Size 18 and Happy - Anyone Else Not Wanting to Lose Weight?”

I understand what you mean OP. I am around 16/18 but before having a family was always a 12. I am 5ft 7 too and carry it well because of my height. My blood pressure has always been low (I get an annual health check at my local health centre) and have had a chronic health issue since I have been in my late teens. On paper other aspects of my health indicates I am well. I reckon I have three stones to lose to get back to how I was years ago but due to various stresses in my life I am not really motivated to do anything serious about it at the moment. I eat healthily and don't drink or smoke which is at least a positive.

I was like this for a bit and enjoyed feeling free to eat whatever I wanted and genuinely didn’t care. I love food! Then got too big and lost it all years ago and I’ve had to control myself every day since. I do miss eating whatever the hell I wanted. It’s no-ones fucking business and they shouldn’t be saying anything to you.

The reason your friends feel so sick and burpy and disgusting is likely that they’re eating shit while on WLI and their dosage is too high.

I haven’t had any side effects, eat two normal sized meals a day. No burping, no toilet issues, no nausea, no stomach pain. Slight lightheaded feeling occasionally. I even ate a whole pizza on a rare meal out last week and enjoyed it.

Best way, Best not to start anything until you want to, and can afford it. Do what makes you happy. 😉

Now I see this just for the WLI bashing thread it was always intended to be.

I know numerous people on the jabs and other than when starting out this does not ring true for any of them.

I also don’t know a single person - myself included - who was happier at a size 18 than a size 10 and who didn’t want to lose the weight when they were an 18.

I do however know a couple of overweight people who are for various reasons refusing to try the jabs, and are being really unpleasant and shitty about anyone who has listened to weight losing them.

so my only ‘vice’ is food I guess.

what kind of daily diet do you have @Dancingflamingos ?

I can eat on WLI. I've never had a single side effect. I've lost 3 and a half stone.

The injection gives me willpower and the ability to stick to 1200 calories a day.

There's nothing wrong with being happy at whatever weight you are @Dancingflamingos . However that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to become a more healthy weight though.

A cautionary tale - I was like you up until just over a year ago. Didn't care at all that I was overweight, I thought I still looked good, DP was happy with the way I looked, I was fairly fit and active, cycled to work every day, could do a 15 mile hike easily, played rugby, didn't get puffed out easily. Yeah, I could have lost weight, but I liked food too much, and just didn't have the willpower.

And then one day I was rubbing one eye, and noticed I had a little blank spot in the other eye (actually it looked like pac-man). Assumed it was a floater, but it didn't go away in a couple of weeks, so went to the opticians, then the doctor. Turned out I was type 2 diabetic. Not even pre-diabetic, but proper full blown diabetic, blood sugar levels through the roof.

Long story short, I got put on Metformin, lost 40lbs in 6 months, came back off the drugs and my blood sugar levels have been normal since last March.

Got a few little blank spots in the other eye before I managed that though. And they're there for ever. They're not noticeable most of the time, if I'm just looking around. They are if I'm reading though, I've got missing letters jumping around in my peripheral vision. And it could get worse at any time. Even though my blood sugar levels are normal now, there's still a chance those weakened blood vessels could sustain more damage.

I spent years being happy with my weight, blissfully ignoring the unseen damage it was doing to me. It took something I could actually see to make me realise how badly I'd fucked up.

There's nothing to say you can't choose to remain fat, that's a valid choice and up to you.

I would just be aware that the way you feel now, healthy, won't always be the case, often with obesity related health conditions as you get older they start to show up, for example years of your joints carrying around so much excess weight can lead to knee problems, and by the time it presents a lot of the damage has been done.

It's also the case that obese parents are more likely to find their children become obese. If you lost weight then you'd be a healthier role model for your son, he is already equating being fat with something positive, and will no doubt have noticed your eating/movement habits.

You might be fine with being obese, can you honestly say that you'd be completely fine with your child growing up obese?

It's a choice you can make but don't lose sight of the reasons why it is important to maintain a healthy weight, it's not really about whether strangers smile at you or you enjoy fashion. It's about your life, the longevity of it, how many good quality years you have, being a higher risk of obesity-related illnesses, and the impact on your son.

Completely. I am a size 12/14. Lots of my friend who are similar/slightly smaller are constantly talking about their size and weight. I exercise (running and weight training). I eat healthily generally whilst also enjoying regular treats. I’m very happy the way I am.

Op has anyone in Rl actually suggested you go on WLI? Let alone multiple people

That supposes that people don’t do these things
i wear jeans, skirts, shorts, spin classes, play netball etc etc, I don’t feel my weight has held me back but I’ve never been below a size 12/14 in my adult life (5ft 11)

Can't you just enjoy the fact that you are happy in your own skin? Honestly, it sounds as if you are looking for things to worry about.

Just because lots of people are happier being thinner doesn't mean you should feel that way too, you have your own mind!

