I'm not really doing it....

shangrilala

I started MFP with excitement and feeling motivated. I did pretty well the first couple of months. I lost 8 pounds, clothes immediately started to fit better, I immediately started to feel better, and a couple of people noticed right away. We went away on vacation, and I still logged every single bite, and came home from vacation and had gained .5 pounds...which came off immediately after a couple of days at home. But since then...I don't know. I still want to do this. I know I still can do this. I'm still in this for the long haul, no matter how long it takes. I've promised myself 1 year on MFP. No more flip flopping around between low carb, counting points, etc., just one year of watching calories and trying to make healthy choices. But despite that, right now, I'm just not doing it. I've gained back about a pound, and while that doesn't actually upset me right now, I know that could snowball effect quickly. Somehow the logical part of my mind "I'm doing mfp" isn't connecting with the emotional part of my mind "I'm doing mf...ooooooh, look, carvel cake, I'm tired, I'm stressed, half of a cake won't hurt, I just won't log it"

So today I start a week of accountability - log everything. Every little bite, the good the bad and the ugly. I guess it's a start. And while I still want to, right now I'm not feeling that motivated.

If there's anybody out there who would like to friend me and join me for an "accountability week" (for lack of a better term, feel free to do so. I just turned 39, I'm a working full time mom of an almost 4 year old and a 2 year old. I want to lose about 50 pounds. My biggest struggle is finding time to for me, after being mom and wife. And I think that's probably a big part of why I struggle with this. I just haven't quite figured out the solution yet.

Rambling at this point...thanks for reading.

999tigger

Keep it simple. prelog your food and exercise, know what it is you have to do and then just focus enough on that day, tick off your to do list, rinse and repeat x 7.

rdlewis123

Don't look at it as "I'm doing mfp" look at it as "I'm creating lasting lifestyle changes." MFP is just a tool to make the process easier. At first it does look like Mt Everest, but I PROMISE it gets easier. And yes, I will friend you.

sfreeze317

Hi Shangrilala, I also feel the same about my journey with MFP. I started using the app about 1.5 years ago to lose some weight for my wedding. I did a pretty decent job at maintaining that weight for about 8 months. I've never been concerned with my weight until I had a drastic shift in jobs where I went from standing all day to sitting all day, and when I broke my leg/ankle about 4 years ago. I was always very active and playing sports, but now it kills my leg to do the high-calorie burning activities, like running. Surprise! Gained 25-35 lbs in 3 years and jumped up 4 sizes.

Well, about 6 months ago I changed jobs with a boss that can be very demanding at times. I found myself stress eating as soon as I got home, and what did I say to myself? "Oh, this doesn't count, I'm just having a bad day. I won't put this into MFP because I'll be good tomorrow." Well, I'm still at the same job so as you can imagine, the stress hasn't gone away and now I'm certain I'm about 10lbs heavier than I was when I first started this journey a year and a half ago. I haven't confirmed this yet because our scale broke a couple of months ago during a move.

At the beginning of this week, I sat down and had a talk with myself after getting together with a friend who's lost almost 60lbs in the last year. I told myself I deserved to be fit and healthy like her, and if that means I need someone counting my calories right along with me to keep me accountable and reminding me to add the 150 calories for that Dr. Pepper I just downed, then I will do it. I've tried asking my husband to be this person for me, but he's 6'5" and can eat for days and never gain a pound, so he doesn't quite understand that for me that a piece of sugary cake is a big deal. He just says, "Oh, you'll be fine. It's just one piece."

I type all this to say, I understand and I'm here for you if you'd like to keep this conversation going. I'd love to have someone to check in with daily and recap my day. I need someone who believes I can do this and in return I will be there to cheer them on in their journey too! Life is too short not to build each other up with confidence and to lead a healthy life!

Facts about me: About to turn 29, I work a full-time job and also have a part-time job giving music lessons outside of my 8-5. I'd really like to lose about 25lbs right now to be a healthy weight for my height, 5'9.5". My husband and I have been trying to conceive for 6 months, but it hasn't happened for us yet. I'm hoping that with a bit of weight loss that may help our chances. I too find it hard to fit in health and fitness into my schedule, along with many other things, mostly because I don't have the energy at the end of the day. I admire you, a mom, wife and working full-time, the same as my mother who is almost 60. It takes strong, wonderful ladies to be able to do all these things, just remember, you're Wonder Woman!

Lastly, thank you for sharing your story and know that I am here to talk and be an accountability partner.