So sad with what I saw today I wanted to cry

I was picking my son up from summer school today and I saw this woman walking (yea for her, right?). She had to be 400 lbs or better and you could see she was struggling with walking. She had that gait that you know is her struggling to walk, I know cause I've been there. I wanted to cry for her, for me, for everyone who's been there or is there now. I am so excited for where I am right now. There are so many out there saying your eating to low , your going to fail, you can't live on that, your heading toward an eating disorder...I say to you, I am fine, I have goal and I will reach it, in spite of you, but maybe just maybe because of you. I never want to go back to that person struggling to lose weight, struggling to walk down the street.

In my personal training days, I saw several individuals like this. I never felt sorry for them (nor did they want me to), but I felt an enormous amount of compassion for them. NONE of the other trainers wanted to help them ...... NONE. I met them where they were at and worked with them to achieve their goals. I really feel for these individuals, nor do I judge them. I can't imagine the daily physical and emotional battles they must face every day ..... the stares, the comments, being discouraged, feelings of shame, etc.

This woman was truly brave and I pray she will continue her quest to loose weight and live a healthy lifestyle.

I have met some incredible individuals while personal training. We all can learn to be more compassionate and non-judgmental.

Bottom line: We are all beautiful sons and daughters of God and should treat others as such.

Totally anecdata.

I lost around 115lbs on 700-800 a day and lots of excercise.

I now have serious intestinal issues, stomach issues, thyroid issues, along with other serious problems etc. I was healthier 'fatter' before I lost all the weight starvation mode then I was when I made it to 'skinny'

Then I gained it all back. Now I am losing it all the right way - moderation. I may not be anywhere near the 'perfect' diet - but losing it slowly while getting enough calories and adjusting to fill my nutritional needs as best as I can is how I am doing it now and it is going damn well.

I don't believe 1200 is a magic number, but I just don't wish to see someone fall apart the way I did after losing weight that way.

Thank you for sharing this. That took courage. I hope people can learn from your experience.

I agree, thank you for sharing :flowerforyou:

I agree with the past two posters. That took a lot of courage for you to say what you have struggled with. Those who say there is nothing wrong with starvation diets really need to do some research on the topic.

You are a living example of what starvation diets can do and I applaud you on going about it the right way now.

I think her weight loss plan is unhealthy. I don't think she's an idiot. It may be "clear" to you that I "think OP is because she doesn't agree", but I've personally struggled with anorexia/bulimia for years, and while my eating has had some very unhealthy aspects to it, I don't think of myself as an "idiot" for it. Nor do I think the OP is an "idiot". So if you want to put words like "idiot" in my mouth because it's so clear to you that I'm thinking it, perhaps you could change your perspective and try to understand that I'm speaking as a person who once had a diary that looked exactly like the OP's, who is now trying to repair a ruined metabolism, and not exactly thrilled with the idea of defending VLCD. I have no intention to call her names or to insult her intelligence. A person can be wrong without being stupid.

The OP admits that she has opened her diary in order to instigate arguments because she wants to defend her VLCD. She doesn't need you defending her.

Sad to say...but if you suffered from years of anorexia/bulimia then it seems more likely then not that you (not OP) are the one with an unhealthy perspective about weight and weight loss in general. Your condition is controllable but it is not curable...So since you needed to expose everything that you felt was unhealthy about OP's behavior....Maybe you would like to explain (in a healthy fashion)...How exactly a "supposedly" healthy person (recovering?) from anorexia/bulimia ends up once again trying to lose weight on an internet weight loss site? People who live in glass houses should not throw stones....LIVE AND LET LIVE!

Totally anecdata.

I lost around 115lbs on 700-800 a day and lots of excercise.

I now have serious intestinal issues, stomach issues, thyroid issues, along with other serious problems etc. I was healthier 'fatter' before I lost all the weight starvation mode then I was when I made it to 'skinny'

Then I gained it all back. Now I am losing it all the right way - moderation. I may not be anywhere near the 'perfect' diet - but losing it slowly while getting enough calories and adjusting to fill my nutritional needs as best as I can is how I am doing it now and it is going damn well.

I don't believe 1200 is a magic number, but I just don't wish to see someone fall apart the way I did after losing weight that way.

Thank you for sharing this! Hopefully it will be eye opening to those who want to lose weight the dangerous way.

I am going to hop on the judging train on this one. 700 calories is just not good for you. I can only speak from personal experience and I knew someone I say "KNEW" because she is dead now but I knew someone who starved herself. She started around 250 went to a 500-800 calorie diet was on it for about 9 months lost 115 lbs.

She attempted to eat around 1500 calories after she had lost the weight and she got VERY ill, really bad thyroid issues she ended up dying at 42 of a heart attack that the doctors contributed to a combination of several factors relating to her thyroid, her constant up and down dieting. She got cold sweats constantly leading up to it, blood pressure through the roof. Her doctors even diagnosed her with a eating disorder and tried to force her to counseling... She was on a handful of medication and on her last day on earth she suffered from a heart attack and stroke...

I am going to hop on the judging train on this one. 700 calories is just not good for you. I can only speak from personal experience and I knew someone I say "KNEW" because she is dead now but I knew someone who starved herself. She started around 250 went to a 500-800 calorie diet was on it for about 9 months lost 115 lbs.

She attempted to eat around 1500 calories after she had lost the weight and she got VERY ill, really bad thyroid issues she ended up dying at 42 of a heart attack that the doctors contributed to a combination of several factors relating to her thyroid, her constant up and down dieting. She got cold sweats constantly leading up to it, blood pressure through the roof. Her doctors even diagnosed her with a eating disorder and tried to force her to counseling... She was on a handful of medication and on her last day on earth she suffered from a heart attack and stroke...

You don't have to prove anything to anyone else. Just strive to make the best decisions for your health and think in the long term...and don't let your lifestyle choices be motivated by other people - for example, when you said you might continue eating 700 calories just to spite the naysayers.

I checked out your diary - since it's public - and I'm glad you are taking a multivitamin. You would be hard pressed to get the basic nutrients you need with the types and amounts of food you are consuming. Multivitamins are inferior when compared to the nutrients in foods, but they're definately better than nothing. I'm a little worried that you could be losing lean muscle on your current program and that's hard on your heart (your most important muscle), especially as you get older. But if your doctor says you're good to go, then just do your thing. I would try monitoring some of your other macronutrients, such as fiber and calcium, etc., just to see how balanced your diet is. Good luck! :flowerforyou:

I know exactly what you mean. My heart goes out to people I see struggling to move about or to get out of a seat. The highest my weight has been is 207 pounds. At that weight I struggled and was easily out of breath, so when I look at people carrying even more I just can't imagine the discomfort. Additionally, the negative effects on one's physical and mental health, causing a decrease in the quality of life. I pray I continue my journey to good heath and that more and more people do the same.