What would losing XX lbs. mean to you???

[Ottawa]

What would losing 20 lbs. (or any other target) mean to you???

The following list is an edited list from a short article in Men's Health on what it means to lose 20 lbs.. We all have different targets and I thought that we could post some observations that we have. Niobe's post on sinking in the pool got me thinking about this (see # 11) and I'm sure that we all have some things we could add. I kept 10 from the article, added Niobe's and we can continue from there.

1. Because you whine that you need to. Have you ever been wrong about anything?
2. Twenty pounds of warm human fat can refill every bottle in an empty case of beer, with enough left over to fill your blender.
3. Its not scaling Everest or writing the great American novel. You can do it in your spare time.
4. It’s the difference between being thought of as jolly or witty.
5. Decreased: your chances of developing heart disease, prostate cancer, diabetes, sleep apnea, depression, back pain, impotence, gallstones, joint problems, high blood pressure, low sperm counts, and an impressive collection of prescription-drug bottles.
6. Holy Cow!!! . . . I can see some abs!
7. Research shows that since you'll have less weight propelling you into the windshield, you'll also have less risk of dying when your car has an accident
8. Every time you pick up a 20-pound dumbbell, you'll remember, that used to be you.
9. More pull-ups or push-ups, because there's less to pull/push up.
10. In our society, people respect weight loss. Even if you do nothing cool or interesting or memorable for the rest of your life, you'll have done that.
11. When I exhale in the pool, I sink. (Niobe the pirate)
12. ... next ...

[SherryJ]

WOW, Randy... my thoughts were on this exact question as I was walking this morning! I like us being on the same wavelength! :)

I've been doing some "soul searching" lately... and, yes, have come to the conclusion that "losing weight won't cure all my woes"... For years, I've said "bah-humbug" to the "what's eating you makes you gain/keep weight"... but, lately, I've been wondering! I'm finally comfortable with ME, I know WHO I am, and like me... but, STILL, I want to become more healthy, and more active...

What WILL be the good of it then? My plan is to run circles around my boys! :D (Instead of saying, "Mama's too tired for that today..." BLECK!!!) I also will have the added satisfaction of being COMFORTABLE in the nude... and, will tremendously enjoy the look on Mr. Wonderful's face when I reflect that attitude as well! :D :p :D

As I was walking, I was FEELING muscles in my legs... instead of wondering if they were still there! :razz:

Oh, let's see... let me think about this one...

Sherry

[Improper_Username]

Being able to wear my slender husband's jeans again!

[Ottawa]

These are so great that I'm just going to add these in so we can see them all as we go.

1. Because you whine that you need to. Have you ever been wrong about anything?
2. Twenty pounds of warm human fat can refill every bottle in an empty case of beer, with enough left over to fill your blender.
3. Its not scaling Everest or writing the great American novel. You can do it in your spare time.
4. It’s the difference between being thought of as jolly or witty.
5. Decreased: your chances of developing heart disease, prostate cancer, diabetes, sleep apnea, depression, back pain, impotence, gallstones, joint problems, high blood pressure, low sperm counts, and an impressive collection of prescription-drug bottles.
6. Holy Cow!!! . . . I can see some abs!
7. Research shows that since you'll have less weight propelling you into the windshield, you'll also have less risk of dying when your car has an accident
8. Every time you pick up a 20-pound dumbbell, you'll remember, that used to be you.
9. More pull-ups or push-ups, because there's less to pull/push up.
10. In our society, people respect weight loss. Even if you do nothing cool or interesting or memorable for the rest of your life, you'll have done that.
11. When I exhale in the pool, I sink.
12. Run circles around my kids.
13. Be comfortable in the nude.
14. Being able to wear my slender husband's jeans again!



I found that number 10 a little disturbing, yet true. "In our society, people respect weight loss. Even if you do nothing cool or interesting or memorable for the rest of your life, you'll have done that."

Although I've always been approachable, I find little things relating to this are definitely true. You get more respect and your ideas carry more weight as a healthy person. They shouldn't but I've noticed that healthy people get more respect when presenting thoughts/ideas.
Sherry, I glad that we are on the same wavelength. What am I thinking now???:razz:

[Billie]

Great post Randy, thanks so much!

