Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie
Hi there,
There is an issue with role permissions that is being worked on at the moment.
If you are having trouble with access or permissions on regional forums please post here to get access: https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058365403/you-do-not-have-permission-for-that#latest

How to break up with boyfriend

  • 23-04-2010 7:01pm
    #1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 389 ✭✭


    I am having some problems with my boyf, we met last year in august and all went well until December where all of a sudden he started telling me I should lose weight, that he will pay for the gym, i agreed that maybe i need to lose some weight, so went to the gym, started losing weight but not at the speed my "dear" boyf wanted me to. Now 9 months later all we talk about on the phone is my weight, and how long I was in the gym for, what equipment I have used, how long was I on each, and so on. Its getting to a stage where I am dreading the phone calls that I get from him, as I know the first thing he asks is: did you go to the gym today? It got to a stage where I am resenting him and want to break up with him straight away, I was planning on doing so last week, after explaining to him how much he is insulting me, to which he says I am doing u a favor! I am about 5 feet 8" and size 14-16, so yes I have some curves. but he met me "this way" and he didnt see anything wrong with this in the beginning. Now after 9 months we got attached, well i got attached to him and i do like having him around, but not always concentrating on weight, it just drives me insane. I have tried to explain to him how he makes me feel, he basically got really annoyed with me on my bday and kept giving out to me as i had a sausage at breakfast and an egg with some beans, and said this is not someone’s breakfast when on a diet. It was a small plate, nothing out of proportion. I want out but i have no idea how to approach the issue, had a look on different sites on how to break up with someone, i am just insulted and humiliated, and have no idea how to end things. He even said to me and yes i know " that I do not want you to meet my parents looking like that" i wanted to cry, but wouldn't allow myself to give him the satisfaction. I am a 26 year old who is basically trapped in a silly relationship, i have said this to my mum who basically said to leave him, which i plan on doing, but just need some courage. I cant really say anything to my friends as I know the answer, which is dump him, i guess i need some encouragement.


Comments

  • Closed Accounts Posts: 21,191 ✭✭✭✭Latchy


    Hmmm ....Boyfriend sounds like a bit of control freak using your weight issue to control tbh

    OP is it possible you could go off or stay some place for a weekend with friends ? .Then when /if he calls or texts asking were you are, tell him your having a much needed break away and enjoying yourself with some friends .

    If he protests in any way , you respond with '' but surely you want me to enjoy myself while loosing some weight '' ?

    * cue confused boyfriend *

    Followed by you saying 'Oh yeah it's over now ....Byyeeeeeeeeee '


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 389 ✭✭Anna23


    All we talk about is weight and how we can get as much exercise as possible now I have to admit I am not as active as I used to be, I have given up loads of foods, and changed a lot of things, but I do not believe that a relationship should be like this, he just text-ed me there saying what was I doing!!! dah ranting on the net about u, wanted to say! oh we dont live together he lives about 50 miles away, so we only see each other at the weekends.

    Its getting me really down, i guess the sooner I break up with him, the better it will be for me. :(


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 21,191 ✭✭✭✭Latchy


    Are there any positive things going on in your relationship beside the weight issue ? Does he have your best intentions at heart or just belittling you because he can

    If the minus's outweigh the plus's and it's what you really want then
    do it .

    Only you can decide how to do


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 642 ✭✭✭Contessa Raven


    Hi Anna23,

    I think the right answer here is to dump him. I'm all for people not letting themselves go when in a relationship but this guy met you when you were this size and he accepted it then. So what's changed?

    Don't let him make you feel bad about your size. I'm 5 feet 2 inches and a size 14. I'm quite chunky :p but my OH met me like this and loves me this way. You deserve someone who will love you as you are.

    Next time he phones you up and asks "Did you go to the gym?" Respond with "No. And I'm not going anymore. I'm happy as I am and I feel you've been pushing me to be something I'm not. I don't think you're good for me and I would appreciate it if you didn't contact me again."

    This is what I would do anyway. And even if you aren't happy with your shape, change for you not some d**khead who wants to mould you into a person you aren't. If you stay in this relationship, he'll wear your confidence down so much. He's trying to walk all over you.

    I hope you find the courage to end it.

