How do you reward yourself?

PeachyCarol

dorkyfaery wrote: »

mamapeach910 wrote: »

Ordinarily, I'd buy new nail polish, but my doctor doesn't want me wearing it any more (I have psoriatic arthritis and it effects my nails). Soooo... I've just been patting myself on the back and I did buy some yarn. My reward will be enjoying knitting smaller garments.

Oh man - I'm with you. A sweater quantity of tosh for an XL v a M...looking forward to that!

A sweater's worth of Tosh is going to be my goal weight reward. I got enough of another yarn to knit myself a large, which I've lost enough down to at this point. I'm knitting a cardigan, so it'll do even at a lower weight. It'll just be slouchy.

yoovie

TheVirgoddess wrote: »

I don't for small goals along the way. But if I thought it would help motivate me I would.

But for my ultimate "you fing did it" goal, I'm getting this:



Which will be my first ever tattoo

awesome idea!

I just did this!!!

Unknown

This content has been removed.

silentKayak

I started out using "rewards", but it didn't really work for me.

Instead, I focus on the stuff I'll be able to do at the next weight down. For example, right now I'm trying to take up running, but it still hurts my knees. So I've sworn to myself that I won't even try training for a 5K until I'm 20 lbs from where I am today. Since I want to do that, it's something to look forward to and it motivates me.

Other examples are particular styles of clothing I want to wear ... getting back into an old pair of jeans ... dumping more unstylish, ugly clothes on the "too big for me" pile ... fitting properly in an airplane seat ... going kayaking next summer without the humiliation of trying to wedge myself into a too-small cockpit ... etc.

When it gets hard (don't want to go to the gym, want to eat pizza, etc), I think about my goals. Not just a number on the scale, but what it means to me.

I also think you should buy clothes that fit you and that you love NOW. You deserve them NOW. You don't have to wear thrift shop clothing. You didn't shop at Goodwill because "I'll probably be a size bigger in a few months", so don't do it because you anticipate getting smaller, either.

If you want to join a gym, do it now. Strength training will benefit you now. Gyms are for everyone.

The better you feel about yourself, the more committed you'll be. Act like the person you want to be, and one day you'll wake up and find out you're her.

ThatMouse

I can definitely understand that weight loss is its own reward. I can also understand @elphie754's statement that rewards can provide some extra incentive.

Personally, finding my muscles peeking out from under my fat gives me more of a rush than any material good I can use to reward myself with. However, I do promise myself some things. I have 25lbs to lose and have a goal of 1lb/week, so my current scheme rewards me with something every 5ish weeks.

@elphie754‌, these may not work for you as I build my rewards around clothes mostly.

Every 5lbs, I want to buy myself a new article of workout clothing. First up, I want to buy myself a Welcome to Nightvale Tank Top. It's not "workout" specific, but I like the design, the show and it'll be my only other workout tank top. Next is a pair of shorts, as I seem to have misplaced mine and by then it should be warming up. Then another shirt - maybe a compression shirt if I can afford it or if my body warrants it. Then maybe a LuLuLemon sweater or tank. My last 5lbs reward might be a non-workout article of clothing, like a dress.

Finally, once I've maintained my goal weight for at least one or two months (or however long it takes for me to put away the money to buy it), I want to buy an Intelliskin shirt. I have no clue if it works, but as I work at a desk all day, I figure it couldn't hurt.

From there, once I've maintained my goal weight for a year, I'm going to invest in a Style Consultant and Make Up Specialist to help me overhaul my wardrobe and look so I can make full use of the body I've worked hard to get. Sure, I could learn it for free, but I suck at make up and I'm *kitten* for fashion sense beyond basic office wear or casual. So why not get some help from the experts?

ems212

I set milestones for myself. Because my goal was roughly 75lbs, each 25lb loss I let myself spend $25 where I normally wouldn't spend it. I'm almost to my first 25, and I've decided I'm going to go see a movie in theaters It's not something I do often...it's actually been almost a year since I've last done that. I think the $25 after that will go towards my next tattoo.

kecmw25

I love rewards!

