I ask because I have noticed since my decision to change my lifestyle, I feel that I have been ignored or pushed away by some of those good friends that I thought were the closest to me. I am and feel very lucky to have all the support in the world from my husband, kids and family, but yet I am missing that passion and encouragement from my friends. When I started with this change, I knew that I had to make hard and drastic decisions on what was keeping me unhappy and fat. First off I knew I had to watch what I was putting in my mouth. Myfitnesspal gave me the tools and assistance to get that done. Calorie counting and watching my food intake instantly became addicting to me. Secondly, I had to get on a strict workout regime. Even though I hated working out, I had to do it. This weight wasn’t coming off by diet alone. So when I started training and making those changes, I slowly noticed myself turning down foods that I felt were not within my diet, mainly fast food, anything fried and most sweets. I turned away most alcoholic drinks, and sometimes (I admit) I did decline invitations to hang out because I felt the need stay away from all that was “unhealthy.” But now it seems that all of the invitations, especially the ones to hang out on the weekends have stopped coming in.
Additionally, I understand that spending time around someone who has devoted most of their spare time to losing weight can be a little intolerable to the others who don’t really care about it and find that talking about fitness and nutrition is a bit boring, but I often wonder “Was the social drinker or the unfit bigger version of me that much more fun than what I have become? Is it that we have nothing to talk about since I find talking about a healthier lifestyle more appealing than what’s happening on our favorite television shows, work, or the never ending drama in our friend circle?”
While I love the support and encouragement of my “fitness/weight loss” friends on Myfitnesspal, I am desperately missing the closeness of my local friend support group. As we struggle to get to or maintain our ideal weight, we all rely on our friends and family to support our efforts. Has anyone experienced how their lifestyle change has put a strain on some of your closest relationships? Just wondering.