    CR


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 389 ✭✭Anna23


    when we don't constantly talk about weight we get on great, but i am starting to hate him, as its rare when we don't talk about weight! I will say to him that I do not want to drag him along, and its better to end things, I will do this next week, when he is coming over, but I have things in his house, which I need to pick up. and should i break up with him first and then collect my stuff, or vice versa?

    i honestly don't know if he has the best intentions at heart! maybe he does. but its a funny way of going about things, insulting ppl isnt the best way, in my opinion. i just need to do it and get it over with.


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,006 ✭✭✭MistyCheese


    I concur with what Contessa Raven said. Next time he asks you if you went to the gym tell him that you did not. This shouldn't be a major issue. If he freaks out over it then he is being unreasonable. It's difficult enough to lose weight without someone breathing down your neck.

    Also, it does sound like he is a control freak. If he suceeds with the weight issue then he will simply move on to the next thing. Maybe he'll decide he doesn't like your accent, the way you dress, your job. At some point it will be your friends who he doesn't like, he won't like you going out without him, he'll say you spend too much time with family and not enough with him. All because he is insecure and wants you to listen to him and only him. Of course he'll say it'll all for your own good.

    Even in the short-term, if all he can talk about is your diet and excercise then he sounds like quite a bore. At your age relationships should be fun.

    For the record, him saying that "I do not want you to meet my parents looking like that" would've had me out the door.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 21,191 ✭✭✭✭Latchy


    ^ as above ^

    He's chipping away at your self esteem .It's all about him not you

    You need rid of him ASAP.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 34,788 ✭✭✭✭krudler


    He sounds like a twat tbh, get rid of him but do keep going to the gym , but only because you want to and do it at your own pace, not because someone is barking at your heels.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,241 ✭✭✭barleybooley


    Oh my OP, this really won't do. It'd be one thing if you were a lot smaller when you met him and all of a sudden ballooned up to a size that was unattractive to him, but come on! Size 14-16 is not big at all for someone who's 5'8"! Maybe you could fight fire with fire and tell him you don't want him seeing his friends or something and when he protests, tell him that's how you feel being permanently under the thumb.

    You need to stop this outright or get out, you can't go on like this OP, soon it'll turn into something else.

    Best of luck, we're all behind you :)


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 91 ✭✭lizzie09


    I do not want you to meet my parents looking like that" quote


    Yeah, this is the last thing you need run as fast as you can in the other direction... you sound lovely as you are :) The cheeky so and so!


  • Advertisement
  • Closed Accounts Posts: 63 ✭✭mig mag


    My advice.....GET RID! ASAP!!
    No one deserves to be put down and insulted and humiliated and disrespected like that.
    If he is supposed to be your boyfriend then he should be proud of you and encouraging (NOT controlling) and supportive and all the other good things.
    Being with someone who only brings you down will do you no good.
    Go find someone who appreciates you for you. Who you can feel comfortable and happy and confident with.
    Best of luck girl - you can do it! :D


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 86,729 ✭✭✭✭Overheal


    Simple: give him the ultimatum. Youre happy the way you are. He's not. He can take it or leave it. Bet you he would.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,423 ✭✭✭tinkerbell


    You said yourself that you need to lose some weight ... to be honest, your boyfriend is trying to get you to lose weight BUT he is going about it the wrong way by acting like that. But seriously, you're trying to lose weight and you're eating sausage, egg and beans for breakfast? Come on, that's not eating properly.

    You say you get on great when you don't talk about weight. How about you talk to him, and explain how awful it's making you feel and that all you need is encouragement, not to be dictated to.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 1,229 ✭✭✭sesna


    OP - I can see why you might feel annoyed by your boyfriends behaviour. But in reality, you are overweight. You need to lose that excess fat, and become healthier.

    He has you and your health in mind. Much like when a significant other suggests to the partner to give up smoking, cut back on drinking etc.

    Unfortunately, like everything else, people give statements of intent but in reality like to be mollycoddled when it comes to issues such as weight. I have found females to be very emotional when it comes to food, ("I ate that 12 inch pizza because I was feeling angry, I feel so guilty. Anyway wheres my chocolate gone?").

    Females are the most concerned with weight-loss as evident by beauty magazines articles, yet are the worst offenders when it comes to weight gain.

