To ask if any of you have ever properly gone for it in terms of diet and fitness? What were the results?

[Winetime1981]

Has anyone really dedicated themselves to diet and exercise for any length of time? Was it life changing? Did it improve your health in any measurable way? I'm really interested in those who've managed it as I really haven't

I've lost 4 stone in just over a year. By reducing calories to 1200 a day and working out 5 days a week (including weight training, pilates and spin) I still treat myself every now and again but boy do I look forward to it and enjoy it!

My skin has cleared up, I sleep better, I've had no headaches and mostly I'm no longer a fatty! I was truly in denial, squishing into size 16s when now I measure myself against clothing charts I was a 20!

I've lost 14 inches from around my waist, I still have about 20lbs to my target weight but I know that excercise will continue to be part of my lifestyle now.

This comes from honestly the laziest greedy pig there ever was! The only downside is I've lost a few shite 'friends' who clearly enjoyed having a fat pal to make them laugh and ultimately feel better about their own unfit bodies!

I lost just over 3 stone due to illness and am trying desperately to keep it coming off. After getting better I did put a bit back on but that was down to starting to eat again after eating virtually nothing for a month. I now walk daily and I do find it a struggle some days - my default position is bone idle but I'm trying and I will stick with it.

Kato that's fab! Well done - and you'll know yourself you're far better off without the fake friends.

I cannot stress enough how much exercise helps my depression. I hated antidepressants, horrible things, and I get a much better effect from exercise (though I know some of it is down to feeling in control). It also helps DH - when he's being grumpy or stroppy I send him for a run and he comes back in a better mood.

When I started dieting I was 31 and on drugs to control my mood and BP. I saw 40 odd years stretching in front of me putting up with side effects, having more and more medication thrown at the problem. I chose not to have that life!

Hotel your post really hit a nerve with me. I beat Pnd twice using exercise. The change in my mood following exercise was dramatic and remarkable. It cured me of my depression. Sadly I am in total unable to do anything mode, even go for a walk, and my mood is slipping again. Having read your post I've decided to go for a walk tomorrow and get back to the best anti depressant ever - exercise.

Bravo bakingnovice - will you pm me after you've done it and tell me how it went? We can get back on an even keel together x

Baking mine is PND too - well, started after DS and hasn't really resolved. I have had another DD though and it's gotten no worse, which is good.

Hotel and Baking you've inspired me to keep running. I've been out a few times since DD was born a month ago (naughty I know as I've not had six week check, but I feel great physically). I've never gone down AD route (petrified of side effects) so it's good to hear from someone who has tried both ADs and exercise. Yippee for exercise!

when I first started teaching Bodypump, I grabbed all the substitute classes I could get, teaching sometimes 3 per day. I went from average, slightly chubby to bloody amazing - 6-pack, no fat, beautiful muscle tone. Could wear an old sack and look great.

Unfortunately due to several life changes, thyroid surgery and pregnancy not looking like that any more, but will get back to proper training again. It was fabulous.

I lost stone before christmas by limiting calories and exercise 4 times a wekk and I felt a hell of a lot better for it.

Then it all went to pot because of my back but after weeks of physio, I''m just about to be discharged and will start again.

The most amazing thing is that I only put 4lbs on in 5 months, so I know that when I do get down to my target I will be able to maintain it

winetime is there a parkrun near you? It's a great motivator for running IMO. A free 5k race on a Saturday morning has to be a positive event for everyone, right

Slimming World and Couch to 5K, lost 2.5 stone before I went back to work after mat leave at the end of last year. I still run, always have done, but less so now. I have realised that with work/small DC/long commute, the way for me to control my weight is by diet, so I do Slimming World eating on work days and but am less strict on home days.

Yes there is! Just round the corner! I shall def give it a go if I manage to palm off my two DCs for an hour

In 2009 went to Rosemary Conley classes, lost 2 stone in 6 months and stayed the same ever since but changed my eating habits for life and go running.

Started Slimming World this January, have lost 3 stone since, still on it and intending to stay on it for another 2.5/3 stone at least. I have given myself a year to reach my target because I was fed up of being overweight and generally feeling like shite about the way I looked.

Have completely changed the way I and DH eat, cook pretty much from scratch, lots of fruit and veg. I love being 3 stone lighter, I still look pretty fat (to me at least). I have tried to incorporate some proper, structured excercise as well, with mixed results. I tried the 30 day shred that a lot of people on mn rave about, buggered up my knees good and proper for at leasta week. Basically if you have a weak pelvic floor coupled with knackered knees maybe not the best workout dvd.

What an inspiring thread! I have been super-fit at a few points in my life; at one point I was doing astanga yoga 6x weekly and looked AMAZING. But I was basically stil a student then, and as life has got busier I've increasingly struggled to fit that much exercise into my life both time and energy-wise.

I've decided to stop being a porker though. As of this month I've started the 5:2 and am running 10-15 miles a week again. I'm already noticing the difference. I'll report back in a couple of months on whether it all sticks...

HazleNutt I've been meaning to go to a weekly BodyPump class for months, but keep putting it off. Your post has inspired me to stop making excuses and just get on with it. I did it in another lifetime years ago when it first came to the UK and the results were really quick and impressive.

I have variously been anorexic, bulimic, obsessed with the gym (to the point of panic if it was closed for the day/cancelling social engagements in order to go etc), AND the total opposite, overeating and doing no exercise at all.

Now I can honestly say I have a healthy attitude and approach to diet and fitness. I spent considerable time reading up on genuine food facts, separating the shite from the truth and educating myself about my own body's needs. I tried lots of sports until I found ones I actually enjoyed doing, then kept doing them until I wasn't embarrassingly crap at them anymore.

After leaving my XH 6 months ago, I have been sorting out various aspects of my life, my appearance/fitness/health being one of them. I'm taking it really slowly because I want this to last and be a permanent lifestyle change rather than a quick fix and I don't want any saggy bits or wrinkles. So far so good. It's working without me feeling like I'm having to put in much effort IYSWIM