Thank you for your thought-provoking and wise words on this subject. I do very much agree that to take on a big goal, we have to be fully motivated to do it, or we don't usually get very far.

You asked for views and I suppose I have two. You could focus on your diet and exercise/sports activities and try to make those very healthy and not worry about your weight.

I'm trying to think how to express the second "view". It's where I am now. I'm in my early 50s. I have autoimmune arthritis in addition to psych conditions. I've gradually gained enough weight over the past 3-4 years that I can tell the difference when I walk very far. It's putting strain on my hips and knees and I have developed high blood pressure. I'm hovering at the 29-30 BMI mark.

I had been resisting the idea of dieting until recently when the problem with my hip joints suddenly got worse. I became determined to lose at least 30 pounds. I'm now struggling with getting rid of the "bad" foods from my diet. I already had lots of healthy foods in there but tended to indulge in some high-calorie ones, too.

I guess maybe I'm trying to say, in a long-winded way, like the other poster who commented that they have COPD, that if you are healthy enough now to exercise, that you shouldn't take that ability for granted.

I like that you dislike the pressure society puts on women especially to be thin for the sake of looks. I think we have to try to separate that from the health implications of being overweight.

In sum, I'm not suggesting that you do anything right now. I just wanted to offer you some things to think about.