For me it would be taking charge of my health and being a good role model for my kids and family.

[SherryJ]

Sherry, I glad that we are on the same wavelength. What am I thinking now???

That I STILL can be a "PP Hottie" by August! (How'd I do?!?!?!)

I'm workin' on it!!! I found a "before" pic from last August... made me shudder! But, then, I got excited about what I'd wear for THIS August's picture, LOL!

Sherry

[Ottawa]

Right on the money Ma'am.:)

[SherryJ]

YES!!!

And, you're grinnin' now, aren't you? :p

Sherry

[Donna7]

"Even if you do nothing cool or interesting or memorable for the rest of your life, you'll have done that."
That's an interesting concept. Just last night I was reading on another BB a poll of interesting, fun, unusual things people have done. My life looked pretty boring compared to all the international adventures, monumental feats, and interesting lives other people have had! But how many people can say "I've lost 100 pounds"? That should make the list of cool stuff! Well, not on my list yet, but maybe someday...

Losing weight for me is so much more than how I look...with diabetes, the stakes are immediately higher. Like keeping my eyesight to see my youngest daughter (now 9) walk down the aisle someday...keeping my kidneys so I won't have to be tied to dialysis and a slow death like my uncle...keeping my legs so I can walk around the Rockies. Very sobering stuff, when I think of it this way! Not to mention the other perks, like being able to slide into a booth at a restaurant without seeing if the table will move first! :paranoid:

Donna

[Missy]

I'd just like to first blend in with the crowd, and be a "regular" fat girl. :o

But, until it sunk into me about these health issues a month ago, WOW did that finally make me ACCEPT this as a way of life!

Right now, to be honest with you...I can barely IMAGINE...or allow myself to imagine being "freed up"..and what it's going to feel like.

I just want to be proud of myself...and know that I went against every thought in my mind to achieve what I want the most.

[cmcole]

. You get more respect and your ideas carry more weight as a healthy person. They shouldn't but I've noticed that healthy people get more respect when presenting thoughts/ideas.


Really. Strange, but true.
As a large person, I could be ignored, but now people seem to want my opinion on things. Doesn't make sense on one plane, but on the other, perhaps I've become more outgoing, (hopefully, not opinionated) and self-assured?

One negative - I need to wear more layers in the winter, as I get colder with less upholstery around the body:lol:

On the plus side, I can actually move and even run without feeling like my lungs are going to fall out with the effort.

[Ottawa]

What would losing XX lbs. mean to you???

1. Because you whine that you need to. Have you ever been wrong about anything?
2. Twenty pounds of warm human fat can refill every bottle in an empty case of beer, with enough left over to fill your blender.
3. Its not scaling Everest or writing the great American novel. You can do it in your spare time.
4. It’s the difference between being thought of as jolly or witty.
5. Decreased: your chances of developing heart disease, prostate cancer, diabetes, sleep apnea, depression, back pain, impotence, gallstones, joint problems, high blood pressure, low sperm counts, and an impressive collection of prescription-drug bottles.
6. Holy Cow!!! . . . I can see some abs!
7. Research shows that since you'll have less weight propelling you into the windshield, you'll also have less risk of dying when your car has an accident
8. Every time you pick up a 20-pound dumbbell, you'll remember, that used to be you.
9. More pull-ups or push-ups, because there's less to pull/push up.
10. In our society, people respect weight loss. Even if you do nothing cool or interesting or memorable for the rest of your life, you'll have done that.
11. When I exhale in the pool, I sink.
12. Run circles around my kids.
13. Be comfortable in the nude.
14. Being able to wear my slender husband's jeans again!
15. Taking charge of my health.
16. Being a good role model for my kids and family.
17. Keeping my eyesight.
18. Keeping my kidneys so I won't have to be tied to dialysis.
19. Keeping my legs so I can walk around the Rockies.
20. Being able to slide into a booth at a restaurant without seeing if the table will move first!
21. I just want to be proud of myself.
22. Move and even run without feeling like my lungs are going to fall out.
23. Take part in more activities that I used to just watch.
24. I would have a wider array of clothing available to me in the stores.