When I 1st started I used a reward system where I gave myself a "star" for hitting daily goals. Think exercising 30 minutes or more, staying under my calorie goal, hitting my fiber goal, etc. Theoretically, I could earn 10 points a day, although I think I only had 1 "10 star" day. When I got to 100 "stars" I got a reward. (New yoga pants, new headphones, same sort of rewards you were talking about) I don't do it anymore but I think it helped me establish some pretty healthy habits. I've actually been thinking about starting it up again

I really like the wish list idea.

elphie754

jaykal001 wrote: »

I appreciate a lot of the comments about the progress being it's own reward, but in the true spirit of the question I have a couple thoughts that have worked for others (that i know of anyways).

Put $1 or $5 for every pound lost and spend it at the mini goal or big goal. (We did a similar concept, like a "swear jar" and spent the money on a bed n breakfast trip).

For me, for it to be a 'reward' it has to be something i wouldn't otherwise buy.
*new sunglasses, or designer frames
*wallet/purse (because you see it every day)
*I thought about running shoes, or something fun that would help with the next leg. You could look at a bike, kayak, etc - all those healthy type hobbies.

Lots of fun ideas so far!

I like the idea of a trip. I already decided that once I reach my goal I will be treating myself to a cruise.

elphie754

Luckie519 wrote: »

I don't know if you consider wine food, but I love wine, so I do reward myself with a glass every once in a while. I also try to keep an eye on the clearance section of my favorite stores and buy a new shirt, pant, etc in the next size down.

I do consider wine food, but I can't drink wine anyway.

zarckon wrote: »

I started out using "rewards", but it didn't really work for me.

Instead, I focus on the stuff I'll be able to do at the next weight down. For example, right now I'm trying to take up running, but it still hurts my knees. So I've sworn to myself that I won't even try training for a 5K until I'm 20 lbs from where I am today. Since I want to do that, it's something to look forward to and it motivates me.

Other examples are particular styles of clothing I want to wear ... getting back into an old pair of jeans ... dumping more unstylish, ugly clothes on the "too big for me" pile ... fitting properly in an airplane seat ... going kayaking next summer without the humiliation of trying to wedge myself into a too-small cockpit ... etc.

When it gets hard (don't want to go to the gym, want to eat pizza, etc), I think about my goals. Not just a number on the scale, but what it means to me.

I also think you should buy clothes that fit you and that you love NOW. You deserve them NOW. You don't have to wear thrift shop clothing. You didn't shop at Goodwill because "I'll probably be a size bigger in a few months", so don't do it because you anticipate getting smaller, either.

If you want to join a gym, do it now. Strength training will benefit you now. Gyms are for everyone.

The better you feel about yourself, the more committed you'll be. Act like the person you want to be, and one day you'll wake up and find out you're her.

I would agree but it is more about money being tight than anything else. I can really afford to by things that I will just ended up shrinking out of in a month.

ThatMouse wrote: »

I can definitely understand that weight loss is its own reward. I can also understand @elphie754's statement that rewards can provide some extra incentive.

Personally, finding my muscles peeking out from under my fat gives me more of a rush than any material good I can use to reward myself with. However, I do promise myself some things. I have 25lbs to lose and have a goal of 1lb/week, so my current scheme rewards me with something every 5ish weeks.

@elphie754‌, these may not work for you as I build my rewards around clothes mostly.

Every 5lbs, I want to buy myself a new article of workout clothing. First up, I want to buy myself a Welcome to Nightvale Tank Top. It's not "workout" specific, but I like the design, the show and it'll be my only other workout tank top. Next is a pair of shorts, as I seem to have misplaced mine and by then it should be warming up. Then another shirt - maybe a compression shirt if I can afford it or if my body warrants it. Then maybe a LuLuLemon sweater or tank. My last 5lbs reward might be a non-workout article of clothing, like a dress.

Finally, once I've maintained my goal weight for at least one or two months (or however long it takes for me to put away the money to buy it), I want to buy an Intelliskin shirt. I have no clue if it works, but as I work at a desk all day, I figure it couldn't hurt.

From there, once I've maintained my goal weight for a year, I'm going to invest in a Style Consultant and Make Up Specialist to help me overhaul my wardrobe and look so I can make full use of the body I've worked hard to get. Sure, I could learn it for free, but I suck at make up and I'm *kitten* for fashion sense beyond basic office wear or casual. So why not get some help from the experts?

Great idea on consulting an expert. I'm certainly not the best at fashion and makeup.