    Perhaps you should embrace that someone cares so deeply about your health, and your well being. The US Navy Seals do not produce excellent soldiers by talking about feelings and bunny rabbits - they do so by dealing in hard brutal honest fact, discipline and hard work. Good luck on your journey to being a better person.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 4,128 ✭✭✭dellas1979


    As they'd say on TV "the only weight you need to loose is him"...

    but seriously, maybe you should put it out there how much it annoys you. Do this first before you break with him or else youll never know. Maybe he doesnt realise. After all, you did willingly seem to go along with this for a long time - he probably hasnt an iota.

    If then it still isnt working/hitting home, then go for it.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 18 bluebee


    Chicken, you sound perfectly in proportion to me, 5`8 is very tall! I`m `5`6 and a curvy size 12 and if anyone told me to lose weight I`d tell them where to go!!!

    A few years ago an ex of mine convinced me that I really needed to lose weight but he was soo negative about it, always giving out to me! "Walking`s not excercise", "You eat too much chocolate" blah blah blah....needless to say I didn`t stay with him for too much longer. Your boyfriend sounds much worse, really mean in fact. If I were you I`d send him a text telling him he`s dumped and not to contact you anymore!

    Seriously, 5`8 is a lovely height to be a size 14-16, I bet you have a gorgeous figure, and if you want to tone up and eat healthily you should be doing it to make YOU happy, not because some mean loser is making you feel sad and guilty!

    Send him a text telling him to f**k off and go out dancing tomorrow night with your mates:)

    xxxx


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,423 ✭✭✭tinkerbell


    ^^ Err I'm sorry but size 14-16 is NOT healthy nor is it a "gorgeous figure". I don't understand how people these days think that 14-16 is "curvy" when it's not. "Curvy" = hourglass figure, small waist, a rounded bum and boobs. This is not a size 14-16. The OP's boyfriend is going about it the wrong way but he is trying to get his girlfriend to be healthier.

    The OP said that when not talking about weight, they get on great. She just needs to tell him how upset it makes her feel and explain to him how he can help her get into shape. But seriously, if the OP's boyfriend is encouraging her to lose weight and she's off eating a fry-up for breakfast, no wonder he is getting annoyed about it.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 86,729 ✭✭✭✭Overheal


    tinkerbell wrote: »
    ^^ Err I'm sorry but size 14-16 is NOT healthy nor is it a "gorgeous figure".


    ......
    Not trying to have a go at you Tink. By all means express looks and aesthetics but its disingenuous to tell someone they are unhealthy because of their dress size. The OP can always visit a GP or Dietitian to make that assertion; and they are the only ones who should say absolutely what is Healthy and what Isn't.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 218 ✭✭cbmonstra


    tinkerbell wrote: »
    You said yourself that you need to lose some weight ... to be honest, your boyfriend is trying to get you to lose weight BUT he is going about it the wrong way by acting like that. But seriously, you're trying to lose weight and you're eating sausage, egg and beans for breakfast? Come on, that's not eating properly.

    You say you get on great when you don't talk about weight. How about you talk to him, and explain how awful it's making you feel and that all you need is encouragement, not to be dictated to.

    Eh... it was her birthday... If ya can't have a sausage on your birthday when can you? :p


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,423 ✭✭✭tinkerbell


    Overheal wrote: »
    Not trying to have a go at you Tink. By all means express looks and aesthetics but its disingenuous to tell someone they are unhealthy because of their dress size. The OP can always visit a GP or Dietitian to make that assertion; and they are the only ones who should say absolutely what is Healthy and what Isn't.

    I apologise if what I said caused offence. Obviously only the OP knows if she's healthy or not, but she said she needed to lose weight which made it sound like her current weight was unhealthy.

    I still think the OP needs to talk to her boyfriend though, maybe he doesn't realise how harsh he's being in the way he goes on at her.


  • Advertisement
  • Closed Accounts Posts: 63 ✭✭mig mag


    tinkerbell wrote: »
    You said yourself that you need to lose some weight ... to be honest, your boyfriend is trying to get you to lose weight BUT he is going about it the wrong way by acting like that. But seriously, you're trying to lose weight and you're eating sausage, egg and beans for breakfast? Come on, that's not eating properly.

