What Motivated you to Start a Healthy Life?

[jayandrade22]

What's going on fitness fanatics! I am always fascinated by what motivates people or caused them to change and start living a healthier lifestyle (i.e. working out and eating right). Share your experience here and maybe your story can resonate with someone else and help them take the leap of faith!

 

I'll start:

 

My twin brother, who was a Division 1 athlete, was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease and had a severe event that left him in the hospital for a week. When he returned home he was 30 lbs lighter, weak, and scared for how this disease was going to change his life. Instead of dwelling in this state he chose to control it, and I was there to support him throughout. Together, my brother and I changed our diet to support his disease and rebuilt ourselves physically so that we were in control of our lives, not some disease.

 

As an identical twin, I realize Crohn's disease may or may not be a part of my future, but that doesn't limit me. It makes me stronger.

[TheOtherScott]

I suppose it comes down to wanting to feel comfortable in my own skin.  I was overweight for most of my teens and my early 20's, but I feel a lot better now that I'm fit-ish.  Not feeling like garbage all the time is pretty motivating.

[A banana]

That's awesome dude!

Nothing really motivates me, other than being able to lift more, having nice muscle definition. It's been part of my lifestlye since I was little and playing outside.

[The Swedish Ninja]

My interest in health began in junior high (13 years ago), when I was tired of being short, fat and ugly, and I began to read a lot about fitness and healthy foods --> today I´m no longer short or fat, only ugly .

I´d say that the reason I spend so much time "on health" (reading, talking, writing in forums about it) and of course, exercising, is that it makes me feel so damn good. I love the feeling when i head for a workout, I love the feeling during and also after. 

To quote Socratese:

No citizen has a right to be an amateur in the matter of physical training...what a disgrace it is for a man to grow old without ever seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable.

And that´s it; Your body is capable of marvellous things and I want to explore it until the day I no longer walk on this earth (Hmm, bad use of words since if (when) the Zombie apocalypse is coming and I turn into a zombie, I would still walk this earth, but I reckon my interest in health will have declined and my thirst for human meat will have increased)

[jayandrade22]

Great Quote The Swedish Ninja.

[Suited hippy]

I got dumped... Let the anger take me where I needed to go.

 

 

Fought through the most of weightloss with the goal of signing the divorce papers with a 6 pack. While I did not have the fully defined abs I have now, I did go in 90lbs down, to her jaw on the floor.

 

It was not a healthy motivation, and 2 years later I am way past it. My motivations these days revolve around living the best life possible. Doing exactly what I want to do, without any physical limitations.  

[Stonie]

I wanted to stop feeling limited by what my body couldn't do and by what I thought of my body. Also, I see sad overweight people around and it makes me sad. I don't wanna be like those people. Also I know if I start now I've got more chance of being able to live life for longer. I also don't want to be limited by what my body can or can't do when I get to be 50+ years old. Lots of old people where I live. I don't want to be decrepit; I want to be like that yoga nanny on the HBF ad who can stand on her hands.

[jayandrade22]

I'm with you Teagarden. I know I am going to be a stubborn old person who will fight getting older and slowing down. So might as well try to prolong that process and take advantage of what we are capable now.

[Thrillho]

The Big List:

• Remembering my former glory moments as a competitive martial artist
• Disgust at how fat I've become
• The looming threat of a shortened life
• The inability to perform simple tasks 
• That one time I wasn't allowed to go skydiving because I was too heavy
• Being unable to get life insurance because I was flat-out "too heavy"
• People assuming I'm stupid based on my dimensions
• People assuming I eat everything, constantly, forever
• Hating how I look in the mirror
• Hating how my wife looks at me
• Hating how my wife looks at other guys

 

The Really Short List

• My kids.  Setting a good example, and being there for them for as long as I can.

[crazyjerseygirl]

This little guy

[Suited hippy]

• Hating how my wife looks at other guys.

 

I feel for you, one of the most heart breaking experiences for a man. 

[Thrillho]

I can't fault her TOO much.  I went from 210 to 330 between between dating, baby and marriage... not my proudest memory. Getting back down there, though!

[Silo]

For me:

- Being disgusted at how overweight and out of shape I let myself get since finishing college. I felt undisciplined and embarrassed.

- Hoping to be rid of my CPAP machine. My AHI from my sleep study last fall was 87, which is ridiculously terrible. That means I stopped breathing or held my breath an average of 87 times per hour while sleeping. Weight is a factor with sleep apnea and I want to reverse its effect.

- I just felt gross and blah and like I wasn't myself. Just that always vaguely uncomfortable fat and "Who turned up the thermostat? Seriously, am I the only one sweating? How can that woman be wearing a sweater?" feeling.

- I felt like my husband deserved better from me. He never said anything to that effect but I want to look good for him.

- I felt like my daughter deserved a better role model and I wanted to be able to take our picture together and not cringe.

- I wanted to be able to easily find cute clothes that fit and looked good on me.

- Finally, it hit me that I was 2.5 years away from turning 40 and wanted to hit that age in great condition.

[matty_mcfly]

I love this thread and I was going to start something like this a few months ago but lost...motivation (lol).

 

I started thinking about this when I had a friend ask why do I wake up at 5:45am every morning (more like 6am now) just to go to the gym even when its cold, rainy or snowing.  Then stated that I must be obsessed.

 

What made me start being healthy was the fear of having a heart attack before I hit 50.  I had a horrible diet (lots of beer, fried foods, McDonalds everyday, and minimal veggies).  I figured I should make an effort to actually to be around to see my future kids graduate and marry and to be around to live a long life with my significant other.

