Weight gain due to HAES, body positivity and intuitive eating

Lauraoman2164 · April 2022

Is anyone here because of gaining a lot of weight due to these movements?

I got completely sucked in to the rhetoric some very famous influencers have put about online that there is no true evidence that being overweight or obese is linked to health problems. Any studies were biased and fatphobic.

Now I’m borderline obese and might have to go on high blood pressure medication. It has given me a whole new motivation for weight loss. I never thought I’d gain so much weight it affected my health. I’m so confused with these movements and influencers. It’s made me so afraid I cannot do this because they keep saying over and over that weight loss long term is impossible.

Has anyone else experienced something similar?Or have the movements helped your health?

Lietchi · April 2022

Weight loss long-term is not impossible. A lot of long-term users of these forums can testify to that. Which doesn't mean it is easy. But reading these forums can help you along in a big way to overcoming and even preventing some of the obstacles. Pretending it is impossible, is just making excuses for not trying, IMHO.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for people feeling confident no matter what their size. But the claims about weight-loss being impossible and obesity not being a health risk are irresponsible.
I'm one of the lucky ones who got obese and had zero health implications and likely wouldn't have had any for a long time (judging from my obese parents, lucky genetics). But just the weight becomes a terrible hindrance, and the other health risks are a bit of a Russian roulette. I went from obese (94.2kg, 208lbs) to my current healthy weight (around 60kg, 133lbs) and I feel so much better. I hadn't realized, with my very gradual weight gain, how much my weight had become a hindrance.

I have no doubt, even if my health, strictly speaking, would not have been compromised, I would have ended up with mobility issues like my parents. And that is not something I want to face. And I don't need to, if I keep my current habits.

cmriverside · April 2022

I think the internet has definitely confused us.

I'm older and made most of my important stances on things before the twitter-verse or MeTube. I also lost 80 pounds and completely reversed all my health complaints before smart phones. I went from 220 to 140ish. I have maintained my 21-22 BMI for 15 years using the tools on this site. So, it can be done. There are many long-term maintainers on this site. It's up to you. It's your life.

People on instagram, twitter, facebook, etc. should be watched with caution. There is no safety filter on the internet and no editing for accuracy...but I guess that's always been true of people with opinions.

I'm glad you're here. I hope your weight loss will bring you even half the joy and feeling of accomplishment I feel for having made this decision. Welcome to your new life.

lemurcat2 · April 2022

I have never paid much attention to HAES as a movement, and certainly have ignored defeatist claims about weight loss being impossible, but I would have to admit that I feared it was for me when I started and it was actually extremely helpful for me to focus less on weight loss and more on things I knew I could control -- eating healthfully, the calories (healthy level of cals) I consumed, and physical activity. I decided that no matter what if I ate well (and a reasonable amount) and was physically active, I would be as healthy as possible. Not being focused on the scale actually took pressure off and helped me feel like I was in control of what I was doing rather than trusting that the scale would cooperate.

Now, of course the scale did reflect what I was doing, but I think that approach -- on fitness first vs a number on the scale -- was actually a mindset help for me.

A book I read that is anti diet (as in an attack on lots of older diet gurus -- the book isn't that new) but also doesn't suggest that being a healthy weight is impossible was Laura Fraser's Losing It.

I think the more recent approach that seems to be that trying to lose is inherently counterproductive and that everyone will just lose (or be at their proper weight) if they just eat what they want and when they want and that it's only dieting and shaming that makes us gain is nuts. Fraser might have had some elements of that -- it's been too long -- but for me at least it made me feel like losing and being at a healthy weight was very possible.

Hiawassee88 · April 2022

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10800312/setpoint-vs-healthy-bmi-and-intuitive-eating-with-pcos

In 2020, we had an interesting discussion about intuitive eating.

hottamolly00 · April 2022

Yep. I’m back here to lose the weight I gained after following many of the annoying Instagram “body posi” influencers. I woke up to the cancer that is “low expectations” and figured out that everything they said was rooted in their own self-hatred. The whole movement is just a way for people to seek affirmation for the things they hate about themself. I learned that it’s not “hate” to tell someone the truth the damage they’re doing to their bodies. It’s actually LOVE.