    You say you get on great when you don't talk about weight. How about you talk to him, and explain how awful it's making you feel and that all you need is encouragement, not to be dictated to.

    Think you might be being a bit harsh on the girl (about her weight) and way too easy on the boyfriend. He told her he didn't want her to meet his parents looking like that!!
    Definately not something I would take lightly!
    Sausage and egg for brekkie now wnd then.....NOT A SIN especially on your birthday :D


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 793 ✭✭✭vicecreamsundae


    i can't believe what an asshole your boyfriend. saying he'd wouldn't introduce you to his parents looking how you do is INCREDIBLE. and putting this huge pressure on you to work out and diet is really sick, he is trying to control your life and thinks he has some kind of ownership over your body, it's disgusting.

    i can't get over the amount of people responding with "it sounds like he is just concerned for your health" -what complete bull****. it;s called emotional abuse.

    please dump him.. as for how, i guess it depends. you seem worried about some of your things that are at his house, as thought you're unsure how he'll react. if there are certain valuable things at his house that you'd be worrried about him keeping/getting rid off, then yeah i'd recommend subtley picking those up before tell him to get lost! but as for how you actually dump it, i guess that's up to you. personally i would go for an old fashion "**** you!" kind of dumping. none of this "it's not you it's me" nonsense. he is being a dickhead, and i would tell him where to go and why.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 32 C_J


    tinkerbell wrote: »
    ^^ Err I'm sorry but size 14-16 is NOT healthy nor is it a "gorgeous figure". I don't understand how people these days think that 14-16 is "curvy" when it's not. "Curvy" = hourglass figure, small waist, a rounded bum and boobs. This is not a size 14-16. The OP's boyfriend is going about it the wrong way but he is trying to get his girlfriend to be healthier.

    The OP said that when not talking about weight, they get on great. She just needs to tell him how upset it makes her feel and explain to him how he can help her get into shape. But seriously, if the OP's boyfriend is encouraging her to lose weight and she's off eating a fry-up for breakfast, no wonder he is getting annoyed about it.

    I'm sorry if this causes offence but imo some of what's said here is complete bull. Firstly, her bf obviously can't find op too unhealthy or overweight since he got together with her when she was the same size she is now. If something has changed, that's his problem not hers.
    And as for him getting annoyed that she had a fry for breakfast on her birthday - who is he to say what she can or can't eat and be annoyed if it doesn't fit in with what he wants?

    In my opinion, it doesn't sound so much like he is "encouraging" her to lose weight, more like bullying her. Anyone who wants to lose weight has to do it because they actually want to not because somone else thinks they should.

    OP, that's a horrible situation. You're the only one who can figure out what will make you happy.....and once you know that you'll be on your way!:)

    Also, sorry but that comment about not introducing you to his parents looking like that - it's disgusting and completely uncalled for. It makes my blood boil:mad: He's perfect in every way I am assuming???!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 275 ✭✭Pyridine


    I don't normally give personnal issues advice, and probably for good reason, but to answer your question: walk up to him and tell him he's a pr1ck and that it's over! Short and sweet. Then never answer the phone to him or meet him again.

    If you've discussed his obsession with your weight already and how hurts you and he persists it's not going to change!

    This guy is a knob, is treating you like a fool and if you stay with him and you loose the weight it'll be something else, like your hair colour/style, the clothes you wear etc.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 121 ✭✭KiLLeR CoUCh


    tinkerbell wrote: »
    ^^ Err I'm sorry but size 14-16 is NOT healthy nor is it a "gorgeous figure". I don't understand how people these days think that 14-16 is "curvy" when it's not. "Curvy" = hourglass figure, small waist, a rounded bum and boobs. This is not a size 14-16. The OP's boyfriend is going about it the wrong way but he is trying to get his girlfriend to be healthier.

    Who are you to say it's not healthy? The OP said she was 5'8", as am I and a size 14. My BMI is in the normal range and I think I look and eat very well. Perhaps the OP looks fantastic and her OH is controlling for the sake of being controlling, or maybe she's shaped like a sack of flour and does need the trips to the gym, either way it doesn't change the fact her OH is being an utter moron about it.

