Seriously too young to give up, but yet i do...

You will not be able to lose the weight until you are ready, physically and emotionally. Most of us who have successfully lost weight did it after we came to the point of "enough is enough" and couldn't stand being overweight anymore. If you are not ready to fully commit to getting rid of the weight for good, then start making small changes until you are ready to truly lose the weight (honesty with yourself is key here). Small changes could be taking a one mile walk daily, or giving up soda, or even just starting to log your food in MFP to be aware of how many calories you are eating on a daily basis.

No one can lose the weight for you and it is a hell of a journey. Your head *has* to be in the game to succeed.

I agree, even just making a small change can make a huge difference and then when you see that difference it really spurs you on. It's not a race, or a competition. Just make a small change so that you're not feeling deprived, but your calorie intake is being decreased and then see how you get on.

Dave Ramsey has a saying - people modify their behaviors when the fear of staying the same is worse than the fear of change. I have been guilty of the same thing - it's so much easier to not work out and not watch what you eat, but there are always consequences of that (clothes not fitting well is my consequence). I hope you find the motivation you need to do this for yourself. At least you know when you're ready, there are people waiting to help you!

I completely agree with the above poster. I think that no matter what your fitness goals are, wheather you want to lose 2 lbs or 200lbs, you have to completely devote yourself to becoming healthy and making the right decisions. My weight goals were never huge and I was never at the "hatred" point when it came to my body, but I always felt I could be better. I tried unsuccesfully for a year to lose weight, I crash dieted, restricted carbs, walked an hour for 6 days a week, and didn't see results. It wasn't until I decided to educate myself on how the body works and each persons metabolism and body structure works that I saw results. Also once I got the support from MFP family and started seeing results (even a 1lb shift on the scale) and someone saying they were proud of me, made a huge difference in my outlook on life. Educate yourself and realize that you have a beautiful body and a wonderful piece of machinery that really responds to the fuel that you give it and the work that you put it thru.

I think one of the biggest misconceptions I had was that I had to kill myself in the gym and drastically limit my food intake. Once I switched to eating 5-6 small meals a day ( just divide up your MFP calorie limit by 6) and try to be physically active for about 25 minutes a day (this could be cleaning the house or my favorite WINDOW SHOPPING!) Also limit the amount of processed foods you eat (if you can't pronounce whats in it try to avoid it) and refined carbs (that means white flours, which I still struggle with) and drink a lot of green tea and water to boost metabolism.

You have a lot of support here and there is a weath of knowledge and inspiration out there to get you motivated. Good luck on your journey. Love your body and be confident that with a healthy lifestyle will come a more positive outlook on your life and body image.

Yep, same issues. I am only 5'4 and was close to 300. Trust me, I had gotten comfortable with being fat. I would crack jokes about myself. I was comfortable with my blubber. One day a friend of mine was talking about MFP, and I decided to check it out.. It is like a switch flipped in my brain and I decided that I didn't want to deal with the fat. I started to feel bad because I was comfortable making fun of myself. I think a switch may have to flip in your head before you can make your final decision. Let your friends help! We have like 7 friends on board with just calorie counting and exercise.. It motivates you when a friend is losing as well. Good luck to you!

I HAVE hit the "Enough is Enough" point.

Nope. You haven't. Not yet. Almost. But not yet.

You are in the mindset that you can diet for a couple of months and then return to your old habits and think the weight should stay off.

When you have truly had enough, you realize that you are going to have to change your lifestyle habits FOREVER. (No. That doesn't mean 100% of the time) That couch potato lazy is not an option. That being and staying healthy is one of your top priorities and you are going to do whatever it takes.

That's when you have had enough.

Honestly it's mostly mental. You have to make the choice and committment in your mind to do it and the rest will follow. Till you do that I don't know that it will happen. For me, there is no other option. I will not be a heavy mom. I want to be the active grandparent when my kids are older and married, etc. I don't want to put crap in my body. Heart disease is the #1 killer of women and it runs in my family. I will not be a statistic.

Once you make that choice then it's mostly diet followed by exercise. No one said it would be easy. It IS hard work, but the reward is worth it and it's not a short term thing anyway, but something you choose to do for the rest of your life. You have to keep challenging yourself. Make the change now because if you plan to have kids it will be even harder to get it done then.

