Shocked about the reality of weight

[Throughtheroof]

I've just been discussing (my) weight with DP.
I am over weight, have been since childhood in various degrees. Have Type 2 Diabetes, high blood pressure which I am sure is a direct result of never being a healthy weight.

I was saying how much different it must feel (physically) for people not overweight. I was walking up a hill at the time!

I said to DP really I need to lose about 4 stone and I was trying to imagine what it would be like without that 4 stone!

We worked out that 1 stone is just over 6 big bags of sugar.
So 4 stone is about 24 bags.

I cannot get my head around this. I could not pick up 24 bags of sugar. And yet I drag just that around with me every day. (Well, more obviously!).
No wonder I have aches and pains.

I feel shocked and upset that I have never tried to do anything about it.

The question is, will this change anything for me?

I’ve lost 5 stone and honestly feel so much lighter. I didn’t realise how tired I was, I didn’t realise how hard hills were. I could do with losing another 5 though, I wish I could get my head in the game

Blimey @BunnyChowLover that's amazing though. Well done.

@BunnyChowLover 5 stone is amazing!! Well done

On the other hand, if you decide to lose weight and you might have felt disheartened that you’ve only lost a pound one week etc, you know what a pound actually feels like!! Small steps, OP, good luck.

It will make a difference. I have terrible knees and at any point above about 10st7, they start to hurt a lot more and walking up hill feels like a real slog. I'm a stone less than that, now, and so much more comfortable (the rest of me is still decrepit, mind🙄)

It is a mine-blowing thing, isn't it? I've struggled with my weight on and off. I definitely feel better when I'm lighter, things are just so much easier.

There are lots of diets and eating plans discussed here, it's just a question of finding what works for you and what will be doable long-term. For me, it's intermittent fasting - stop eating at 4pm, nothing until 8am the next day. That works for me but have recently plateaued so I'm now doing that in concert with MyFitnessPal. It's changed a lot since you can scan barcodes so that your macros/nutrients are automatically logged.

I've been trying to up my protein for a while and it's only since doing MFP that I've discovered that sushi isn't the protein hit I thought it must be!

On the plus side, you're walking up hills... so whatever weight you are, that's definitely positive and your fitness will only improve if you keep doing that.

Op, 4 actual bin bags of sugar? Omg.

'Big bags' not bin bags!
But still a hell of a lot!

Good point about losing a pound @lickenchugget

OP I do have good news at least...dragging round those 24 bags means you probably have really strong muscles. Losing weight if that's your question will change everything - most importantly your health, in major ways!

Yes it is quite shocking when you change your thinking to that. I’m pregnant just now and starting to struggle a bit with the extra weight (not the point of your post I know) and I know pregnancy does add extra pressure to the lungs but my point being I have been much heavier than I am now in the past and lost a lot of weight. It shocks me that I was so much heavier and didn’t even realise I didn’t feel particularly great because it went on gradually.

I’m the same Op. I’m nearly 15 stone at 5ft 4. I’m 57. 25 years ago I was 9 stone.
I am literally carrying a primary school child around with me. My knees ache. I just really struggle with the vicious circle of I need to exercise to lose weight but I struggle to exercise because of my weight.

Post pregnancy I lost 8kg. I remember getting DS weighed, and he was about that weight. I was tired walking up the stairs with him later that day and thought 'this is why it was such an effort before'! Sadly I have put the weight back on, so back to carrying that extra baby of weight around with me.

This absolutely can change OP if you want it, and if you get the support you really need. It won’t happen overnight, set yourself realistic goals. Your partner needs to be onside too. Healthy meals at home, (you don’t have to be hungry on a diet), an exercise buddy, and MH support. Joining slimming world or similar may help - you then have a supportive community to help you and you are held accountable to stick to it each week. A healthier you is waiting for you, and you will feel brilliant when you get there! Best of luck! I’s love to see you back here in a year’s time giving advice to someone else.

I’m pregnant right now and feeling pretty uncomfortable. I haven’t weighted myself at all during my pregnancy mainly because I am terrified of owning up to how much weight I’ve likely gained. I’m not worrying though and will work to get the weight off once baby is born. I lost 3st before falling pregnant on slimming world and it worked amazingly for me. Could you join a similar group for the support? I found that having to be weighed weekly kept me on track

Ive just managed to lose a stone in 3 weeks using Saxenda, its been amazing. I feel so much better after loosing just one stone, have one or two more to go. Might be worth trying.

Given the way you describe your life and weight I seriously suggest reading 'Why we Eat (Too Much) before embarking on any diets.

it's categorically not a diet book and it explains why many women keep getting bigger and bigger despite sporadically trying to lose weight.

I'm much more conscious of what I'm eating as a result of reading it and six months the very small changes I have made as a result have led to very slow but sustainable weight loss. It's crept off in the same way it crept on if that make sense?

Brilliant and Keep going. I've lost 5 stone in 4 months.

I’ve lost over 11 stone since November -that’s a whole another person -it’s mental to think I was carrying that 24/7.
And yes, my life has been transformed

Another way to look at it is for every extra lb of fat your body makes another mile of blood vessels , probably capillaries .
Thats a lot more distance your heart has to push that blood !

I had always been thin (size 8) till my 30s , I was 8st 12lb before I had DS , then I lost weight to just under 9st to get pg with DD

Now mid 50s menopausal I'm carrying the weight ( I was about 11st 12ib but I've lost a stone due to ill health)

I've lost 4 stones and I am still surprised at the ease I can do things now. Small goings like sitting cross-legged, to big things like walking for hours without feeling knackered. I worked it out in bags of spuds and then couldn't lift them all in the supermarket. I have 2 more stones to go and am really looking forward to getting there.

Think in terms of lbs of butter - makes me stop and think!

Such a good analogy - thank you for the inspiration.

That is amazing! Any tips?!

Amazing! Well done. How did you do that?