    OP, if I were you I'd drop this guy very quickly. It's one thing to want to support you to become healthier but this isn't support. If he wants a catwalk model to bring home to his parents tell him good luck finding one.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 3,339 ✭✭✭tenchi-fan


    Latchy wrote: »
    Hmmm ....Boyfriend sounds like a bit of control freak using your weight issue to control tbh

    got it in one!

    OP at the moment I don't think you have enough confidence to be able to break up with this man. Weight was obviously a bit of an issue for you and he played on it in the guise of helping you. He's so "caring" that you'll feel obliged to explain yourself to him when you choose to break up, and he'll say all he wanted to do was help you, but he will never mention your weight again if you give him another chance.

    It will always come back around to the weight, and if it's not the weight it will be something else.

    I feel so bad for you because my brother is doing something similar with his girlfriend. His gf is a doctor and she is made feel grateful to my brother (who has no qualifications and hasn't had a proper job in years) for going out with her by constant digs about her weight.

    You can do better. When you're breaking up with him I wouldn't even mention weight - just say you don't love him, you don't feel right with him and you would like a clean break. Then if you like, join a group like weightwatchers who will give you support rather than criticism, or if you have a friend you can join the gym with her.


  • Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 60,253 Mod ✭✭✭✭Wibbs


    Sounds like he's a fixer upper or improver type. Get someone then start breaking them down and trying to build them up in their own image of what they wanted in the first place. More commonly aimed at some of the ladies as a failing, but men can be much worse when they have this mindset.

    Like the others said, if he wasn't attracted to your wieght, what the hell was he doing going out with you? To take sesna's comparison with navy seals. :rolleyes: The navy seals aren't going to ask a scrawny unfit git like me to train with them. They'd take one look and go thanks but no thanks. They would hardly waste time trying to make me fit their way. Dead right too.

    I had an ex way back who barely 2 months in was coming out with "cut your hair, shave, change careers, put on weight, I don't like this or that friend of yours". My internal thoughts after the first couple of times of this are not fit to print in an open medium. I chilled and simply scraped her off.

    I came to the conclusion that it was all about control. She would never be happy, even if I bent over and followed her instructions to the letter. She sought out situations where there would always be this dynamic going on. Indeed the guy after me did follow her instructions and visibly changed. She dumped him and went off with another poor bastard "fixer upper".

    This sounds like similar, at least in the control part. If he comes out with the "I saw a diamond in the rough and wanted to help" BS you'll know it for sure. We all want those we love to be best that they can be, but most of all be happy doing that. If he cant see that, then find a man who can.

    Rejoice in the awareness of feeling stupid, for that’s how you end up learning new things. If you’re not aware you’re stupid, you probably are.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 166,026 ✭✭✭✭LegacyUser


    I think you've done everything you could possibly do in this relationship. You made a compromise and started exercising, but yet that's not enough. Your boyfriend is eroding your self esteem. And the clue is in the fact that you're too scared to leave. Maybe you're scared of leaving him because he has you believing you're not attractive? He's a pure control freak, no other term for it.
    What would happen if god forbid you married this man and had children by him? You'd spend the rest of your life feeling unattractive and trying to match up to whatever image of perfection this idiot has in his head!


    Get your self esteem and belief back, girl. Run and don't look back!


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 389 ✭✭Anna23


    Thanks for all the advice. Just to clarify a few things, I have spoken to him about how annoying it is to constantly talk about my weight, he of course said he will never mention this again, not even 24 hours later we were back to the same issue. So after a while I just gave up saying anything, as it was going in one ear and coming back the other. Just in the last couple of weeks, it got me really down, and all I do is concentrate on what I put in my mouth. I feel like there is no point in wasting time with him, some of the things that have been said in these posts are exactly what he has been saying, so typical!

    I even said to him myself that once I achieve a perfect size 10 (ideal size for him actually is size 8, but wouldn't ask me to do that as its 2 drastic) then he will move onto something else that he doesn't like, of course again he said that the only issue he has with me is my weight. :rolleyes:

    Also he keeps saying he loves me, and I don't know what to believe anymore!


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 21,730 ✭✭✭✭entropi


    Anna23 wrote: »
    Also he keeps saying he loves me, and I don't know what to believe anymore!
    What you should believe is your own gut feeling about this. He sees you what, two days a week? and he expects you to follow his "orders" about losing weight while he hardly even sees you? After reading your posts I'm of the sound conclusion that he is a tool, he does NOT deserve you and you should get rid of...you deserve someone who loves you for who you are, not what they try and make you into.

