Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can see why you’re bothered. Changing your diet and having the willpower to say no to food when you’re craving it is more difficult than when you take a medication that decreases your appetite. I would think you’re creating lifestyle changes that are sustainable so that is a huge benefit to doing it the old fashioned way. I’m quite impressed with what you have accomplished. What was the motivating factor and how did you keep going?

If you have a home chef to cook you healthy meals, is that "cheating"? What if you have a part-time job and plenty of time to shop, cook, and work out? Does that negate the person's achievement in losing weight, as compared to someone working full-time with kids? There are so many factors that influence "willpower," not the least of which is good sleep. One who is able to sleep well through the night needs far less willpower to make healthy choices than a person who has poor sleep, whether due to disruptions, lack of time, hormones, sleep apnea, etc. We see judgment based on "lifestyle choices" and "structuring life" to promote health, but in reality, it is far easier to exhibit these so-called virtues when you have wealth and autonomy.

Poor people used to be thin. They didn’t have more time to cook, less stress, access to the freshest ingredients, 8 hrs of sleep per night, a nanny, a gym membership. If anything, they had more stress and less free time than anyone one of any social class does now. The only difference is they had to move their body more out of necessity and there wasn’t the option to eat junk food, processed food, and convenience food. They HAD to cook and did. Just like anyone on any income can now. But
People don’t want to

Oh FFS SOME poor people used to be skinny. SOME poor people still are. Some drug addicts/alcoholics are skinny but they certainly arent healthy. Some overweight people are perfectly healthy. Some skinny people have high cholesterol and high BP.

Why are you so hell-bent on making weight a moral issue? Live your life and let the rest of us be.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can see why you’re bothered. Changing your diet and having the willpower to say no to food when you’re craving it is more difficult than when you take a medication that decreases your appetite. I would think you’re creating lifestyle changes that are sustainable so that is a huge benefit to doing it the old fashioned way. I’m quite impressed with what you have accomplished. What was the motivating factor and how did you keep going?

If you have a home chef to cook you healthy meals, is that "cheating"? What if you have a part-time job and plenty of time to shop, cook, and work out? Does that negate the person's achievement in losing weight, as compared to someone working full-time with kids? There are so many factors that influence "willpower," not the least of which is good sleep. One who is able to sleep well through the night needs far less willpower to make healthy choices than a person who has poor sleep, whether due to disruptions, lack of time, hormones, sleep apnea, etc. We see judgment based on "lifestyle choices" and "structuring life" to promote health, but in reality, it is far easier to exhibit these so-called virtues when you have wealth and autonomy.

Poor people used to be thin. They didn’t have more time to cook, less stress, access to the freshest ingredients, 8 hrs of sleep per night, a nanny, a gym membership. If anything, they had more stress and less free time than anyone one of any social class does now. The only difference is they had to move their body more out of necessity and there wasn’t the option to eat junk food, processed food, and convenience food. They HAD to cook and did. Just like anyone on any income can now. But
People don’t want to

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can see why you’re bothered. Changing your diet and having the willpower to say no to food when you’re craving it is more difficult than when you take a medication that decreases your appetite. I would think you’re creating lifestyle changes that are sustainable so that is a huge benefit to doing it the old fashioned way. I’m quite impressed with what you have accomplished. What was the motivating factor and how did you keep going?

If you have a home chef to cook you healthy meals, is that "cheating"? What if you have a part-time job and plenty of time to shop, cook, and work out? Does that negate the person's achievement in losing weight, as compared to someone working full-time with kids? There are so many factors that influence "willpower," not the least of which is good sleep. One who is able to sleep well through the night needs far less willpower to make healthy choices than a person who has poor sleep, whether due to disruptions, lack of time, hormones, sleep apnea, etc. We see judgment based on "lifestyle choices" and "structuring life" to promote health, but in reality, it is far easier to exhibit these so-called virtues when you have wealth and autonomy.