 

So the order started out as: 1) become healthier, 2) look better naked, 3) get strong.

 

Now its changed over to 1) get strong, 2) get strong, 3) get strong. Lol I realized that being healthy and looking better naked come as a result of getting strong. 

[Nefiros]

Got a new job. Realised just how weak and out of shape I've become in the last decade of being lazy, smoking, drinking and just generally not being very nice to my body.

I've also always been the scrawny, weak kid who got picked on just cause I was smaller than everyone else. I'm done with it.

[ContractSoldier]

Good Afternoon, 

 

 

    Great topic and here is my memoir, I grew up in low income housing for most of my child and teenage years and I was the scrawny, small kid with the coke bottle glasses. I dreaded going to school and was often prey while on transit to school. It didn't matter if I walked or rode the bus, I would catch an ass whoopin from the other cliques almost on sight, it was sport to these mouth breathers. Some days i got away and some days I just wasn't fast enough. I started taking the proverbial long way home after getting beat down by a group of kids and my only saving grace was a gentleman stopping his car an pulling the kids off of me then threating to call the police. I was pathetic.. 

     One day taking the long way home I stumbled into a group a guys and instead of reenacting the gazelle and lion chase on "Wild Kingdom" they introduced themselves and acted like human beings. Come to find out, one of the guys father was a self defense instructor and they were on their way back home from class. 

    Long story short I got to know them real well and they took me under their wing. They taught me that I didn't have to be a victim, the value of martial arts, training your body and mind, and what it means to be contributing human being not some animal.

     

    When ever I need motivation I think about that scrawny kid, that victim. Their is no way that's going to happen again.  Now that I have a wife and child, it just adds to my motivation. What if in their time of need i can't help them, this is my greatest fear and thus my greatest fuel. 

 

    Just my two cents..

[wheelhouse]

I spent about 6 years working in the beer industry. My job was literally hanging out in bars, eating bar food and drinking beer. At 9am every day I was in a bar, beer in hand, chatting up the owner. It's really easy to let it go from job to passion to lifestyle, so I would be "at work" every night until the wee hours and right back at it the next day. It's no way to live. Packed on about 75lbs in that time and some nagging health issues started to creep up. I got gout, I started carrying a roll of antacids with me, plus one in the car, and the big bottle at home. After a while it just got to be too much. I got a really bad case of gout that sidelined me for a week and since I couldnt do much, even walking hurt, I just got online and researched how to get this nonsense to stop. Thats how I discovered the paleo diet. That was the start for me. I found a new job, started exercising, and it's a whole new me. 

 

The best feeling is the odd occasion that I run into someone from my past and see their reaction.

[matty_mcfly]

I spent about 6 years working in the beer industry. My job was literally hanging out in bars, eating bar food and drinking beer. At 9am every day I was in a bar, beer in hand, chatting up the owner. It's really easy to let it go from job to passion to lifestyle, so I would be "at work" every night until the wee hours and right back at it the next day. It's no way to live. Packed on about 75lbs in that time and some nagging health issues started to creep up. I got gout, I started carrying a roll of antacids with me, plus one in the car, and the big bottle at home. After a while it just got to be too much. I got a really bad case of gout that sidelined me for a week and since I couldnt do much, even walking hurt, I just got online and researched how to get this nonsense to stop. Thats how I discovered the paleo diet. That was the start for me. I found a new job, started exercising, and it's a whole new me.

The best feeling is the odd occasion that I run into someone from my past and see their reaction.

What job is this? I'm mad...I was doing this in college and could've been getting paid for it! Lol

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

[Maj. Bloodnok]

Not dying in my late 60s or early 70s from heart disease or stroke, like my grandfather and great-uncle.  These were great big Deutscher feinschmeckers, over 300 pounds each by the time they died.  Not for me, thanks, though I got pretty damn close before I turned it around. 

 

I enjoy feeling better and having more energy, though this quest for fitness has handed me some nagging tendon problems that limit my mobility.  Hey, beats dying young...

[Guzzi]

<p>

The Big List:

• Remembering my former glory moments as a competitive martial artist
• Disgust at how fat I've become
• The looming threat of a shortened life
• The inability to perform simple tasks
• That one time I wasn't allowed to go skydiving because I was too heavy
• Being unable to get life insurance because I was flat-out "too heavy"
• People assuming I'm stupid based on my dimensions
• People assuming I eat everything, constantly, forever
• Hating how I look in the mirror
• Hating how my wife looks at me
• Hating how my wife looks at other guys

The Really Short List

• My kids. Setting a good example, and being there for them for as long as I can.

I can't work out which I want to do most... Slap you upside the head, or give you a big hug. I think I'm leaning towards the headslap. Bad Thrillho!

I think everyone knows my motivation (I harp on about it often enough) but it's interesting to see what drives other people.

[Thrillho]

... why am I being hit now? 

[Guzzi]

You know why! That's very negative self talk, and I don't approve. I think I'll go drag Bekah in here and we can gang up on you again. Maybe knock some sense into you...

[SevenofSeven]

I am sick of people telling me I look like my Mother. Is it the weight? Is it the fat physical features? Any way I do not want to be my mother.

[Silo]

Ack, SevenofSeven, you just gave me another one for my list! Love her but I don't want to be told that either.

[Agdoof]

Nearly every single day of school my 9th grade year, this one guy I knew would look at my emaciated form, laugh at me, and tell me I needed to eat some meat. I was 105 pounds and had the nickname "Auschwitz" at one point, and was often mistaken as a girl because I had long hair.