this 100%. in my mind, there's no difference between not talking about fat and not talking about bdsm - with my relatives or anyone else that has no business talking to me about my sex life.

that stuff should be left between you and your partner(s), or the other people in whatever community you share details of your sex life.

this is a topic that i really relate to. i was a thin, fit feeder for so much of my adult life. i started gaining by accident, and haven't really been able to stop it since.

i've posted about my experience over the last 4 or 5 years, so i won't rehash all that. but i wanted to talk about how lifestyle contributes to this. i sympathize with @otherday66 because i've tried to go back the gym a few times, i've tried to change my diet a few times over the years (including this year) and for the most part it hasn't been successful.

part of it is how seductive the feedist lifestyle is... it's kind of built on pleasure, abandon, and sloth. to move to a mode of discipline, effort and abstinence (from food!) is a really hard change to make. and it's too easy to be tempted back into indulgence, i find (again, and again...).

i'd be interested to hear from anyone who has found success in striking that balance after going to the fat-side?

portly

interesting view on skills vs fitness. a friend of mine who used to be a track & field runner in school at a competitive level, then got fat later as an adult when i met him, told me that he still had the speed - just not the endurance! which sounds like your experience.

i wasn't into sports so much as weight lifting and cardio at the gym... at 150-160 i was really fit, in great shape. then i took a break and porked up to 220 - when i tried to go back, my loss of strength, stamina and flexibility was really shocking to me. i felt completely out of place, i felt really embarrassed. having to get off the treadmill after just a few minutes because i felt like i was dying was a real shock!

now i am more than twice that size, and i don't know how i would even get up from the bench after trying a bench press!

when i met my partner (we met on woo plus), i knew she liked fat guys. but she didn't have a clue about feedism.

as we were getting to know each other, it wasn't important, either. she could see i liked to eat! and gradually, over time, i introduced her to this site and others. she approached it with an open mind, and as she got familiar she was able to articulate what she liked, and what was a no-go for her.

i mention this because that is really the only time that my fetish(es) have come up - when i am with a partner that i want to get to know better, or i want to be more intimate with. with everyone else in the world that i happen to bump into, i don't want to know their fetishes, and i am sure they don't want to know mine. just like must of us don't talk about our interest in bdsm with casual acquaintances.

yes, ours reads out the weight. it's just one we bought off amazon, nothing terribly exotic.

i sometimes get this when i eat too fast, i think it's a combo of too much food working it's way down the pipe and maybe some gas.

if you take a break for five minutes does it persist? does it last long after you've finished? if so, you might want to talk to your doctor.

not a nurse, but my ex was. she was a ssbbw, and while she was bigger than most of her colleagues, she didn't really stand out. most of them were of bigger stature.

the only time i hear the term "obese" used (to my face) is by my doctor.

my partner just calls me "fatboy." it's a lot less clinical.

i am the same as you - mostly on my right side, with some pillows to help support me. when i turn onto my back, i need to be propped up a little with those pillows.

one of the things i really miss from my thin & fit days is being able to sleep on my stomach... as well as how easy it was to flip from one side to the other back then!