+1 People really do not understand why obesity rates follow a social gradient.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I lost 40. No drugs or other cheating. Still have 20 to get to my desired weight. I feel so much better. It would definitely annoy me if people thought I cheated. I think I’d just say, “You think I’m lying? Interesting.” And walk off. People want to believe whatever makes them feel better.

And good for you, OP.

Is it cheating to take blood pressure medication? Anxiety medication? Meds for ADHD, acne? Why is taking medication to assist in weight loss considering cheating? Just asking.

Yes, blood pressure medication is cheating when your blood pressure is high just because you don’t exercise and eat crap. How is that a question?

For people who are fit and eat only healthy food then no, it’s not cheating, it’s medically necessary.

Have you considered that you need therapy. Your judging of others for taking or not taking medications suggests either a deep seated insecurity or that you're just a mean person. Please get help.

I have also been losing weight the “old fashioned way” and have gotten lots of questions on how I’m doing it, people of course presuming I’m taking the drugs. I’m not. Not because I don’t think they’re amazing, I really do, but because I have another medical condition that makes these drugs potentially more risky for me than for the average person.

I haven’t been shy about saying that my weight loss is motivated by a desire to live longer with my condition, and it has required a fundamental reset in how I think about food and exercise and a serious commitment to getting my thyroid in check. It requires constant scrutiny and counting for me to lose on average less than 3 lbs/month. It’s hard work and it’s getting even harder as I get closer to my goal.

I don’t say this to virtue signal about my superior willpower, but to set expectations that what appears to others be a sudden and easy weight loss has actually required a lot of time, effort, and scientific-like experimentation to achieve. Everyone is selling easy fixes- from the Wegovy people to the keto people to the simple CICO people. For most people, middle age women in particular, nothing about losing weight is “easy”. There’s a bizarre alchemy to finding just the perfect CICO balance that lets you lose weight while not hurting your ability to perform every day at your best, taking into account stress factors, amount of sleep, and even hormone cycles. After a year I find that most days I find the balance, but there are still other days I don’t.

To the extent Wegovy gives people the assist they need to make better choices and find that balance, I’m all for it. But similar effects can be had from long term behavior changes if you’re willing and able to invest the time to experiment and be patient.

This thread is why people lie about it.

Cheating? FFS. I actually have a diagnosed genetic metabolic condition (only diagnosed because of my recurrent pregnancy loss). Shockingly it's not that uncommon. So is it cheating when you are taking medication to fix a genetic condition? And just because someone hasn't gotten it diagnosed (it took 3 years and many different doctors) doesn't mean they, too, don't gave something going on.

The inability to embrace this idea that people with excess weight aren't just lazy.

Plus, BTW, I've known people that didn't lose any weight on WeGovy. They made no lifestyle changes.

Who cares if they think you did it on ozempic. I know plenty of people on it and they needed to lose weight. I appauld it

I’m just going to go about being happy and healthier and ignore the aholes. Unhappy people are contagious you gotta steer clear.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can see why you’re bothered. Changing your diet and having the willpower to say no to food when you’re craving it is more difficult than when you take a medication that decreases your appetite. I would think you’re creating lifestyle changes that are sustainable so that is a huge benefit to doing it the old fashioned way. I’m quite impressed with what you have accomplished. What was the motivating factor and how did you keep going?

If you have a home chef to cook you healthy meals, is that "cheating"? What if you have a part-time job and plenty of time to shop, cook, and work out? Does that negate the person's achievement in losing weight, as compared to someone working full-time with kids? There are so many factors that influence "willpower," not the least of which is good sleep. One who is able to sleep well through the night needs far less willpower to make healthy choices than a person who has poor sleep, whether due to disruptions, lack of time, hormones, sleep apnea, etc. We see judgment based on "lifestyle choices" and "structuring life" to promote health, but in reality, it is far easier to exhibit these so-called virtues when you have wealth and autonomy.

100% of the people that are paying out of pocket have the wealth. As for the time and autonomy, that same group has it if they wanted to make those choices.

