and down for something you might have normally put off til you really had to. Just take your normal activity and try to consciously add a little extra. That is a big enough step to add some mobility to you over time. When I walk, I like to carry some light hand weights with me so that I know and feel like I am building up extra muscle when I walk that will help me become more mobile. It just made the activity feel more fulfilling and rewarding even though the extra effort involved was minimal.

The biggest thing to remember is that you don't need to make all the changes at once. You don't have to exercise if that feels overwhelming. You can just watch your calories. If your calorie change seems really daunting, make the cut less steep and work your way back. Or work on trying to get used to eating on a certain schedule. I found that if I can just keep from snacking between dinner and bed I generally consume a lot less calories in a day. Just remember that even if a positive change doesn't make a big impact on the scale, it is still a positive change.

And don't forget that it is normal to resist and backslide on the changes you're making at first. Just don't let every bad day discourage you from continuing to try. You will have days where all you wanna do is lapse back into your old habits. This is completely normal. It is all part of the change. Just try to center yourself and remind yourself why and how you want to make the change and push forward again.

AwesomeSquirrel · August 2020

You have already taken an important step, you are here asking how to initiate change.

Start by making small positive changes. Take a 5 min walk a couple of times per day, add a serving of fruit or vegetables to your regular meals.

A lot of people advocate logging your food to get an idea of where your eat right now calorie wise and then gradually improve on that.

I’ve recently discovered the “we only look thin” podcast and it so happens the episode I listened to yesterday (#66) address the mental aspect of how to get started. Maybe check it out?

FYI I started with a BMI of 44 last July and on Sunday I finally became overweight with a BMI < 30. You can do this.

emmakent1004 · August 2020

I started my journey at morbidly obese. My best piece of advice is you’re not going to get it right all the time, so don’t get down about any slip ups. They won’t derail your progress! As long as you recognise the need the change your life for the future and pick yourself up after each set back, success is a definite!
Start with reducing the amount you eat and keeping track of the healthy foods you are eating throughout the day. I picked up some light weights to start and did small exercise routines in my dorm room whenever I had time to burn some extra calories and start the toning process even before the excess fat was gone.
Small steps make all the difference, as SoaringOccamy noted. Little treats here and there instead of cutting them out completely reduced the chances of binging or relapsing. Also building up your strength and stamina from lower to more intense exercise reduces the likelihood of injury.
I believe in your ability to change your life. Just believe in yourself and you can achieve whatever your goals are, I know it!

quiksylver296 · August 2020

BABY STEPS! Small, sustainable changes that you can keep up with. Maybe the first step is cutting one soda out of your day. Do that until it feels normal. Then make one other small change, maybe you commit to walking to the mailbox every day. Do that until it feels normal. Then pick another baby step. Rinse and repeat!!!

This thread is great. Give it a read.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

joone_9 · August 2020

I here ya! I can’t for the life of me understand how I let myself gain a further 50lbs since February when I had just lost that amount a mere 4 months prior. Now I’m back at the heaviest and most embarrassing weight I have ever been. Like what the hell was I thinking?! But I’m back at er since Monday as I can’t let this lifestyle continue. I have made a one year goal of not giving up even when I slip (as I will...). So good on you for realizing you want a change and try everyday to stick with it!

Derpes · August 2020

Maybe a 3-5 minute walk is a good starting point. Then, gradually increase it depending on how you feel. Depending on how limited your mobility is, you can adjust. Small steps to start with.

This might seem corny or funny, but no-joke, Richard Simmons made a video for people with limited mobility:

https://www.amazon.com/Reach-Fitness-Exercises-Physically-Challenged/dp/B00000680E

gjfredrick · September 2020

I understand completely how you feel. Starting is the hard part. I was also feeling isolated, the bigger I got the more I isolated myself. My mobility was affected also due to arthritis pain. I then realized how depressed I was and saw my Dr. who prescribed an antidepressant, now that mentally I am feeling so much better I can start on the physical process. I started with a physical to see what my numbers are and my GP suggested a Dr. who specializes in weight loss medication. Not everyone wants to take this route. But I am going to give it a shot. You have received a lot of helpful ideas. Richard Simmons videos are actually great to get moving. I wish you the best of luck. The first step is wanting to take back control of your life, do what works for you and keep at it. Small steps.

parkerbernadette2267 · September 2020

I too am starting my journey as the drs tell me as morbidly obese, today is day 2 and at the moment I am still feeling positive but I know from past experience it is going to be hard.
I have fibromyalgia and I suffer from pain all over my body daily, my weight probably contributes hugely to this. I now also have Achilles tendinitis in both feet again most likely due to my weight.
I sit at a desk at work so don’t really move there and when I come home I sit on the sofa till I go to bed.
I am in that much pain I can’t bare to move but I know I need to make big changes for my health and for my kids. We have a small dog so I am going to try to do a small work with him once a day to begin with and then increase to twice daily.
This has also told me how many calories I can have a day so I am going to stick to that.
If you want to add me as a friend so that we can support each other feel free to, it would be nice to have some support.
Good luck in your journey
Bernie xxx

88olds · September 2020

MaltedTea wrote: »

You're not your weight, after all.
🤗

Actually there’s an exercise for this. Stand in front of the mirror and say out loud- I have a hand but I am not my hand. I have a head but I am not my head. I have a face but I am not my face. You get the idea. Do as many as you want. Foot. Big toe. Liver. Right eye. SAT score. Whatever. Then move to stuff you may not be comfortable with. Stomach, number on the scale. However you think of it. Humans are complicated. We aren’t defined by any one thing. We are loaded with contradictions. It’s ok. Just how it is. But lots of things about you are true, not just how much you weigh.

The way I think about it is as I got bigger my life got smaller. Not only was I having trouble getting around, I cut myself off from family and friends because I was embarrassed.

Do you think every person is entitled to basic respect? Just basics. Should everyone be able to determine what they want for themselves? No, you can’t decide to live in your neighbor’s house. That’s encroaching on someone else. What about overweight people? Are they disqualified because of their weight? What about you? Are you entitled to basic respect? Or do you think you’re a special case? If you aren’t convinced yet go ahead and respond. I’ll gladly debate the issue with you right here if you want.

So if you’re going to respect yourself, you are going to have to put some action behind it. No one can do that for you. And standing up for respect is the right thing to do. Even if it is for yourself. Now you can act in service of a worthy cause- you.

If you want to lose weight, take heart. It can be done and the way to do it is well known. But the fact is that we won’t do much without hope. Gotta think we will get something for the effort. And you can. Calorie counting works. It really does. Find your way to a calorie deficit you can live with and you will lose weight. It has to work, its how our bodies are designed. Be prepared for the learning curve. People start, do a day or 2, make some sort of misstep and quit. Don’t. It takes time to learn the mechanics and more time to learn to live with it. But it works. You can have the life you want. We only get one. You can do this.

Morbidly obese

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