    All this gym business, if it benefits YOU, then thats all good but quite simply you can enjoy life without it and without the hassle and without the emotional blackmail he is inflicting on you by the way he keeps saying he "loves" you...


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 531 ✭✭✭mylittlepony


    Play him at his own game:
    If he bring up the weight issue again
    say: well, I would love if you had more muscles or fab six pack, better clothes, last longer in bed, etc.
    Give him a taste of his own medicine
    and hopefully he shut up. :rolleyes:

    Why cant he go to the gym so its a team effort if you do need feel you need to lose a few pounds.
    What about himself, does he need lose weight or put on muscles etc??


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 389 ✭✭Anna23


    Well funny enough he is trying to get back his 6 pack now ( and this is not because I said so, I liked him the way he is/was) I honestly believe now that maybe he wants to break up with me but wont do it himself and expects me to do it! Oh yep he used to bring me to the gym every sat and sun when i was at his place, as early in the morning as possible and in all honesty I hated going and being watched if I run, how long i run for, how long i stay on the bike, how much i swim, how fast i get tired and sweat! Maybe I am looking for excuses as well. But again thank you for all the comments, I hope to be able to do this next weekend.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,724 ✭✭✭seenitall


    This thread and your stories about this pompous control freak of a boyfriend would be nothing short of hilarious if they were about a quirky black humour Hollywood comedy, instead of flesh and blood people.

    Get rid. ASAP. By means of your own choosing.

    All the best for the future.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 389 ✭✭Anna23


    Unfortunately its reality, I wish it was only a story!


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 5,482 ✭✭✭Kidchameleon


    OMFG will you read your orignal post and dump him straight away, its a no brainer!


  • Advertisement
  • Closed Accounts Posts: 389 ✭✭Anna23


    Not to worry I will :o


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,819 ✭✭✭dan_d


    OP.....if you stayed with him, the next steps would be controlling your money, the time you spend with your friends, how often you see your parents, where you go everyday....you want to get rid of him as soon as you can.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 1,229 ✭✭✭sesna


    OP, would you be happier if you met a new partner, who ordered you up a 12 inch pizza every day for dinner, followed by some greasy chips and fatty burgers?

    You should start looking down in your local on any given weekday after mid day.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,127 ✭✭✭kjl


    Anna, I have a friend that is over weight. I have about 8% body fat and dropped it from about 22% so I often give advice and what not to my friend who needs to lose weight. I often ring him up and asked him if he went to the gym or what not, because he needs the nagging. There are loads of thing in my life I need a bit of nagging about.

    I think there is a very good possibly that he is doing this for your sake. I know it's very acceptable to be overweight in this country, but it does not change the fact that it is unhealthy, and is a common source of depression, lack of energy and many other health issues. Maybe he feels that you need a push to make that change, tell the truth, since he got you on this regime, have you lost much weight? Do you not feel happier with yourself when you look in the mirror. When I nag my friend about going to the gym, I'm doing it out of love, not trying to offend, or annoy.

    Being overweight is just stupid, and the fact of the matter is that its easily reversed. I know this guy is probably being a little bit obsessive about it, but is him trying to help you (albeit in a very annoying manor) grounds for dumping him? I think you need to talk to him and tell him to back off a bit about the weight, tell him you are doing your best and that has to be enough for him.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 389 ✭✭Anna23


    My apologies I just don't seem to be able to follow your last comment sesna!
    And second of all I hate pizza!

    Again thanks a mill for all the advice I got. I will re read this thread before making a final decision, and KJL I don't mind encouragement, I just hate being questioned every time I speak to him on the phone + his other comments, that's all honestly, and yes i have spoken to him about this, in one ear out the other! :)

    I just wanted to see if anyone has been though something like this and what advice they would give. Again I really appreciate it, thanks.


  • Advertisement
  • Closed Accounts Posts: 9,287 ✭✭✭davyjose


    sesna wrote: »
    OP, would you be happier if you met a new partner, who ordered you up a 12 inch pizza every day for dinner, followed by some greasy chips and fatty burgers?

    You should start looking down in your local on any given weekday after mid day.

