What finally made you make, and more importantly stick to, healthy food choices?

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I keep failing to lose weight

I will eat healthier for a while then old habits creep back in (I am a sugar addict)

What finally made things click & made you stick to a healthy diet?

A diagnosis of diabetes. I literally don't eat anything sweet now & honestly I don't miss it all that much. I have probably lost about 2 stone & still going without any effort at all. Having followed all the different diets my whole adult life (Slimming World in particular I think should be banned) I now eat completely different foods including nuts, butter, cheese, avocados (hence my username) & other things that I never ate before because they were portrayed as high in fat & bad for you. I also eat fewer carbs & healthier ones, so whereas before I would have a 100g portion of white pasta I now have 80g of wholemeal. Read Labels- when you start to look in to it sugar is hidden in so many things. Mayonnaise & other condiments, yoghurt, savoury products. Just yesterday I had some Asda tomato soup for lunch & didn't like the taste of it as it was far too sweet. I checked the ingredients & it had added sugar (the Tesco version I usually have doesn't). I also eat a lot of eggs. Having changed how I eat I am almost never hungry now. Make sure you get enough sleep too as if you are tired you will crave bad foods (I do realise this might be easier said than done as it is something I struggle with).

Gallstones!

At the start of menopause I found myself weak, nauseous, tired and trembling at midnight. So bad DH thought I needed to go to emergency.
Had my blood tested and found out I had many problems including dangerously low iron, Vit D, thyroid problems and pre- diabetes. All of which I’d been ignoring for the sake of family and work.

It took crisis levels of bad health for me to change. A shock, both mental and physical, that I might spend the next 20 years like that if I didn’t see to it MYSELF.

The doctor took care of iron, vit D and thyroid and advised a low-carb diet. I went full keto with 16:8 fasting (in other words skip breakfast to avoid blood sugar spikes) and turned myself around. Sugar cravings went after 2 weeks. More energy and mental sharpness. Lost 12 kg.
That was 6 years ago. I’ve reintroduced some things like oats for breakfast, 70% black chocolate and 60gr of pasta if I’m making it for others. I allow myself to celebrate Christmas and eat out, and when I start to feel sluggish I know I’ve gone too far.
My metabolism has changed for the better. I have my bloods done for pre diabetes every 6 months (all OK) and I’m still gently losing weight*, which isn’t common for women in menopause.

• I wish I’d known that in my 30s when I accepted weight gain as almost inevitable!

Waking up feeling awful every day and being tired all day

I cut down on sugar and feel better for it

Like @AvocadoSurprise - a diabetes diagnosis. I wish I hadn't let things get to that stage, but (even though it wasn't entirely unexpected) it gave me a massive kick up the arse. Cut down carbs & sugar, much smaller portions, no alcohol, more exercise...lost 8 stone & now more or less a 'normal' weight.
Combined with this...peri-menopause, finding myself depressed after drinking (hence the giving up alcohol) and finally facing up to the fact that poor choices would affect my health and I wasn't going to get away with it just because I didn't feel tired or ill.

Getting in touch with just how bad sugar (and processed/refined carbs generally) are for me. Now I choose what to eat according to how I'll feel after I have eaten.

As part of an (unrelated) study, I wore a continuous glucose monitor for a fortnight. That got me in touch with what was actually happening to my blood sugar when I feel lethargic after some meals and energised and ready for anything after others.

It is also to do with the feeling that I am a mature and capable adult who knows what my body wants and makes a point to provide that as an act of self care. So much better than the guilt associated with over indulging in so called treats which are hardly even food never mind a real treat.

Treating myself well sets up a positive spiral of self esteem. I do occasionally eat sugar and just expect and suffer through the cravings it sets up for more sugar, way beyond my body's nutritional needs. Avoiding having that voice in my head steaming eat sugar is a very strong motivator for me.

Any weight loss (and there has been a lot) is a mere side effect albeit a very welcome one.

Eating out with others is easy too. Creme in my coffee is bliss