Why aren’t you obese?

[Spottyphonecase24]

A bit of a weird one but I have just got off a zoom call with my therapist. We were talking about my weight (I am obese).

Why isn’t everyone else obese? What stops you? I don’t seem to have an off button. I remember going from a 10 to a 12 and thinking that’s it I’m not going to get any bigger but I did and now I am in a size 24 and they are getting a bit tight. I’ve read lots about how people have their light bulb moment to lose weight and that has not happened to me, or maybe it has and I’ve ignored it.

What stops you eating a tub of icecream or picking up a large bar of chocolate instead of a small one or one bag of crisps instead of a family size bag?

I honestly don’t know the reasons why people don’t eat more. Is it will power, feeling full?

Lots of exercise - I run or hike 6 days a week - long hikes of several hours and runs of minimum 5 miles, with the ocasional half marathon. Also I don't eat dinner in the evening, just a bit of fruit. I have regular treats ie meals out and have pudding or chocs one day on a weekend. I've maintained the same weight for about 20 years - I used to be a fattie! I am now slightly bigger than I would ideally like, a size 10 rather than an 8 but don't really care.

I kinda use my parent as role model of how I don't want to end up. My dad was seriously overweight, smoked, lots of salt, ate crap away from home (industrial estate burger van), drove everywhere. Dropped dead of heart attack at 58. I was 20 yrs old at the time and size 8.

I am now size 12 and 45 yrs old. A little overweight for my height but deffo not obese. I have little interest in food to be honest. I don't overeat, don't have takeaway at home, love my veg, chicken, fish. Don't like cake, don't have alcohol, don't have junk in house really. Love milk chocolate though in small quantities. Too much and I suffer with headache.

I'm very busy. I tend to find I snack if I'm bored but don't think about food when I'm busy. Active, outdoors lifestyle and tend to cook fresh (Gousto) and limit takeaways and junk to once a week or fortnight. Also to be honest good genes and metabolism!

I really like to feel good and healthy. If I overeat I feel horrible. If I eat a lot of unhealthy food I feel horrible. If I eat well and go for long walks I feel great and I look good. It's as simple as that. I eat 1 or 2 biscuits and it feels like enough. It's not about will power at all. I just don't want to eat more. I have no desire for them. I can't imagine how it feels to eat a whole packet of biscuits. Not very nice, I assume.

Just don’t buy the snack you like I cannot be trusted around cheesecake. So if I’m craving it, I’ll get the wee tiny individual ones. Or the muller cheese cake yogurts are nice alternative
Bloody cheesecake…
If you know you’ll eat a packet of delicious chocolate hobnobs with a cup of tea - just don’t buy them.
Milk: change to skimmed, no fizzy juice, drink plenty water , slow cooker your dinners for the week and freeze so your not tempted to bung on crap , count your steps , low cal wine- only drink at weekends , Freddos for a quick chocolate fix , look at the calories on food and surprise yourself
If you’re going to be social at the weekend- be good during the week
I’m loosing 3 + stone after my first DC in the Spring- slow and steady wins the race. If I have a bad day or week, I just do better the next time.

Don’t accept this is your life. Do you eat for comfort? I can bite my nails to nothing when I’m anxious
Best of luck OP

I was obese... 19stone at 5ft 3 at my heaviest. I am now 11 stone and still have a bit more to go. What I think changed for me was I found a passion, I now grow my own food and flowers etc, I am setting up an Environmental Education Centre and I only eat when my stomach literally rumbles because my head is so full of ideas of what I want to do and where I want to get to that I don't remember to. It's like I've found my creative outlet and that has filled up the "hunger". I walk in nature everyday, just a gentle walk really noticing everything around me not so I can't breathe! I'm not a paragon of virtue though I do like a drink and sweet treats but I don't do it all the time. Go gentle and find what fills you up emotionally. Good luck

For years I was 7 1/2 stone and underweight for my height. I was often really tired and after I'd done a shop was so exhausted that I needed the sugar rush from a large mars bar to give me the energy to unpack the shopping. The dr said there was nothing wrong with me. Then I discovered I had coeliac disease and food wasn't staying in me (Sorry. TMI).Sadly, the constant snacking on mars bars had compounded my sweet tooth. I'm a good weight for my height now but could easily binge on sweet things and put on pounds in next to no time. If I open the tub of Christmas Quality Street in my pantry I will quickly eat at least 7 in as many minutes. So it's a constant battle. But I don't want to get too big for my jeans. And I certainly don't want to end up looking like my unfavourite gran - as wide as she was high!

I have a binge once a fortnight. I have a massive bar of chocolate and a massive packet of crisps.
The more bad food you eat, the more you crave so the best thing to do for me, is to avoid it.
I count calories and make sure I burn enough off a week.

I'd be really interested to see a week of food for the thin people who say they eat loads of unhealthy food but dont gain weight. I just don't understand it scientifically... I'm convinced they're actually not eating much or they're really active.

I’m not really active but, although I eat unhealthy food a lot, I still stick within my calorie target for the majority of the time. I log it all on My Fitness Pal. I used to be fatter.