AnnPT77 · April 2022

I'm wary of anything that tells me that I should limit my sense of agency and personal choice. I also try to research the things I believe by seeking out opposing views. Still, confirmation bias can be seductive.

Not exactly HAES/body positivity/intuitive eating (well, maybe a little intuitive eating), but I did go a long time trying to convince myself that since I was very active (while class 1 obese) that that was enough for health, or that I must have a "slow metabolism" because otherwise how would I be staying obese while working out intensely 6 days most weeks, even competing as an athlete (not always unsuccessfully, even)? (Besides, I was old, menopausal, hypothyroid: That's weight loss doom, right? "Everyone knows that.") On top of that, I 'd been vegetarian (since 1974!), eating whole grains, veggies, all that Good Stuff. Besides, my mom was obese, so genetics - right?

I'm sure the pop-sci and HAES/etc. rhetoric was adding weight to my self-delusion.

But eventually, it became undeniable: My doctor was threatening statins. My LDL was high, my HDL was low, my triglycerides jumped through the roof, my blood pressure was borderline at best (and sometimes truly high). I tried various supplements, twiddly changes in what I was eating: Very little impact. I gave up, started losing weight.

Some few pounds down, sudden new reflux/heartburn led to a diagnosis of gallbladder adenomymatosis. This is not the normal stones/sludge thing, but an inflammatory condition that can be precancerous, or mask gallbladder cancer. (I was already a stage III - locally advanced - breast cancer survivor, plus a cancer widow, so that felt like a big deal.) When they took the sucker out, the pathology report said it was an ugly, thickened, cholesterolized thing, with actual holes in it. Wake up time, for sure!

With weight loss - which turned out to be much simpler than I'd expected with calorie counting and MFP, though obviously not psychologically easy every single second - my LDL and triglycerides started dropping, my HDL started increasing, my BP dropped, and - surprise! - pain from my osteoarthritis/torn meniscus declined by a lot. There was big progress even when only part way to goal weight.

In the long run, at goal weight and beyond, there was also an ineffable improvement in overall sense of well-being. It may've been partly the summation of all of those other improvements, but I wonder whether some of it is how reduced systemic inflammation feels. I don't know. Whatever it is, I like it, and I've kind of "gotten religion." I think weight loss is possible at any age and stage, and very worth it. I could kick myself for not doing it decades sooner. (Maybe I even could've missed out on the breast cancer, which is higher probability when obese.)

Back at HAES, etc.: I'm sure they contributed a few bricks to my wall of self-delusion and self-justification. Still, I can't blame them, because I'm also back to the idea that - other than the things I truly can't control or even influence - I'm the product of my own thinking, my own choices, my own research, and it doesn't help me to not take responsibility for that, to instead seek external things to blame. Believing I have choice, in as wide as scope as I can feel it's true, makes me feel empowered, as if I can achieve more. I want that.

snowflake954 · April 2022

What I don't understand is "what happened to moderation"? Why does everything have to be extremes? "I'm going to lose this weight NOW and get back to my high school weight in 2 months", or the HAES movement "You're just lovely and healthy at any weight, and trying to lose will just bring failure and frustration in your life--BE HAPPY", instead of "Losing a few pounds (or kilos), will make you healthier, why don't we start and see how it goes"?

The words: sensible, patient, long term, slowly, exercise, etc, aren't used much (except on MFP by the veterans).

azuki84 · April 2022

That is the problem with a lot of people, especially on the forums here. They become too gullible and believe whatever trend that “highlighted” some success story. STOP the sheep behavior. Focus on YOU and ONLY you.

sijomial · April 2022

I hate the hyperbole of absolute statements such as "impossible".
It's frankly so dumb I couldn't listen any further to these so-called influencers, I try not to let dumb people influence me and wish people listened with more scepticism.

Of course just one exception disproves the assertion and this thread already has numerous successful losers and long term maintainers at goal weight.....

To deny that excess weight is harmful to health beggars’ belief. It's a bit like pointing at a long-term smoker who hasn't yet succumbed to a smoking related illness as "proof" that smoking isn't harmful. Yes, some people can be healthy and overweight (for a while or even a long while) or smoke and be healthy but that doesn’t mean they aren’t both huge risk factors.