[gitfiddle]

Randy, I used to have a whole list of things that would change. One of them was that I would be able to fit comfortably in the strange, tight chairs that are attached to the customer tables at Taco Bell. Now I can, but I never go because there's nothing there I would eat. Now that's ironic!:rolleyes:

Here's one you can use: I would have a wider array of clothing available to me in the stores and not have to shop so hard for large sizes that aren't made for women who are 6'4". :jawDrop:

[Ottawa]

Carol,
I know what you mean, and it saves money as well since the larger sizes are limited in choice and much more expensive. I used to shop the 2 "Big and Tall" stores in town and would have to pay about 50% more when going above a 42" waist. The same with neck sizes in dress shirts.
A big treat for me was moving down to a point where I could begin buying clothes at regular stores. Costco carries amazing lines of clothes and I can buy them there. I had always like the Cool Max line of shirts/tops but they never came in 2X and now I wear Large.
I added your line above.

[Niobe]

LOL, "Niobe the pirate". :D

Another thing it'll mean for me is not being consistently aware of being the fattest person in both my families (who mean well and try to help me but more often than not depress me with their comments).
Also, not feeling awkward when I go out to the club with my friends ... and I'm the still the fattest person, only this time out of about two hundred people. :roll:
On another vanity note, it'd be nice for my work apron to wrap around my hips a bit, rather than looking like a postage stamp stuck to my enormous belly. :)
I'd also like to stop being depressed when I go to the mall or read magazines, because I know none of the clothes will fit me. I'd rather be annoyed I can't afford them. :)
Less vain and more important, is my healthy fear of diabetes, which my dad was diagnosed with last year. I also had an aunt by marriage who died of complications from diabetes; she'd been overweight, seriously so, for probably thirty years, and it finally caught up with her (god bless Aunt Carol, she was the coolest, more interesting woman I think I ever have known).
Also, to be "skinny" and healthy for the first time in my adult life ... I'm really looking forward to that, and kicking myself for taking so long. :)

[gitfiddle]

Also, to be "skinny" and healthy for the first time in my adult life ... I'm really looking forward to that, and kicking myself for taking so long. :)
The neat thing is that you feel better before you get "skinny". As soon as I lost a few pounds, I lost that depressed feeling you described. At that point, my personality improved because I was happier with myself and I found myself better able to interact with others. I focused on them rather on how fat I looked and how they must be sneering and... all that baggage. I'm not at all skinny (yet) but I feel "normal". Hang on, you're going for a ride! ;)

Oops! I'm rattling on like I'm in ODAAT. So sorry! :o

[Claudette]

Great post, Randy, really made me think.

Losing 20 lbs to me would mean I could ride my friend's horse without the horse "neighing" and shaking her head and looking at me when I plop into the saddle! (My friend is slender). Not to mention looking great in riding clothes!

Claudette

[realruth]

Losing XX lbs for me was

Sitting on public transportation without *spilling* onto the next seat

Shopping for small clothes at the op shop....( who NEEDS to pay big money for nice clothes)

Getting revenge on my two brothers who still had the idea that I was always fat because I ate too much.....
I now eat more and better than them any day!

Looking and feeling better than at any other time in my WHOLE adult life (I'm 47)

Having my DH tell me how sexy I am !

[cmcole]

Having my DH tell me how sexy I am.

Looking and feeling better than at any other time in my WHOLE adult life

And, having my MIL tell me that now I'm perfect (while lifting me off the floor with a hug). His whole family is rather large, so that's quite amazing. They know it is unhealthy to be such, but don't seem to have a clue that their dietary choices are making the difference.

I would tell them, but they would have the excuse of tradition and a whole lot of other reasons for not changing. Besides, I don't live close enough to them to set an example.

And . . . not having to starve myself or beat myself into a frazzle at the gym just to maintain a healthy body.

[Niobe]

The neat thing is that you feel better before you get "skinny". As soon as I lost a few pounds, I lost that depressed feeling you described. At that point, my personality improved because I was happier with myself and I found myself better able to interact with others. I focused on them rather on how fat I looked and how they must be sneering and... all that baggage. I'm not at all skinny (yet) but I feel "normal". Hang on, you're going for a ride! ;)

Oops! I'm rattling on like I'm in ODAAT. So sorry! :o

Errr ... ODAAT? :confused:

[Mitra]

Niobe, ODAAT is "One Day At A Time," which (in some form or other) is the title of an ongoing series of threads in Community Conversations. It's a thread where people just keep in touch and chat about what's going on in their lives that's not related to Protein Power.