A very high percentage of those with sufficient insurance are exactly the same.

Upper middle class people co-opting the actual plight of people in food deserts as an excuse for their failure to make choices to control their environment is just weak.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I lost 40. No drugs or other cheating. Still have 20 to get to my desired weight. I feel so much better. It would definitely annoy me if people thought I cheated. I think I’d just say, “You think I’m lying? Interesting.” And walk off. People want to believe whatever makes them feel better.

And good for you, OP.

Is it cheating to take blood pressure medication? Anxiety medication? Meds for ADHD, acne? Why is taking medication to assist in weight loss considering cheating? Just asking.

Yes, blood pressure medication is cheating when your blood pressure is high just because you don’t exercise and eat crap. How is that a question?

For people who are fit and eat only healthy food then no, it’s not cheating, it’s medically necessary.

There is a lot wrong with this perspective.

(No, I'm not fat, or on Ozempic, or hypertensive, or on blood pressure meds, or failing to exercise. I can just see how this is wrong and disturbing.)

Cheating is a dumb term.

But hypertension medication in the place of actually getting your health in order and using these diet drugs is a lot closer to blood doping for endurance sports/cycling than it is for other things entirely out of a person’s control. To include decades of poor lifestyle choices.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I lost 40. No drugs or other cheating. Still have 20 to get to my desired weight. I feel so much better. It would definitely annoy me if people thought I cheated. I think I’d just say, “You think I’m lying? Interesting.” And walk off. People want to believe whatever makes them feel better.

And good for you, OP.

Is it cheating to take blood pressure medication? Anxiety medication? Meds for ADHD, acne? Why is taking medication to assist in weight loss considering cheating? Just asking.

Yes, blood pressure medication is cheating when your blood pressure is high just because you don’t exercise and eat crap. How is that a question?

For people who are fit and eat only healthy food then no, it’s not cheating, it’s medically necessary.

There is a lot wrong with this perspective.

(No, I'm not fat, or on Ozempic, or hypertensive, or on blood pressure meds, or failing to exercise. I can just see how this is wrong and disturbing.)

The people posting and saying that they’re ALSO working hard to lose weight while taking the weight loss drug and so they don’t see a difference are delusional. OBVIOUSLY there is a big difference and it makes things much easier or you wouldn’t need the drug and wouldn’t take it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about it bothers you? Is it that you put in the work and changed your lifestyle?

That would bother me.

I imagine op worked really hard and it would feel bad if people are assuming she went for a popular quick fix.

Except those of us on ozempic are also working hard at it. Losing significant weight takes commitment. Ozempic helps but only if you reduce your food intake and increase exercise.

I’ve had VERY few people comment on my weight loss. Maybe 2-3. I’m happy to share but it just doesn’t come up.

Anonymous wrote:What about it bothers you? Is it that you put in the work and changed your lifestyle?

That would bother me.

I imagine op worked really hard and it would feel bad if people are assuming she went for a popular quick fix.

Anonymous wrote:I can see why you’re bothered. Changing your diet and having the willpower to say no to food when you’re craving it is more difficult than when you take a medication that decreases your appetite. I would think you’re creating lifestyle changes that are sustainable so that is a huge benefit to doing it the old fashioned way. I’m quite impressed with what you have accomplished. What was the motivating factor and how did you keep going?

If you have a home chef to cook you healthy meals, is that "cheating"? What if you have a part-time job and plenty of time to shop, cook, and work out? Does that negate the person's achievement in losing weight, as compared to someone working full-time with kids? There are so many factors that influence "willpower," not the least of which is good sleep. One who is able to sleep well through the night needs far less willpower to make healthy choices than a person who has poor sleep, whether due to disruptions, lack of time, hormones, sleep apnea, etc. We see judgment based on "lifestyle choices" and "structuring life" to promote health, but in reality, it is far easier to exhibit these so-called virtues when you have wealth and autonomy.