What Made You Quit the First Time and Start Again?

cspong
cspong Posts: 260 Member
edited December 18 in Motivation and Support
So, I've noticed a fair amount of people on here lost a bit of weight, stopped trying, gained it back and are on their second try.

I was wondering, what is it that made you stop? Was it gradual or sudden?

I'm hoping to use foresight and know some warning signs so I can really stick to my guns and see this through. My whole family is a bunch of "Fad Dieters" and when they don't see results right away they give up. I never want to be that person.

Absolutely no judgement! I'm proud of anyone who is trying! I just want to keep trying with you all and not give up! :D
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Replies

  • wbgolden
    wbgolden Posts: 2,066 Member
    which first time? there's been several. last first time it was because i hit a goal and got sloppy. one cheat meal turns into a day, turns into a week, turns into a month, etc.
  • entropy83
    entropy83 Posts: 172 Member
    Plateaus- but I'm there now and I plan to keep at this time until I figure out what to do
  • vsetter
    vsetter Posts: 558 Member
    I had a medical condition/surgery that required me to take 6 weeks off of exercise (all exercise). I never got back in the swing of things.
  • leslturn8
    leslturn8 Posts: 505 Member
    Failure lollll
    Sickness
    junk food is so yummy lol
    Laziness
    No room to work out
    Petrol to get to the gym
    Lack of self worth
    Clothes
    Energy....
    TODAY IS IM SO BLOODY HUNGRY!!!! but im being good.......this is day 2....of trial 449
  • amylynn96
    amylynn96 Posts: 114 Member
    I had lost 15 of the 30 i was after last yr i did awesome for months on end. i think mentally i was burnt out, i was a 2 workout a day 1,000 calorie burn a day A+ student at sticking to my diet chick ......depression got to me and i stopped trying, gained it all back and some and now im in a better place and i want it so badly ive done it once im stronger im smarter and more determined than ever. and i quit my part time job in a bakery, that helped haha
  • leslturn8
    leslturn8 Posts: 505 Member
    Failure lollll
    Sickness
    junk food is so yummy lol
    Laziness
    No room to work out
    Petrol to get to the gym
    Lack of self worth
    Clothes
    Energy....
    TODAY IS IM SO BLOODY HUNGRY!!!! but im being good.......this is day 2....of trial 449
    and seeing everyone else achieve and know that u tried and tried and got nowhere....
  • cspong
    cspong Posts: 260 Member
    i quit my part time job in a bakery, that helped haha

    Lmao!!
  • JDKD82199
    JDKD82199 Posts: 106 Member
    For me it has always been crash diets, I would lose weight rapidly and then I would be so tired of dieting as soon as I got to my goal weight I would go back to my old ways and gain it back within a couple of months. Never made it a lifestyle change.
  • ginamc04
    ginamc04 Posts: 113 Member
    I never knew if what I was doing was the right thing or not. I figured if the weight wasn't "falling off" (like I hear so many people say) I was doing something wrong and wasting my time. I tried personal trainers and every fad diet but nothing "worked" (because I quit too soon) It wasn't until I found P90X, was told what to do & when to do it (and what to eat) that it clicked. I know its going to take time to come off if I want it to stay off.

    Also, I can't miss workouts and I can't have cheat days. One turns to two into three, etc.

    Daily consistency + Support is what is working for me now.
  • amylynn96
    amylynn96 Posts: 114 Member
    i quit my part time job in a bakery, that helped haha

    Lmao!!

    Seriously started right before the holidays and it was awful everything was ridculously good. Eventually over the months u get so SICK of everything from looking at it everyday you dont want anything anymore......the bread however i was alwaaaaaaays sneaking me some bread....i love bread :(
  • TrishPretti
    TrishPretti Posts: 51 Member
    which first time? there's been several. last first time it was because i hit a goal and got sloppy. one cheat meal turns into a day, turns into a week, turns into a month, etc.


    THIS JUST ABOUT SUMS IT UP! Exactly what I did! Realized I wasn't where I wanted to be and got back in there
  • sleepytexan
    sleepytexan Posts: 3,138 Member
    Live a healthy lifestyle. Never quit. Ever.


    Many people quit "diets" because they believe they must starve to lose weight, or that they must entirely cut out foods that they love. Some people even cut out entire food groups or try to adhere to strict "diets" (eat 7 almonds, 1 hard boiled egg, 2 cups cabbage soup, etc. etc.).

    These people go hard at their chosen method, and they find that it is unsustainable, or that after a while, it doesn't work any more. Some people do this over and over and over and they still don't get it.