This dreamworld of eat intuitively and everything will be fine is also pretty ridiculous. Surely the increasing waistlines of the general population demolishes that argument?

I eat mindfully to maintain at a healthy goal weight long term and really don't see an issue with that. Why is intuitive eating seen as superior? Don’t results matter more than methods?
My health is important enough to me to make that effort very worthwhile. My intuitive wants are in excess of my actual needs and I came to terms with that a long time ago.

Hiawassee88 · April 2022

I intuitively want to eat all the things. Some order out of that chaos had to be imposed so I joined this site about 7 years ago.

PAV8888 · April 2022

At the point in time where we've become interested in learning about HAES, I doubt that we would be good candidates for successfully managing our weight through intuitive eating. Possibly intuitive eating would allow some of us to maintain at that higher weight. But, by the time we have become morbidly obese, most of us have *kittened up* our intuition a bit too much!

I know that some of the HAES narrative played into my own view at the time that it was impossible for me to lose weight long term. I am not saying that the HAES narrative has no value, or that it can't be helpful (esp mentally) to people who are currently at a high weight. But I AM saying that as the movement had played out last time I looked, it was partially barking up the wrong tree.

How could I become healthier at my then morbidly obese weight would have been a good thing to explore in that situation. That would absolutely include self-acceptance. But, self-acceptance does not, in my view, preclude self improvement.

Believing and reinforcing that being morbidly obese was not a health concern and that nothing could be done to change it was not, in retrospect, helpful.

AnnPT77 · April 2022

Y'know, I was watching random videos the other day while procrastinating actual adulthood, and saw a "transformation video" that gave me a bit of a new thought about (semi-)intuitive eating.

The video was the standard thing, about a guy who started out morbidly obese, lost weight, improved fitness. One of his issues was shoveling in food quickly, and eating lots. Someone (trainer, dietitian, I forget) who was advising him suggested that he start eating with chopsticks, not a thing that he was adept at. It slowed him down enough that fullness registered before he had eaten as much as it formerly took too reach a full feeling, and was a help along with way when he was getting started.

I'm not saying this is any kind of panacea or a great insight about intuitive eating, but I still thought it was interesting on the intuitive eating side of things.

One of the things I've noticed about myself is that it seems to take a long time, maybe longer than average time, for fullness to register with me. I didn't use chopsticks to lose - am pretty good with them anyway, so that might not work. But I've learned that I will benefit if I distract myself for a while before going for seconds, or before eating beyond what experience has taught me is adequate. 🤷‍♀️

lemurcat2 · May 2022

That worked for me too when losing. I had broken the part of my brain that judges what a sensible portion is, so relied pretty heavily on calories and serving size when first starting out, other than going way over the recommended serving size for low cal stuff like vegetables. My rule was that I would put away the food after taking my portion and would not have seconds, ever. If I'd actually felt truly hungry an hour or so later I would probably have allowed myself to eat, but I never did.

When I was maintaining without logging with no problem, most of it was learned eating behaviors -- what I typically had (within a range) for meals, no eating between meals, very specific dessert options when I had dessert (and I would still usually weigh ice cream). That can work for me, but it's not intuitive, it's intentionally very mindful.

tristatriesagain · May 2022

@Lauraoman2164 I get it! I also stopped trying to lose weight because of the whole haes, body positivity stuff out there. Now I've got this weight that feels very uncomfortable on my body. I'm irritated that I let myself regain because of it. So now I'm working losing 50 pounds. Because that's where I felt better and energetic.

WailingDusk · May 2022

Health at every size is a myth. Please, if anyone is on here who follows these 'fat positive' influencers, I implore you to run far away. If you have binge eating disorder, intuitive eating may as well be a green light to binge. I am all for 'body positivity,' being comfortable and happy with things you can't change. However, obesity is not something you should ever be happy with. These morbidly obese models like Tess Holliday know deep down that their size is causing them problems... and it's going to get worse as they plow head-first into their late 30's and 40s.

