This was a great thread ...

I'd love to hear from others as to what go them started, its very encouraging. For me it was seeing pictures of myself on vacation with my bf (who actually became my fiance on that trip). I have been gaining weight steadily for about 2 years after always being thin. I didnt realize how bad it was till I saw pictures of myself.

On the road to recovery

I finally grew tired at always looking at pretty clothes, but nothing never fit me right if I could even pull it on at all. I'm so tired of my frumpy size 12 clothes and always having to buy large.

My doctor said lose weight or die.

I was talking to my mom one day on the phone and she really tore into me about my weight. The next day I tried on my favorite dress and couldn't even get it down over my chest. That was it - low carb and reading lots of posts on this board have made such a difference.

dashykathy

I admit I am nervous writing on this topic, but here goes. I know I am not fat (anymore). I am nearly 5'9 and weigh 127. I'm out of shape and wanted to lose the ten pounds that I gained in the past few months. Before anyone gets angry with me... I know what it feels like to have people make hateful remarks. Back in high school it started (ok that was over 20 years ago), but still, it sinks in and never lets go. I was heavy then and the guys would call me "Hagar" after the comic-strip and always teased me about the size of my pants. Trying to get a look at the tag on my Levi's. It was devastating at that age. I carried that criticism and it became the focus of my own self-perception. I lost the weight and became too thin when I graduated. I kept it off for a few years and then the yo-yoing began in earnest. Over the last 20 years I have gone up and down 30+ lbs. When my husband and I first started dating, I was thin. But, on a trip to the beach he was walking behind me and said "you know you could have a nice body if you worked out". I was crushed and fell back into feeling bad about myself. The dieting and working out started again. Later when I told him how that made me feel, he said he absolutely never meant it that way. He said he only said it because he thought I had a great frame and could really maximize it if I wanted, but he thought I looked great. I wish he would have said that at the time, but he didn't realize it hurt me. It is disturbingly easy to wreck my self-esteem with a few words.
So, I know I am not overweight, but I feel like it. I just want to feel good and have more energy.
I'm sorry if I've offended anyone by going on like this. I just wanted everyone to know we can be more psychologically damaged by our own self-perception than the insensitive people who build themselves up by tearing others down.
To hell with them, we should be proud of who we are.

Mine was mostly because my triglycerides would not go down from the way I was eating. My doctor put me on Niaspan and that was so horrible, it felt like someone pouring gasoline over my skin and lighting a match. And my skin would be bright red, then sting, and finally itch for hours. I told him I couldn't take any more of that. But of course I did want to get my triglycerides down, since most of my family has type II diabetes. But the low fat diet was wreaking havoc, taking fat out , adding sugar, eat more cereals, etc.
So far, low carb is great for my trigs and cholesterol as well. Besides the fact that I am slimming down after giving up all hope that I ever could.

Well, how I got re-started on Atkins was first, I went to one of my co-workers weddings, and saw how great she looked, she had lost 30lb for her wedding and I almost caved in when I saw her! She look amazing! I never thought that she could do it and she did! Well, that made me depressed, so I ate some more and then I went to see my dermatologist, cause I have been losing my hair pretty bad ( I have alopecia areata, where my white cells attack my hair follicules and I lose my hair) and he said if I kept eating the way I was, that first my hair would all fall out and the second was that I have Type II diabetes! So, that changed everything! That was just recently, I made that change again and I plan on sticking to it, I plan on getting married within the next year or so, and I want to look great for my wedding and my hudband!

Hey Erinleigh!
Did you ever make it to Florida for the softball tourney?

My most recent catalyst that caused me to try Atkin's was- I was telling my co-worker that my pants were cutting off my circulation at the middle, and she said "Do what I do- Put a rubber band around your button hole and then you have some room!"
I realized I REALLY did not want to be adjusting my clothes with rubber bands!
So here I am!
-Liese

One thing that did trigger it for me was gossip between the neighbors...
"Can you beleive she is pregnant again"

My health was the main reason tho but those words ticked me off soemthing fierce!

Well, for me I had gained back all the weight I had already lost 3 times, plus some. I went to the Dr and for the first time he was straight with me, my blood work was BAD. High sugar, cholesterol, and my weight had finally tipped over 300lbs. He actually used the term pre-diabetic, OUCH!!! 3 years before I was 200 lbs, but because of the low fat diet I ended up with gall stones. After the surgery I started to balloon up again.

I have been on Atkins for 3 years now and was actually down to 215 but I had to get a new job, the old company was sold off and moved to Pitts PA. I could no longer commute to work on a bicycle and had gained 30 lbs back.

I have to admit, it was not just the bicycle, I have had to travel alot and my eating has gone astray. I have been diligent for a couple of months now but the weight is not budging. I have cut out carbs, beer and been trying to work out more. I very rarely see color changes on the "Stick" (keto-stick, get your mind out of the gutter).

I am happy to find this site and read it daily to keep inspired. I have been stalled before and eventually it breaks away, but it still sucks while I am in the midst of it.

I love this thread been reading it for an hour lol
I am gonna bring her back up.
I was awakened by a doctor in 2000 who told me I was headed for diabetes like my father and he recommended Atkins to me. God bless him. I did it..wrong way...but I did lose but went 0 carb and only lasted 2 months. I went on and off over 3 year period always giving up when I would have a stall. Flash forward to end of April 2005 when I am sitting in my new doctors office being told I am now diabetic. Yup, I have played around with up and down weight til tada my worst fear had come true.
I was now 202lbs of disgusting, busting out of my size 18s and now diabetic for life. I told him I WILL LOSE WEIGHT. He said Rhonda you've been telling me that since last November I don't beleive you anymore. I just cried and cried as he explained to me how he doesn't want to have to someday add me to a tramsplant list, or cut off my feet. YIKES!!!
On May first I went back on plan and haven't looked back. I can wear a size 9 jrs now, my blood sugar is controlled by diet alone and my cholestrol has gone from 201 down to 124 since May.
I want to eventually lose 25 more but man was I motivated by that scarey doctor lol.
I am so glad he took a hard realistic line with me. He may have saved my life.

To those of you who have mentioned hurtful things your kids have said...mine did, too, 40 pounds ago...

And just the other day I mentioned something "when I was fat", and my son (14) said, "I don't really remember what you looked like then..."

YES!!!

Thanks for bringing the thread back up! I've had lots of moments that SHOULD have made me go on a 40-day fast, but unfortunately the remarks/"lightbulb moments" didn't get to me. But a few days ago, when I was thinking about how huge my clothes were, how uncomfortable I was, etc. etc. and so forth, a little voice said, "You know, if you'd lost TEN POUNDS A YEAR every year since 1998, the first time you did Atkins, you'd have lost 80 pounds by now" that something.....snapped, if not exactly clicked. Dang. I coulda weighed a mere 218 pounds -- a weight, I'd note, that a goodly number of the people who wrote on this thread listed as their breaking point. (Interesting, isn't it, that the "I can't stand it anymore!" weights on this thread range from about 150 to 350 pounds? But I digress.)

diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. low self esteem.