    Insanity might be making them quit.

    Insanity = doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.
  • obeseto13point1
    obeseto13point1 Posts: 144 Member
    Honestly it is a mental thing. When you stop seeing it as a race to a finish line but as a lifestyle that you are going to continue for the rest of your life, you won't gain it back. If you make changes that and stick with them you won't gain it back. That being said, in the past I have let things get away from me like tracking, and working out. This is the longest stretch I have ever been on of living a healthy lifestyle, (2+ years) and I continue to make create new goals and keep going.
  • bluefox9er
    bluefox9er Posts: 2,917 Member
    Hitting my goal was the worst thing that happened to me. I went from 240 lbs to 170 from April-sept last year and maintenance was an unmitigating disaster.I piled on 20 lbs from september to february .

    What am I doing different this time? Working out slightly less, but eating more. it swear, it's what you eat that balloons on the weight, not how much you work out. working out won't lose you the weight the same as good nutritional habits and portion control..but combination of diet+exercise = WIN
  • proudtexan71
    proudtexan71 Posts: 203 Member
    Simply put - I stop believing I could do it. Didn't have any support to tell me anything different. So, I changed the environment around me. Found support, here! I found my "happy"! I'm determined not to loose it again. : )
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    I did the Body for Life program once. In 12 weeks I dumped a bunch of fat, and got pretty fit. Everybody told me I looked great. I think it triggered some subconscious thing making me think that I was "done". So I fell off the exercise wagon, for a whole year. My eating was actually halfway decent, but as that year went on it went worse and worse.

    One day for lunch I had a big plate of steak fries. And you know that overeating feeling that happens sometimes? It stayed with me for over 24 hours. I just felt like a lazy fat fvck again. The next day I hit the treadmill. And like that *poof* I was back in business.

    Not planning on having that happen again. Because now I know, I will never be "done".
  • Elizabeth_C34
    Elizabeth_C34 Posts: 6,376 Member
    I got lazy. Twice. Got lazy with exercise. Made too many excuses for too many weeks. Got lazy with food. Was "cheating" 5 times per week. Just laziness.

    I also kinda "got used to being fat" if you can imagine that feeling.
  • Absidey
    Absidey Posts: 116 Member
    My first time on here, I was doing P90X and I broke my foot (not related to P90X) and had a really hard time getting back into it once it healed. Puttered around, returned to work after being at home with my daughter a year and a half, packed on 10 more pounds of stress... I did weight watchers for a bit, didn't see as much loss as I wanted, and here I am!
  • chrissymcmurray
    chrissymcmurray Posts: 19
    Last summer I lost 20lbs with MFP and a year later I'm 30lbs up starting all over again. I quit MFP because I reached my goal weight and instead of keeping up with it I fell back into my old habbits. I'm back on it now even more determind than I was last summer. I feel great when I eat better and I keep telling myself that I need to remember this feeling when I think I want to go back to eating junk all the time. I work crazy hours which make it harder to make good decicions but I learned that if I plan out what I'm going to eat BEFORE I get hungry I reduce the chance of me getting cravings for something that is going to ruin my calorie intake for the day. I hope this helps and good luck with your goals!
    *Chrissy*
  • KristenStone
    KristenStone Posts: 106 Member
    One word: Kolaches.


    Why I got back on? Need to eventually get me a husband eh? :) Oh yea, and my health. :laugh:
  • nikkiprickett
    nikkiprickett Posts: 412 Member
    My first time on here was last year, I was doing a weight loss challenge with someone and i had never counted cals before so I gave it a whirl, I was on for about two months? and the challenge was over, summer started and the horrible eating/drinking began again!!

    Just add a lot of supportive friends,
    stay active on here,
    and the MOST important one is DO THIS FOR A LIFESTYLE CHANGE, not just a diet...if you make it a lifetime commitment you'll never be waiting until it's over or wanting it to be! This keeps you from stopping when you meet goals, feel better etc, it motivates you to keep going and you don't have an excuse to stop:)
  • jadedone
    jadedone Posts: 2,446 Member
    Last time I made an attempt, it lasted a month. Good results. And then my schedule changed because I started aggressively job hunting, doing a side job and I was too busy.

    I realized I needed to learn to prioritize myself and my workouts. And stick to counting calories.

    Also, over the long term, I need to know my limits in terms of my favorite treats. I like to have pastries for breakfast. So I need o limit it to about 2X a week. So I try to do it only on the weekends. And on a day where I have worked out. I also have to work out what is the minimum level of success for me. For example, if I aim to go to the gym/exercise MWF and one weekend day. At the end of the week I need to do 4 workouts to be successful. So I try to do M-TH at the gym, so if I skip one, I'll still be on track to meet my goal of 4 workouts.