Carol, you have nothing to be sorry for - I was enjoying it :) - please rattle on some more!

[cmcole]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20060516.wobesity0517/BNStory/specialScienceandHealth/home

What would you give up to be thin?


SCOTT DEVEAU
Globe and Mail Update

Forget the sacrifices entailed in the latest extreme diet or exercise craze, according to a new study people would be willing sacrifice life and limb, literally, to avoid being obese.
Nearly half those responding to a Yale University online survey said they would be willing give up a year of their life rather than be fat -- 15 per cent said they would trim a decade off their lives for a thinner waistline.
A small percentage of the roughly 4,300 people surveyed even said they would rather lose a limb (5 per cent), or go blind (4 per cent) than put on some extra pounds.

“I guess it just shows how intensely people don't want to be obese,” said Marlene Schwartz, lead researcher on the study “(Being obese) is really seen as worse than a lot of other problems that people face in life.”
Dr. Swartz and her team of researchers at the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale found that regardless of the weight of those responding to the survey, most exhibited a distinct anti-fat bias. Some evidence even suggests that that bias is getting worse in the general population, according to the study, which is published in the latest issue of Obesity.
“One of the things that seems different about obesity bias, as opposed to racial bias or ethnic bias, is there isn't what they call ‘in-group favouritism,'” Dr. Schwartz said. “People in the group don't even feel good about being in the group.”
It didn't come as a surprise then to the researcher that the respondents were quicker to associate obese people with more negative personality traits, like being lazy or bad, than they would for thinner people. But to see just how intense this distain for obesity ran, the researchers decided to push the boundaries a bit.
“We had this idea of posing these questions just to see how far people were willing to go. And we were surprised,” Dr. Swartz said.
Thirty per cent of respondents said they would rather be divorced than obese; 25 per cent said they would prefer not being able to have children; 15 per cent said they would rather be severely depressed. Slightly fewer said they would rather be an alcoholic (14 per cent).
But it wasn't simply personal sacrifices that people said they would be willing to make; 10 per cent said they would rather have an anorexic child than an obese one. Eight per cent said they would prefer their child to have learning disability.
“Part of what I think is going on is we look at an overweight child and we blame the parent 100 per cent,” Dr. Swartz said. “I think that a parent of a child with an eating disorder is seen more sympathetically than a parent of an obese child.”
Dr. Swartz said she hasn't investigated whether thinner people were more willing to give up smaller things, like having an extra piece of cake or going for a run, but she said anecdotally, that she has found that most overweight people have already made enormous sacrifices in their lives to combat obesity.
“Most overweight people have made a lot of sacrifices,” she said. “You'd be hard pressed to find someone who hadn't been on an extreme diet or pushed themselves in pretty extreme ways.”

[Improper_Username]

Missy and Donna,

Losing enough fat to no longer be obese IS very heroic! It is an honorable and remarkable achievement.

[Improper_Username]

What would losing XX lbs. mean to you???



Here's another for the list:
To relieve my arthritic hips of having to support all that extra weight so I can walk more comfortably.

And another: To be able to step up into a horse's saddle without having to stand on a stepstool. :D

[gitfiddle]

Errr ... ODAAT? :confused:
Sorry Niobe! I didn't mean to speak jargon, I'm just a lazy typist always in a hurry. When someone starts a thread with a topic it can be frustrating to have it "hijacked" by others who get started on another topic right in the middle of it. I thought I might have been close to doing that.:rolleyes:

Thank you, Janet, for your gracious comment!;)

[SherryJ]

Oh, goodness! Carol, DO "rattle on"... that's what makes thread lively, you know! ;)

Sherry

[hawk]

Not being terrified of having my blood pressure taken.
NOt worrying about a stroke.
Not standing behind everyone when we take pictures.
Not cringing when ever I see a picture of myself.
Putting on loose clothes instead of sucking it in to button the waist.
Feeling confident instead of self concious when ever I walk into a room.
etc.....

