To ask you to tell me why I should lose weight

[MarylinMonhoe]

I hate my weight. I'm so fat since having a baby. I feel shit, I'm uncomfortable, tired, self-conscious. I'm not myself. After six months I have finally decided to do something about it and start a low-carb plan on Wednesday, have ordered multivitamins to help with my energy and plan on drinking a lot more water and exercising more. BUT I really don't want to slip. So, I was wondering if it was possible for people to post comments telling me why I should lose weight, the benefits or even roasting me, so that I can come back and read this thread when I am lacking determination.

Please, be as mean as possible.

Don't try and do it fast! The vast majority of diets fail, not because they don't work, but because people can't stick to them. The fastest way to fail is to make it too hard by trying to lose weight too fast. Introduce manageable changes, and adapt your routine/environment to make it easier to avoid the foods or situations that test your resolve.

You don't need people to be mean to you, it sounds like you're doing that yourself. Why should you lose weight? Because you'll feel better, live longer and be able to be there and enjoy life with your dc more. You'll also feel proud of yourself for having done it.

You'll feel better about yourself, you'll be able to keep up with your kids.
You might not die younger.

Have you seen BIWI’s bootcamp?

MarylinMonhoe don't beat yourself up! From experience I can assure you you'll be more sucessful at losing weight if youre feeling pisitive about yourself.

So positive things - your body works! It produced your lovely little boy only six months ago!

You are doing something brilliant and responsible for yourself and your son - you are going to lose weight so that you'll be a positive role model. Losing weight will give you the energy you'll need for his toddler years, and the good health to see him into adulthood.

You're going to eat healthily and exercise and he'll grow up seeing you do that, and will be highly likely to do the same - fantastic role modelling.

All the walks you go on with the pram/ push chair/ sling will be fantastic for his development - fresh air and sensory stimulation. Good for his eyes too.

Your mental health will benefit from exercise, fresh air and good, healthy, unprocessed food and you'll be a happier, funnier, more patient person to have around, snd you'll enjoy life more.

I was 18.5 stone in July. I've lost 30lb since then. The first couple of stone may well come off quickly if you just cut right down on refined sugar and processed carbs. Then you will lose slowly but steadily. Give yourself a year to lose about 5 stone and get back to your pre pregnancy weight, make that your goal initially.

Don't be hard on yourself - if you have a day on which you make poor choices it doesn't matter. What matters is that you don't slide into a spiral of self hatred and low self esteem. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, remind yourself that its a marathon not a sprint and make good choices again from the moment you catch yourself. You can reset and restart at any second - one slip, or a bad day, really doesn't change anything as long as you get back on track.

Making the decision to improve your health means you're a responsible, positive person - own that.

That’s not really how loosing weight works though is it. You think your going to drop stones or pounds without slipping up once? Not likely. Even fit and healthy people eat rubbish now and again.

What you need to accept before you start that this is a long run, you will slip up or indulge now and then, the main thing is preparing how your going to handle that situation and then continue with losinng weight, plan how you won’t give up when you fall, that’s key.

One of my big reasons for losing weight is the fear of diabetes, which reduces your life expectancy by an average of 10 years.

Vitamin pills will leave you absolutely starving you don't need them for energy yet.
I've a small appetite but i feel famished like I could eat a horse when I start new vitamins.

Why ?

Because carrying around a lot less weight will make everything you do on a daily basis physically easier.

You won't spend your time in shops being poked in the eye by coathangers/other clothes/ shop fittings whilst you search at the back of the rail for the largest size I may be the only person afflicted by this scenario

We are going into Winter, if you get on it now , you will have a new body for Spring and Summer

I gained a lot of weight over a period of 10 years for a lot of reasons.
I have lost (most) of it now.
The reasons I had were:
less % of serious illness as I age (I want to be around for my kids)
increased mobility and ability to play with them
and the bit about being in their photos - that is poignant!

but you will know why you want to do it for you.
It's a long slow daily thing. You will slip, and that is FINE
you just get back on the next day or as soon as you can
I agree that you need to plan how you won't give up when you fall
you can do this xxx

I was 14st after having my daughter approx 18 months ago and have lost 3st low carbing since then.

You know all the health reasons why you should lose weight. I wont bore you with those.

What i will say is that being able to walk into almost any clothes shop and being able to find clothes in your size is a good feeling. No more rummaging through racks trying to find something in your size and hoping it will actually fit. No more limiting yourself to the few places that you know might do something in your size in a style that is remotely flattering.

Realistically it will take a year to shift all of the weight. But you'll look and feel better after a two stone loss. I'm hovering at 14 stone (from 17) , because I'm back in a size 14 and my mobility and energy is as good as it ever was. My motivation now is a decent wool type winter coat. I'd stopped buying expensive coats because I was 'losing weight' and it 'wasn't worth it'.

I'm on a weight loss forum and what's useful is seeing how much weight I'd lose if I kept going. So 2.5lb a week will be a two stone weight loss by Christmas. With a bit of exercise, good nutrition/self care, it will look like more.