    Where are you getting this from? Either he has to behave as cruelly and authoritarian as he has been, or else someone like you stated above?

    Cop on, and don't be an idiot. There are people who aren't like her boyfriend, and aren't like the above - they're known as normal. You should investigate them yourself.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,127 ✭✭✭kjl


    Anna23 wrote: »
    My apologies I just don't seem to be able to follow your last comment sesna!
    And second of all I hate pizza!

    Again thanks a mill for all the advice I got. I will re read this thread before making a final decision, and KJL I don't mind encouragement, I just hate being questioned every time I speak to him on the phone + his other comments, that's all honestly, and yes i have spoken to him about this, in one ear out the other! :)

    I just wanted to see if anyone has been though something like this and what advice they would give. Again I really appreciate it, thanks.

    You did not answer my question, how much weight have you lost so far?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 240 ✭✭elbee


    I'm actually speechless. Get rid of this guy.

    I suggest you sit him down and say 'Remember you said you didn't want me meeting your parents looking like this? Well, I've given that a lot of thought, and you're right, parents' opinions are so important. And I don't want my parents to know I'm dating someone as nasty as you, I think they'd be really upset if they knew someone was treating me like this. So I think we should end it.'

    OK, that's mostly a joke. But that is a disgusting thing for him to say. I would consider that unforgivable. Apart from that, he could just be a controlling guy who has your best interests at heart and means no harm, but that remark is just so far beyond the pale.

    One tip I would give you is this: Try not to make it about him when you talk to him, because then he could defend himself and this is about your decision.

    For example, if you say 'You always go on about my weight!' he can say 'But I only have your best interests at heart!' and then you have to answer that, which is hard to answer.

    Instead say 'I have decided I don't want to be with someone who goes on about my weight so much.' Then even if he says 'But I only do it because I care!' you can still say ''Why you do it isn't important. I am not willing to put up with it.'

    Good luck OP.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,297 ✭✭✭Jaxxy


    kjl wrote: »
    You did not answer my question, how much weight have you lost so far?

    Why would that matter? She should be doing this for herself, not for him. Encouragement is one thing but insulting her, constantly needing to know how often she goes to the gym and how long she spent on each machine is too much. And telling her he can't introduce her to his parents because she's overweight? Unforgivable! What an absolutely horrible thing to say to somebody you're supposed to care about.

    No matter how much weight she loses she will never be happy with this guy. The OP said herself, his ideal size for her is a size eight. She thinks this is personally unattainable. She should know. So she will never satisfy him, and as other people have said, if it's not the weight issue, it'll be something else.

    OP I was in a very controlling relationship when I was younger. The issue was never my weight because I've always been small, but it manifested itself in other ways. He liked my hair a certain way. He liked certain outfits I owned. If I wore my hair tied back or wore something he didn't like then he would ignore me. When I'd try to coax a conversation out of him all I'd get was "Why didn't you wear this or that dress?" or "Why didn't you bother your lazy arse to blowdry your hair?" He didn't like my friends. For three and half years I was out of touch with them because I was convinced that they'd been mean/bitchy to him when he'd first met them. This is what he had told me and I'd believed him. People tried to tell me over and over again (including his own family!) that I deserved better. It was obvious to them but not to me, I doubted it every single time.

    This is something you have to realise for yourself. Your friends, your mother, people on boards, they can all tell you this guy is no good and you should run for the hills. But you have to see this for yourself. If you think his behaviour is too controlling and if his constant obsession with your weight is making you unhappy then you have to do something about it, yourself, for your own present and future wellbeing. Make the decision and lay it out for him. Forget about the stuff you've left in his house. Cut all ties and try your best to move on. It's hard, I know, but eventually you'll wake up one morning and realise just how much happier you are without the stress of him in your life. You'll know you're wonderful just as you are and you can focus completely on what you want for yourself.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 166,026 ✭✭✭✭LegacyUser


    As one of the above posters said you gotta weigh up the pros and cons and decide if he is right for you. Us men get lambasted for our shallow mentalities,yet we cant win in the situation where a guy falls in love with a girls personality but is frustrated with her lacking confidence over her shape. Men like to fix a problem , I think through his obsessive and controlling nature he is somehow forgetting you are a person and only seeing the "problem"

    All may not be lost although the "parents seeing you" comment is really a dealbreaker. I can relate to him somewhat, i was a much much tamer version for a time and the girlfriend rightly resisted my nagging, ultimately it was up to her to decide to lose it. I quickly copped out of that phase .But feck, she looks marvelous and is much more confident since losing a bit of weight. I used to get frustrated how she would say, oh this belly runs in the family, or so and so girl was born with that figure, lucky bitch type of thing. Its all about lifestyle ultimately, genetics only makes it easier for some.