Today I had a sharing bag of M& M’s for my dinner. I also had crisps and cake with my sandwich at lunch and a couple of kitkats so I am 800 calories over target today. The rest of the time I eat within my maintenance calories of 1700 calories a day. It means I can have the occasional over eat and it not make a difference, if I did it every day I wouldn’t be 8 stone 8 lbs. I do have crisps and a home made square of cake everyday though.

I do eat ice cream & chocolate but I don't eat a whole tub of ice cream or a family sized chocolate bar in one go as it would make me feel physically sick.

For me, I just don’t want to let myself get obese.

I was able to maintain being slim easily up to my 30’s and could eat loads of crap continually, but the minute I hit 40 a few years ago I found it wasn’t so easy.

Before the first lockdown I’d already started putting on weight, then when lockdown hit I was drinking loads more wine, eating more shite and before I knew I’d put 2.5 stone on. I’ve never weighed that much in my entire life.

I felt uncomfortable, none of my clothes fit and I had to buy all new summer stuff because my old summer clothes were too small. My legs felt heavier, I just felt heavy. I looked in the mirror and I just didn’t like what I saw. It really got me down.

So I joined Weight Watchers and started doing my gym classes at home instead. Got myself back down to my usual weight and I felt so much better in myself, because I kind of felt back to normal me if that makes sense? I felt like the me I was used to seeing in the mirror.

So it’s made me a lot more conscious of what I’m eating. I still eat crisps, chocolate, sweets, drink wine etc but if I go overboard one day I try and reign it in for the next few days because I don’t want to end up back at that weight I went up to. And it’s bloody easy to put that weight on at 44!

It’s been quite the eye opener for me. Being so used to eating what I wanted all my life, to suddenly having to be more mindful about it. It’s pretty shit really this ageing malarkey!

For me (not skinny but ‚normal‘ BMI ), it’s a mixture of things. I know that I can’t resist crisps. In the country where I live they pretty much only come in family bags. Yes, I will eat a whole bag but only every few weeks/ months. Afterwards I will feel guilty and have an upset stomach which puts me off for a while. Ice cream is a treat in our family. This summer, we have gone through several boxes but I’m not sure we had any last year. I try not to buy things that I know I have difficulty resisting very often. As a child, chocolate was a birthday/Christmas/Easter treat which was eked out as long as possible. I can’t imagine eating a whole bar at once although my dh has no problem doing so.

I love food and especially cakes, ice cream or pizza and got myself from a size 10 to a 16. I realised that if I keep myself busy I don't have time to eat, so try to do as much as I can outdoors or around the house. Another thing that works for me to keep me away from eating is sex.

I am smack bang in the middle of the healthy weight range. I've had a couple of blips with pregnancy and I put a few kilos on during the first lockdown (which I've now lost) but mostly I manage to maintain a steady weight.

I don't stress if I've eaten a bit more than I should one day, I just make sure I don't do it every day, and balance it out with upping physical activity or reducing my intake a little (not hugely) on other days. I don't feel I deprive myself, as I do eat what I enjoy, but I just make sure I don't always do it.

I also don't mind feeling hunger. It's just a feeling, it doesn't last forever, nothing bad is going to happen if I feel a bit hungry every now and again. I find I tend to delay meals (especially lunch) until I'm actually feeling hungry - I don't eat in anticipation of avoiding hunger, or because the clock says I should.

I try to walk everywhere rather than drive (not always possible if I'm ferrying kids around to multiple drop offs!) but I prefer to walk if I can. I also play sport once or twice a week, and if I have a week off, I usually do an exercise class to make up for the break.

What stops you eating a tub of icecream or picking up a large bar of chocolate instead of a small one or one bag of crisps instead of a family size bag?

1.i dont buy it and have it in the house
2.guilt, lots of

1. Mindful eating, rather than while watching netflix

Also, if i do lose weight, the joy of fitting in clothes surpasses the momentary joy of chocolate... It's a matter of connecting the two in my brain.

I just don’t eat rubbish - I don’t need it. I did gain weight during pregnancy and afterwards, but changed my ways and cut out processed foods with added sugar. I eat a clean fresh diet now, I snack on berries, nuts or olives. I drink wine, but in moderation.
I also love running and run about 40km a week as well as walking a lot. I wouldn’t be as fast if I gained weight, so that motivates me, but to be honest, I’m not really tempted by sweets or biscuits.

I eat a lot of fruit and veg, do eat some crisps and chocolate as in the snack box at work. But rarely have biscuits / chocolate / crisps in the house. If my clothes get tight I eat less for a few days a week until they fit again. And I weight myself regularly.

I’ve always been slightly underweight. My BMI is about 17/18 and I haven’t really gained much weight since my teens! I have 2 children and regular periods and def not eating disordered.

I’ve always had everything in moderation. I do eat chocolate, crisps, ice cream, chips. I have something bad everyday, but equally I do eat lots of healthy stuff. If I was at home alone for a day I would probably just have porridge for breakfast, then fruit, soup for lunch and a dinner with lots of veggies. Would probably have a treat or two as well but it wouldn’t be a whole pack of biscuits, just one or two. When I’m out with friends and family I tend to eat more than if I’m alone. I’ve never felt the need to eat a whole tub of ice cream or big bar of chocolate, just doesn’t seem to appeal to me! I don’t like feeling too full.