I am so much happier now than I was when I was super morbidly obese. (yeah... when they start putting modifiers in front of modifiers for obesity, it's a PROBLEM) Me being almost 400 pounds was not in any way 'healthy.' There was never a moment when I felt good. It was embarrassing going to restaurants and having to get a table because I couldn't fit into a booth. Having to catch my breath waking up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. Having to sleep with a CPAP. All of that stuff was HORRIFYING, and I don't wish it on anyone.

When I see the HAES movement, it infuriates me. It actually makes me livid to the point where I have to just walk away or I'll start screaming at the computer/tv. These mukbangers that you see out there... just make me wonder if we're beyond hope. 43% of people in the US are Obese. Over 70% are overweight, and those numbers are getting worse. NEARLY HALF THE COUNTRY IS OBESE! This is going to be a HUGE health crises in the coming years, and all I can do is just watch it all come down in flames with the fat positive community on the rise.

I read a startling statistic from the CDC the other day. There are children as young as 10 with type TWO diabetes. TYPE 2!! Nearly 20% of children will be prediabetic before the age of 18. We are failing the children of the next generation, and Gen Z and Millennials will have shorter lifespans than their parents.

So health at every size? No. Obesity is a disease. It is not healthy. My mother was obese, my father is overweight, my grandparents were obese. Everyone had diabetes, heart disease, depression, hypertension... my father's had 2 strokes and a heart attack and takes 17 different meds. My mother's dead.

I WILL NOT end up like that. I refuse to be another 'American' statistic, which is why I will never be obese again. I'm finally living now. I run, I've climbed mountains. I started dating (and HE approached ME... I was never hit on by anyone when before now)! I don't have to wear a CPAP anymore. I can fit comfortably in any chair. I no longer get chest pains or bad heartburn. I've have never gotten to experience most of the stuff I've experienced in the past year when I was obese.

Don't follow the HAES movement. Choose to live life to the fullest, don't eat yourself to death. That's my rant for the night.

DebbsSeattle · January 2023

Since this was posted on debates…

I do not feel that blaming one’s body composition on haes, body positivity or intuitive eating as presented by non-scientific, monetized internet influencers is fair. It seems that common sense on the viewers/readers part is lacking if it leads to becoming obese from a previous state of healthy body composition. That is almost as bad as blaming an other than healthy body composition on clothing makers and their use of vanity sizing labels. “Well I thought I was actually an 8 this whole time because Levi said so. What do you mean I’m morbidly obese and have diabetes?”

BartBVanBockstaele · January 2023

Others have commented enough, but led me add a link to this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLL-A1B8Uzo
It shows several people who have lost weight and kept it off long term.

There is also the National Weight Control Registry that conducts studies on people who have lost significant amounts of weight and kept it off for a long time:
http://www.nwcr.ws/

That said, just because we CAN do something, does not mean we WILL do that thing even if we should be doing it. It is often said that weight loss is the easiest part while keeping it off is the difficult part.

However, *difficult* does not mean *impossible* as numerous people have shown.

BartBVanBockstaele · January 2023

DebbsSeattle wrote: »

Since this was posted on debates…

I do not feel that blaming one’s body composition on haes, body positivity or intuitive eating as presented by non-scientific, monetized internet influencers is fair. It seems that common sense on the viewers/readers part is lacking if it leads to becoming obese from a previous state of healthy body composition. That is almost as bad as blaming an other than healthy body composition on clothing makers and their use of vanity sizing labels. “Well I thought I was actually an 8 this whole time because Levi said so. What do you mean I’m morbidly obese and have diabetes?”

HAES, as a principle, is not by definition wrong. In fact, it has largely become the standard in healthcare: instead of focusing on weight loss from the onset, the tendency is now to attempt to make the patient as healthy as possible at the weight they are while also making clear that losing weight may lead to better outcomes.

There are several reasons for that, but one of them is that weight loss is not a risk-free endeavour. People die from attempting weight loss. Probably not very many and probably mainly as the result of ill-conceived methods, but still. There are also consequences that may not be deadly but can still be quite detrimental to one's health. Of course, being overweight or fat comes with its own set of negatives, so it is not unwise to think before attempting it.

Weight gain due to HAES, body positivity and intuitive eating

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