[gitfiddle]

... that's what makes thread lively, you know! ;)
Whoa, just remember you asked for it! :evil:

[Missy]

cmcole...your post bothered me greatly....not that you posted it, please don't get me wrong...but the message of it.....anti fat bias...yes, I know it's out there...but?? it's almost too painful for me to emotionally deal with that it is. It makes me very sad. Perhaps I'm just extra sensitive today???

I'd like to not think of just the thought of being obese, or for that matter, in my case BEING obese, as the "worst" thing that could happen to me....:(

Maybe this article just struck me all wrong today??

[Gabriel Guzman]

Randy, it's sure unfair but as you said, very true about respect. But it may be that since losing weight is anything but easy, it does show the tenacity of somebody when they accomplish that. Personally, I feel a great deal of admiration for those who decide to take control of their health, whether they lose weight or not. As I've seen it so many times, weight loss comes eventually and it comes sooner in some and not to soon in others but it does because that's how the body is suppose to react. But taking control of one's health is the real big step as it involves learning, not only about food choices and things like metabolism, etc., but learning about ourselves.

Like the Tao Te Ching would put it ...to rule others requires force, but to rule one self requires strength..., and strength is something I not only respect very much but aspire every day.

As to what would losing XX lbs mean to me, well... I could now use the other half of my wardrobe!:)

[kevinpa]

Since I am now at my goal and have been since Sept 2005 I will say what it means to me now. Although there are many perks to this WOL, there is none so important as feeling healthy again.....I can't say that loud enough.

[Niobe]

Sorry Niobe! I didn't mean to speak jargon, I'm just a lazy typist always in a hurry. When someone starts a thread with a topic it can be frustrating to have it "hijacked" by others who get started on another topic right in the middle of it. I thought I might have been close to doing that.:rolleyes:

Heehee ... that's okay. Thanks, Mitra, for explaining it.

Thought of a few more:
-not wearing out shoes so fast. Right now I have to buy a new pair of work shoes for waitressing about every 2-3 months (depending on how much I work and when else I wear them). That's about $150 a year on just black sneakers. :(

-not wearing out the thighs in pants ... even real denim blue jeans (though that took a few years).

-not having to drive 40 miles roundtrip to the nearest Lane Bryant when I need new pants.

-to not feel like people are looking at my plate when I eat out and thinking "no wonder she's so fat". Or get what I think of as the "poor fat girl" look when I take a book out for dinner. :o

[Viking Dan]

Losing 20 lbs. would mean I owe the Devil something... :p

[cmcole]

cmcole...your post bothered me greatly....not that you posted it, please don't get me wrong...but the message of it.....anti fat bias...yes, I know it's out there...but?? it's almost too painful for me to emotionally deal with that it is. It makes me very sad. Perhaps I'm just extra sensitive today???



No, you are not incorrect, and if you saw the comments on the article posted on that site, you would realize that you are also not alone. Many people felt this was definitely an anti-fat bias. Actually, though, many people who posted comments were just that - very biased against large people, and made it quite evident in their comments. They ranged from the fact that people were lazy, ate too much, didn't exercise enough, and all through the whole "typical" negative comments.

I didn't post it to upset anyone, but to show just how far people have become prejudiced against each other, and have stopped taking others at face value, rather, choosing to look at the outward appearance and create their own opinions about what the person is like.

Hope I haven't rambled too much, or caused you too much discomfort. My apologies for that.

[SherryJ]

Whoa, just remember you asked for it! :evil:

BRING IT! :p

Sherry

[Missy]

Goodness no Cmcole, NO apologies needed. I certainly don't want to make you feel that I was upset with you, not in the least.....but quite upset with that article.....but I'm completely "accepting" that reality, as hard as it is, that in fact THAT is a "reality" out there...and how truely harsh of a reality that is!!

Sometimes we can learn a great deal from ourselves and our reactions to outrages stupidity! As always "prejudiced" is based in ignorance. That was how it struck me yesterday...and then thankfully Gabe posted a very wonderful post that helped me feel comforted just that quickly.

Thankfully...In MY MIND anyways, I don't think that is a "majority" of people...and it's a minor amount....but it makes me nervous to think that perhaps it's more then I suspect.

[Niobe]

Thought of another thing, which is sort of embarassing to admit, but I'm sure some of you have/had the same problem .. one thing I really will NOT miss is having to wash under my stomach. :o