    Personally I think hes acting like an asshole and it is up to you to decide whether he is beyond redemption.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 118 ✭✭muinteoir09


    Well, the weekend is over... did you break up with the control freak?


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 166,026 ✭✭✭✭LegacyUser


    Firstly I don't think the OP's bf has any right to be telling her to lose weight since she is no heavier now than when she met him, but I also think we need to get real here and stop pretending that a size 14/16 is not a large size to be.

    I'm the same height as the OP and a size 10/12. I am almost ten stone. A person of my height would need to be several stone heavier than I am to be a size 14/16, and I can't see a woman of 5.8 being thirteen or fourteen stone as healthy.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 1,229 ✭✭✭sesna


    Firstly I don't think the OP's bf has any right to be telling her to lose weight since she is no heavier now than when she met him, but I also think we need to get real here and stop pretending that a size 14/16 is not a large size to be.

    I'm the same height as the OP and a size 10/12. I am almost ten stone. A person of my height would need to be several stone heavier than I am to be a size 14/16, and I can't see a woman of 5.8 being thirteen or fourteen stone as healthy.

    Personally I think the OP's boyfriend is a fatist. He doesn't like the unhealthy consequences of people carrying unnecessary fat all over their body.

    However, its not his position to start harassing her about losing the weight. That would be a gym instructors job.

    He would be better served buying her a voucher for a personal trainer/gym, and organising activity weekends etc. so the OP can burn off some of that fat.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 166,026 ✭✭✭✭LegacyUser


    Firstly I don't think the OP's bf has any right to be telling her to lose weight since she is no heavier now than when she met him, but I also think we need to get real here and stop pretending that a size 14/16 is not a large size to be.

    I'm the same height as the OP and a size 10/12. I am almost ten stone. A person of my height would need to be several stone heavier than I am to be a size 14/16, and I can't see a woman of 5.8 being thirteen or fourteen stone as healthy.

    I am 5 foot 8 and weigh 11 stone, and a size 14. So you don't know what you're talking about.



    To the OP - I would dump him. If I was going out with someone, and they started telling me what I could or couldn't do after 9 months, it would be all the warning sign I needed to get out of it. Don't waste your time on someone like that. It sounds like he's enforced this diet on you. You obviously don't have the same ideas about food and exercise. Why don't you find someone more relaxed and supportive of you? It really doesn't sound like he's worth it.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 18 Sabbath Lily


    Hi OP,

    Get out. You are much too young to be in a relationship like this. This kind of stuff is usually stuff I hear from older women who are in long-term relationships that they are afraid to leave because they don't think they can function on their own or that anybody else would want them. You don't seem to be with your boyfriend for too long in comparison. He's obviously obsessed with controlling you - he's already weakened your self-confidence, and you seem afraid to do something about it. Fair enough, you've every intention of doing it, but you seem to be putting it off all the time. He probably senses this and is lashing out. Maybe he thought you were pulling away slightly, or becoming 'too independent' (as if there's such a thing!), and started on about your weight then.

    I can't believe how people in this thread are reacting to you. Whether you need or don't need to lose weight is not the issue at all. You seem, to me, to be in an emotionally abusive relationship. Whatever reasons he has for what he's doing, or how he feels - you've already told him that you don't appreciate it, and he has continually ignored this. You are so tired of it now that you have stopped even making the point. He's wearing you down emotionally. Don't let him.

    You have outlined that you get on great apart from his harping on about your weight. This just follows the classic pattern of controlling relationships, IMO. Most people in this situation tend to say the same, and make excuses for their partner. Are the good parts of your relationship worth enduring this for? Ultimately that's a question you need to ask yourself, but I think you've done enough to answer that already.


  • Advertisement
Advertisement