I’m a very active person. I do 10-15000 steps daily (work and chasing after 2 small children!). Always tidying and cleaning and sometimes I do forget to eat as I’m focused on jobs and other stuff. I also tend to go to bed quite early so by the time I’ve put the children to bed I don’t really have much time to indulge! Usually just watch 1 programme with a snack and then head to bed. I eat at 5.30pm with my children.

Oh but I do scoff whole 500ml tubs of Waitrose 1 ice-cream or whole M&S family trifles or a 3 pack of Magnums or a pk of Viscount biscuits, strips of 6 iced finger buns and yes, 3 large M&S apple turnovers from their bakery.
Not ALL that at once, but devouring each of the items mentioned at one sitting, usually watching MAFS.
I write my weight in a notebook every week. Weight, BMI and body fat.
From say, 17-50 I stayed at a size 12 then moved up to a 14. I was quite happy as I still fitted comfortably in the others I had as most were laws 12/14.
In summer of 2020 I had moved to a 16 and 178 kg so decided to buy a weighted hula-hoop, a pair of 3kg hand weights and a skipping rope. My bike got more airings and I only eat 2 meals a day on 5 days, at 10.30am and 6.30pm.
I only have 1 smoothie on the other two days and just water, pressed juice or the occasional glass of milk. No food and less exercise on those days.
On the 5 eating days in the morning about 06.30, I have a glass of boiled water with 1/2 a squeezed lemon, go for a bike ride while roads aren't busy and do some stretching exercises when I get home. Nothing drastic. Have brekkie - porridge, blueberries and a whole sliced medium banana with a small drizzle of honey plus whole milk (usually M&S gold top)
Nothing but water or pressed juices to drink (not from concentrate) and no eating until 6-6.30 which might be home-made veggie stir-fry (I bought a Wok) or baked potato plus beans/ cheese or drained tinned tuna plus a big salad or quiche, or omelette with spinach or fresh food with veggies. I don't eat meat of any sort or shellfish or drink alcohol anyway so they are not temptations. Everything is home-made. I might have a smoothie for breakfast with a combo of apple pear banana raspberries blueberries spinach kale yogurt and a drizzle of honey. My cupboards and fridge are empty of anything other than the food I eat every day and I buy fresh 4 times a week. Dairy is important for bone health in later life so I have cheese and a FEW grapes or figs for pudding. No bread. I miss it and miss my coffee plus the 2-3 sugars but needs must.
You have to be strong willed and note your weight regularly. It gives you a boost to see the digits dropping.

I'm now 64kg = 10st 8lbs which is less than I weighed in my 20s. I can now wear the size 12 and size 14 Per Una bootcut jeans I've had for about 30+ years. No more muffin top and had to buy slightly smaller bras.
Don't go drastic as it shows in your face. I'm happy with anything up to 11 stone. Learn the weight that suits you but please don't think that the occasional binge will be ok if you eat less the next day. Stick to a plan and you CAN do it.
Good luck 🍀💐 and chill. Don't get anxious. Your body won't like it at first but it does adapt quite quickly.

I find my best tool is to weigh myself every day. Naturally I go a bit up and down but overall it makes me feel I am controlling my diet. I very rarely eat junk food, only usually when I go out for meals with friends and sadly I try not to go too often as they can all get away with burger and chips and dessert and not put on an ounce. Don't try to do too much at once, cut things out gradually. Certainly don't have alcohol, that's full of useless calories certainly no diet drinks as they feed your cravings for sweet things. I really only drink tea and water. I know it sounds horrible but frankly I am at a point now where it's just normal and I don't think about it.There's a lot you can do, but do it very slowly so the weight stays off. It's a constant struggle and I hate myself but not as much as I did before losing a stone.

NB, fruit juice wherever it comes from is full of sugar.

I can now wear the size 12 and size 14 Per Una bootcut jeans I've had for about 30+ years

While this is impressive I’d strongly urge you to burn the bootcut per una jeans lest the fashion police come looking for you

Food hangovers are evil.
If you eat lots of something naughty it's not special anymore.
Small plates help
Crisps in a bowl
Photo on fridge
Good chocolate, brake into bits. One bit per day.
Wear shorts in house. Sounds stupid but try.
Plate marked up into portions.
Lot and lots of veg.
Every morning tell yourself your beautiful and you will take care of YOU!
Good look sweetie, remember one pound at a time, if you fall its not the end, just start again.

I was a size 12 until I was in my forties, stayed that size after five children and then I met someone who didn’t care he was obese so I thought why should I care? I adopted his bad habits and rose from ten stone to fifteen. My moment was finding out I was prediabetic and now I am eating a low GI diet and have lost half a stone so far, but it’s not easy. I am also working out three times a week.

Wear shorts in house. Sounds stupid but try.

What’s the thinking behind this?