    The last thing for me, is to take advantage of doing a little bit. I tend to think, well if I only have 20 minutes to workout, and my schedule is an hour for today, it is pointless to do anything. So to combat that, I have been coming up with short, intense workouts (hello circuit training) to take advantage of those short windows, when my schedule is off.

    I have also picked up a few weights so I can at least do something at home, if I have a really busy work day and I can't get out to the gym.

    I have a couple of food rules.
    1. starchy carbs 2X a day only
    2. On a day of indulgences, make lunch or dinner protein and veggies only
    3. You can really counteract a bad day with dessert of fruit or fruit and greek yogurt to get in your missing nutrients
    4. Don't wait until "tomorrow" to make up for a bad meal, make up for it in your next meal

    I hope this helps. It is working for me so far, and I have actually made it to month 5 now. So everything is almost feeling like a habit.
  • FrostyFour
    FrostyFour Posts: 262
    I've tried to "diet" in the past but I didn't take it seriously and it never lasted more than a day or two. I was also only looking at calories, totally forgetting about things like sugar, fat, protein and sodium. I was only doing it because my abusive mother was calling me fat.

    This time, I'm doing it for ME. One day I realized I needed to do something, so I did the research and I just did what I had to do!
  • Natihilator
    Natihilator Posts: 1,778 Member
    Great topic!

    Things that made me quit diets in the past were that they were really too restrictive, and I had a mentality of "I can't eat a certain food ever again? Nope, can't do it, forget this" a few days or weeks into it. Restricting anything is a road to failure for me.

    Now I have the motivation to eat right and work out 6 days a week, and to be honest I don't know where it comes from. If I did, I'd bottle and sell it for millions :happy:
  • ThaiKaren
    ThaiKaren Posts: 341 Member
    I started, lost, gained then stopped more times than I care to remember. In fact today is another start day :-( I am the heaviest now that I've been for the last 2 years and I really must get to grips with the whole healthy lifestyle and exercise concept once and for all. Good luck with your journey x
  • zellagrrl
    zellagrrl Posts: 439
    ED. I got to my goal weight, but unhealthily. Instead of learning how to eat healthy, I learned how to not really eat. At my doctor's suggestion, I quit keeping track of everything, because I was obsessing over it and about half the weight crept back on due to not learning anything about eating emotionally.
  • AllyCatXandi
    AllyCatXandi Posts: 329 Member
    The first time, I lost 12 out of the 30lbs I aimed to get rid of. Then the pressures of the final year of school seriously started to get to me. I was still doing sport up to four times a week, but was eating a lot more junk food and just pretty much gave up trying to think about anything but academics.

    What made me start up again was the fact that I could be classified as 'slightly overweight', and did not like at all the way I looked. Furthermore, I wish to eventually work in quite a physically demanding field, and thus needed to have adequate fitness levels.
  • manda1002
    manda1002 Posts: 178 Member
    The first time I don't think I was really mentally ready for it, I kept getting sick (still do *cry*) and was told my youngest needs to be tested for autism and it made me sad instead of motivating me to become a better me so I can help him be the best he can be.

    Then I actually >looked< at myself in the mirror one morning and didn't know who was looking back. Made me sad for the future me, and my family.

    So here I am. Taking it slower than I want to, but I'm still doing it. That's more than most people I know can say, and it means a lot to me that I'm doing it for myself for once.
  • AimeeLynn90
    AimeeLynn90 Posts: 94
    Mine was a medical condition. Fortunately its been my only quit since I've been on here and it was only for a month of M.I.A. Unfortunately though it set me back a month when even though I was put on bed rest, I totally should of at least counted calories cause at the time I was at about 7 pounds lost, and I gained 10 during that month. Totally set me back but it's made me more determined than ever to finish and reach my goal!
  • Phoenix_Angel
    Phoenix_Angel Posts: 68
    I've had to quit a diet because the person I was with was unsupportive. I was just starting to get happy with how I looked and he was one to go on long business trips. Well, he took some time off and I once saw him throw a full stick of butter into a meal for two. I literally cried. He said I was being ridiculous and continued to fatten me up. :( I gave up. I didn't seriously get back into dieting till January this year. My boyfriend now is super supportive and is becoming healthy with me. He's lost over 20 lbs and I've lost 17 :) so having supportive friends makes a huge difference.
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