My main motivation is to go swimming with my grandchildren. My weight gain is recent and I can't come to terms with it.

It's a case of, get over the weight, or do something about it. If you can't get over it, you end up living a half life.

I felt similar to you after I had DS (although admittedly the reason I was overweight wasn't pregnancy, it was before that!)

I had a bit of an epiphany and decided I want a really active life for DS, I want to be able to go up hills and on bike rides and to play football or whatever in the park and I want to be able to do all that - I want to have a fit and healthy body.

I also didn't want to be self-conscious all the time. My mum never took us swimming EVER as she was 'too fat' (her words) to wear a swimming costume.

I'm now very close to 2.5stone lost, target weight is losing three stone and I plan to get there by the end of the year.

I feel much better about myself in photos and the flesh and I am so much fitter, getting off the floor is so much easier!

It hasn't been easy and it has been slow - but I'm determined to lose the weight and to keep it off.

Your health will be better.

Your every day life will be better because you'll be better able to chase round after your DC, play games with them, enjoy going to the park/beach with them.
You will look and feel better.
Do it now because it becomes so much more difficult as you get older (voice of bitter experience).

Many years ago, my Mum got some photos back (when you had to take them to be developed) and one was very unflattering and made her look very fat. She was appalled but had two more printed. She stuck one on the fridge, and two on the cupboards where the biscuits/crisps, etc were stored. She also put a more flattering picture next to them, showing a time when she was slimmer. She felt this helped to remind her what she needed to do when she was tempted to go and get a snack. It didn't always work but I would say about 75% of the time. Combined with smaller meal portions and less snacking she returned, slowly, to her former weight, but she got there.

So you don't die younger, you want more time with your children ?

As you lose the weight, even if it’s just half a pound a week, you’ll feel better and better. And prouder and prouder of yourself. It’s sometimes a slog but that feeling when you look back on the weight lost is amazing!

@MarylinMonhoe

So I’ve just weighed myself... holy sh*t I’m 17 stone. I’m only 5’5. I was 12 stone when I got pregnant, went up to 15 stone during pregnancy and have gained since having him in April. I’m disgusted. How fast can I lose seven stone? Ugh :(

I just did the NHS BMI for the height/weight given, and it says a BMI of 39.9

It said a healthy weight range for a woman of 5'5'' is 7stone 13 lbs to
10 stone 10lbs .

You surely can lose that unhealthy weight.... Moving around will be much easier!

Try lifting a sack of coal that weighs 25 kilos..It is bloody heavy.

You are currently heaving about two sacks of coal about with you ALL THE TIME...

That will put huge strain on joints..

You can do it !

I am a stone over ideal weight {BMI 24} and lifting a bucket of water with 7 litres of water in made me realise the extra weight I was lugging about. {I have arthritic knee and any extra weight is not good}

Look up visceral fat scans as much as fat effects the outside of the body crashing your confidence it is far worse on the inside your body encased organs.

@Emeraldshamrock

Look up visceral fat scans as much as fat effects the outside of the body crashing your confidence it is far worse on the inside your body encased organs.

Yes...It is scary.

It's only hard if you make it hard. If you just make small changes you will be surprised at how easy it actually is and look back and think "why didn't I just do that before?"

All you need is five meals. Five meals at 400 calories a portion. Cook double so you can eat it for dinner and then lunch the next day. That should keep you going for a month until you get bored. Then find another 5 and keep going like that.

Allow yourself one amazing takeaway or treat a week. So when you really fancy something you know you just have to wait until Saturday.

Find movement you enjoy and do it. A 20 minute work out via Youtube can be done 3 times a day and get you 6000 steps.

In 6 months you could be happier with your weight.

If you're feeling very brave watch Autopsy on an obese woman on youtube. It's extremely educational and should provide you with all the motivation you need.

I was up to 15st 6lbs after my second DC before something snapped. I was just sick to death of being miserable, uncomfortable, and not having anything to wear. I started low carb and I'm down to 12st 13lbs now. Goal weight is 10st so I've still got a way to go, but I already feel so much better. I'm back into a lot of my old clothes, I can run round after my DCs, and now I'm actually asking DH to take pics of me with them (rather than doing my usual ninja dodges to get out of the shot )

You can do it OP! Once the first bit of weight comes off it will spur you on!

Because you know losing weight is better for your health and your child needs a healthy mum. Parents are a main role model, that alone makes me exercise, eat well etc as I want them to copy good habits as they grow up.

Being mean to yourself or asking other people to be mean to you will never help! The key is to value yourself as much as you value other people. Will you feed your child a crap diet so that they get fat? No! Because you value your child and care about them and want them to have good health. Try and think of yourself in the same way .

Just wanted to update on here. I’m on day three of eating low carb and dairy I’m down 2lbs! Obviously won’t be weighing every day and it’s teeny but I’m feeling motivated :)