Have they told you what does they are on? This isn’t the usual experience of WLI, it’s the one people have who still don’t take responsibility for their wellbeing and just try to suppress their appetite to lose as much as they can as fast as they can. There really is another side to WLI, one that supports a healthy lifestyle. Sure it doesn’t work for all and some people will get side effects even at low doses, but the vast majority of stories about awful side effects and barely eating come from irresponsible use.

My friend was a size 18 for 30 years. She always maintained she was perfectly happy. She dressed well, always looked lovely although she was careful about what she could wear.

A year ago, she started on mounjaro. She’s lost 50 pounds to date and looks fucking sensational. She’s also doing things she’d decided were behind her (at only 52) - she’s bike riding, horse riding and playing tennis. She’s also ditched her ‘fat’ uniform and is wearing jeans, shorts and dresses and loving clothes again. It’s like a light has been switched on inside her.

No-one could convince me they’re happier fat than thin.

@DancingflamingosYour friends are taking too high a dose or not managing it properly. I haven’t had any side effects since the first couple of weeks but I’ve increased the dose slowly as I’m not interested in a quick fix and I’m not going to risk damaging my health by not eating. I’m almost 6 months in and I’m only now increasing to 7.5mg. It is perfectly possible to use the WLIs as a tool to help with losing weight combined with exercise and healthy eating.

Two stone isn’t a big weightloss in 6 months compared to the results some have had. But I feel fitter, healthier, happier and more confident.

My Mum feels that way on them too. She’s been a constant yo-yo dieter my whole life. Same height as me, about 15 stone at her absolute heaviest and about 9 stone at her lightest when I was a child but she looked extremely sick and was extremely sick mentally at the time.

She’s tried pretty much every diet plan out there - back and forth to Weight Watchers, Slimming World, Atkins, 5:2, slim fast, special K, cabbage soup at her lowest… What she’s never ever done is stick to exercise and I have no idea why. She thinks if she just starves herself for a few weeks all will be fine.

Now she’s using WLI as a quick fix and yes she just doesn’t feel like eating, feels sick most of the time, can only stomach extremely small portions. Why does she torture herself when she could just start running or swimming or going to the gym?

That’s how I lost the weight. No crap fad diets. Stopped eating junk, lowered my portions and started running and lifting weights! Kept it off.

I don’t think you’re truly comfortable because you’ve thought of 1000 reasons to justify being comfortable. It strikes me as the lady protesting too much…

I’m the same height as you and an hourglass. At my heaviest I was a size 20 and I was 7 stone overweight. I’d say I was easily 5-6 stone overweight as a size 18. I’d hasten to guess you must also be at least 5 stone overweight as a size 18. That isn’t healthy, whichever way you want to dress it up.

Being slim is not important in itself of course, but I think that all adults, except the elderly or those with an injury or physical disability, should be fit enough to carry heavy shopping up a few flights of stairs or easily sprint a couple hundred metres for the bus, for example.

Also, presumably the risk of sustaining injuries, as well as the impact of an injury once you have one, increase the heavier you are. So that's another consideration.

What are you OP? 36? That's young enough for weight not to have had an impact on your health. You may find that as you get older that changes, and being lighter would help you to avoid joint pains, some of the effects of peri/menopause, and lower your risk of other illnesses. So I think its probably something to keep under review.
A woman's life is about more than how sexually attractive she looks and feels, and how well she fits the stereotype of cuddly mum/grandma. It's about quality of life well into old age and being a healthy weight makes a big difference.

Absolutely. I started IF and exercising and watching what I ate at 45 and lost 2 stone in 6 months. Kept that weight for 4 years. Menopause hits put it straight back on so resumed my old good habits. Very very slow loss now at 51.

As someone whose weight has been up and down throughout my adult life, and now in my 50s, believe me I know it gets harder as you age - and this is certainly something the OP should bear in mind.

If you are happy as you are good for you. WLI are something to bear in mind if you gain weight and become unhappy with your weight.

I'm 5'8 and have lost 2 stone with Mounjaro going from 14st5 to 12st5. I have stayed on the injection for a year now. I feel happier, healthier and more able to do my physically active nightshirts.

I had also been gaining half a stone each year before the jabs, so I think without them I would be around 15 stone by now. I have been able to maintain this weightloss pretty effortlessly (on the jabs) and as a 47 year old night shift worker with a special needs child I am very grateful for the help the jab gives me.

What you have said about your friend not eating OP is very concerning. I pretty much never miss a meal - I don't want to lose hair and bone mass. I would like to lose more weight (I am BMI 27 now I think) but I'm aiming for around a stone over the next year. I will calorie track to get a small calorie deficit. If someone is unable to eat on the jab they should reduce their dose.

If you’re happy with you, then that’s all it needs to be.

What others may think is irrelevant.

We all need to love ourselves. 👍