Dave Ramsey has a saying - people modify their behaviors when the fear of staying the same is worse than the fear of change.

THIS! THIS! THIS! THIS!

I truly believe a light bulb has to go off. You can want to change until you are blue in the face. Want = Nothing.

I've talked to doctors, I've talked to dietitians, I've talked and talked and talked, I started talking after I read, googled, yahoo'd, webstered..... and here's my perfect example. Every single morning without fail....my alarm would go off at 5 am, and I would tell myself, today is the day I'm going to get on the treadmill this morning just for a little bit....then I hit snooze and go back to sleep. EVERY DAY for months....

The one day I talked to my life coach about my struggles and she said to me "Ok, I'm writing you a prescription...for 3 days this week you will get on the treadmill in the morning, then on Friday you text me and let me know how you did"

Guess what. She didn't yell, she didn't give me any crap.
I'd like to say my light bulb has gone off, but it's too early to tell.

Good Luck!

What are you afraid of? If you succeeded somewhat before in making the changes then you know you can do it. If you have hit the point where you have had enough and think you are in the right mindset, what are you afraid of? Are you afraid of change, failure, success... What is holding you back? Change isn't gonna happen on it's own. You have to do it if you want it to happen. No one can do it for you. The only thing standing in your way is you. So what are YOU afraid of?

What are you afraid of? If you succeeded somewhat before in making the changes then you know you can do it. If you have hit the point where you have had enough and think you are in the right mindset, what are you afraid of? Are you afraid of change, failure, success... What is holding you back? Change isn't gonna happen on it's own. You have to do it if you want it to happen. No one can do it for you. The only thing standing in your way is you. So what are YOU afraid of?

I think this hits the nail on the head. You appear to be scared of "failing" again. But if you don't treat this as a success or failure thing, you CANNOT FAIL. The only failure, is not trying. If you treat this as a gradual lifestyle change, every change you make is for the better, and every change is a success. If you make your goal to be healthier, not thinner, every food choice you make that is a better choice, every bit of exercise you do, is better than you were doing before. it's feeding your body better, and working your heart for better health and fitness.

I feel you! I'm 30 and 210 and 5'7 and I feel like a troll! I've never been successful at weight loss. I've just watched the numbers creep up over the years even though I'm really active. I've been exercising (not consistently) for years. I broke my arm ice skating a couple of years ago and gained 20 more pounds. I have been so discouraged, but I can't give up. I just can't. I'm now adding strength training to my routine of swimming. I am going to track my calories and be mindful of reducing the numbers. Hopefully, I can see results. Fingers crossed!

Your post makes me cry. I have done that over and over in my life. My weight gain was not quite as much, but I know the cycle. Work and drop the weight and then just get complacent and stop. It is not in my nature to want to exercise and count calories. I want to lay on the couch and eat what I want, however much of it I want. But, you and I both know you pay for those choices, the pay is gaining weight and getting unhealthy. You pay for the choice to get healthy too, the pay is eating well and exercise. So, either way you are going to pay, which habit do you want to pay for the most?

I'm 5ft2 and started last year at nearly 200lbs and now down to 165lbs with much more to go. I know what you mean and like you I certainly had a 'flip' point, but from that it took me a while to get into a new lifestyle. You need to find things you will enjoy. I find that setting myself challenges that seem ridiculous at the time really motivates me. When I set myself the challenge of running 5k it seemed like the most out-of-reach thing possible but I did it! Now I've set myself challenges for this year that seem crazy (cycle 150miles to see my Gran, do a sprint triathlon) but I know I will do it.

The time for me between 'flipping' and 'taking serious action' was taken up by reading on MFP basically. It gave me loads of ideas and information about how to do this right. Now I was serious about weight loss I needed tools, advice and ideas and it took me a few months to get this all straight in my head before I really got going on my journey.

If we can all do it, so can you.

I agree with what other posters have said about needing to hit the “enough is enough” point, that it’s a mental block not a physical one and that you need to find what motivates you. But I believe that you don’t have to just sit around and wait for the “enough is enough” point to just hit – I think you can work toward making that happen. I would suggest seeing a counselor to explore your motivations and fears. Sometimes that kind of guided introspection can bring to light roadblocks you are not consciously aware of.

I wish you the best on your journey! I know you can do it and believe you will!