What do you guys do when you feel like giving up?

SbetaK

Ha Ha-my ticker says I've lost 45 Pfunds! What"s a Pfund? New Urban dictionary term? Yuk yuk. Don't see a way to fix it.

pleasurelittletreasure

This is an oldie-but-goodie topic, for sure. I don't feel like giving up but I do get cranky. And then I just keep going because it gets better. I mean, it can't be as bad as this hike I went on in my early 20's. Switchbacks, rocky trail so much so that you couldn't look up and it wouldn't matter anyway because the trees were grown in so tight that no light got in and there was no undergrowth. None! Just miserable. But stubbornness paid off and OMG that view! That was a 10-star vista! If I had given up, turned around and gone back, all I'd have for all my hard work would be the memory of how yucky the trail was. As it was, I didn't even mind the rocks on the way down.

I'm looking at the big picture here. I know what healthy looks like and I want to see it again even if the journey isn't all that pretty. But I reserve the right to be grumpy when my knees hurt.

pleasurelittletreasure

Ha Ha-my ticker says I've lost 45 Pfunds! What"s a Pfund? New Urban dictionary term? Yuk yuk. Don't see a way to fix it.

That is a "Profound" weight loss! heh heh

kristinemaravilla

When I feel like giving up, I keep going.

Sometimes, you just have to go through with something even if you don't like it, simply because it is the right thing to do.

kateangel2312

I have days like this sometimes week, I just remind myself why I want to be slimmer/healthier and just keep going just never give up

Unknown

This content has been removed.

Velum_cado

Well, I honestly haven't felt that way in the 3 years I've been doing this. As soon as I started, I accepted that this is what my life is going to look like from now on. From day one it really was a lifestyle change, not a restrictive, soul-crushing, short-term diet. The changes I've made are really manageable - I do exercise I love, and still eat the foods I love, just in moderation. I don't log what I eat, which has helped it feel like a normal lifestyle, not a short-term condition I need to monitor. In the past, when I've lost weight and then given up it's because I've felt so restricted in my diet, and the exercise I was doing was so monotonous. Any benefits were outweighed by my awful emotional wellbeing. I haven't felt that this time.

Nadoriel

Well to be honest I have breaks every now and again mainly from logging, when I go back to my old country. It's hard to find the food calories in there anyway. But the most important is finding something you like. I enjoy weight lifting, and even if I don't feel like leaving the house to go to the gym i know I'll have fun, so eventually I'll just get myself up and go. And I eat plenty of what I like, so it's rare to binge.

It's a lifetime process. There are ups and downs, but the changes you make are forever, so you have to make the right ones. And keep on. I'm setting my goals on finding new clothes for me and that makes me stay motivated, even though I know it's gonna be a long time to have the body I want. I'm already better.

mymodernbabylon

To stay motivated:

1. Have goals that have true meaning to you. They should be SMART goals...specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely. Mine are to weigh a certain weight, to be able to lift at 2x the level I currently can and I want to have these achieved by the end of summer. So I can work toward them. Small goals are perfect for this with a big goal at the end.

2. Make this a lifestyle. I love lifting and being able to play sport, even at 45 yr of age. I eat and drink the same things I want to for life - no restrictions here. But I have added some items and made my portions smaller. Very doable for life. Honestly, I could probably give up MFP and continue on fine as I've done this long enough to make it a habit. But I like the support of it all.

If you don't like the exercise you are doing, find something else that you enjoy. I love walking my dog, so I do that. I hate running but need it to play sport, so I can get on board with doing it. And weight lifting makes me strong, which I like. Otherwise, I'd find other things to do!

JaneWalerud

so much good advice here...!

A writer I respect, Ta-Nehishi Coates, has lost a lot of weight, and he mentioned "making choices a healthy person would". I think of that a lot. I want to be a healthy person. Why not behave like one?

I give myself smaller goals with slogans. When I was dieting from 109 to 99 kilos, I said "I'm getting through my naughties". That's stupid and silly, but it helped to have a catchy phrase to repeat to myself.

I always have clothes one size down in my closet, and try them on often. The first day wearing a new size in public is a real victory.

I dream about dancing, what I'll wear, and even flirting (me?!) at parties. There is a party at the end of June and I really would like to fit into the green dress for that. Each party becomes a motivational goal

Nix143

Something has changed this time and I don't know what it is but it is similar to the people who say there is no slipping any more.

I have long term goals so that I don't fall into the must lose X pounds by Y date. First one is October 2014 when I go to Egypt - I want to feel comfortable in my bikini but I know it won't be perfect. And that's ok because it will be miles better than when I started in March.

And then October 2015 I will be in Vegas and this is the BIG goal. I have enough time to get to goal in a reasonable manner.

If I have a night out or there is an occasion where I go out to eat - that is ok. This is my life now. I'm not on a diet, I'm not deprived, this is just how it is now. It's taken all the madness out of it. All the I MUST lose this amount of weight or else I am a failure. I refuse to spend the rest of my life branding myself a failure or setting unrealistic expectations where I am bound to fail.

I know what I want now - and I want it a lot more than I want to mindessly eat mounds of cr*p

Elektrolyfe

Remind myself how far I have come and where I will end up as if I don't keep my passion for fitness alive.

vivlady9

yep - that's why I'm here also - thanks for posting this thread. Sums up my day today.

Danispen

One of my things that motivates me to continue is getting out the tape measure and holding it to where the tape used to be.. It's a fantastic visual of where you used to be. Take measurements they tell heaps I reckon

cheripugh1

Hey I was just wondering what you do when you feel like giving up and no caring anymore. I have been feeling discouraged lately....not wanting to count calories anymore or go to the gym..

Thanks for asking... I'm at this point today, so I will now go read your pages or replies and see if I can find some inspiration.

BobbiTracey

Giving up is so easy to do. In my first few weeks I slipped up and wanted to give up completely. But what I kept saying to myself was that whatever I am doing now, is better than what I was doing a month ago, and it just inspired me to keep going! I will never let myself fall back into my old ways. Remember how far you've come and think about how much time, effort and hard work you would have wasted if you give up now! We all have our down days but you just need to remember to get up and move on. Tomorrow is a new day

texasgardnr

Anybody notice that on some of the earlier (2013) reply posts some writers would say something about having already lost X numbers of pounds/kgs while writing about what was motivating them?

But when I glanced down at their ticker I noticed many more pounds lost! At first it was confusing until I realized that this thread had been started last year, and it has been a year, and they have lost even more pounds/kgs!!

Now that is clearly motivating to see what can be actually accomplished, and not just talked about, when one is determined through the easy and difficult times of life. NOT perfection, but a move forward, even after a couple (or even more) steps/ pounds backwards.

For myself I have always given away clothes when I had lost enough weight to make a difference. So when I start to feel the clothes "getting smaller" I know that I do not ever want to buy a bigger wardrobe.
I was advised to do this by a co-worker when I was in my mid 20's and had lost my first ever bit of weight that made a big difference in how my clothes fit.

It has served me well over the last 40 years that I have slowly taken off weight from my all-time highest weight in my mid 20s. I'm on MFP to lose those last proverbial pounds... finally.... in my 60s!

It is not easy because it is a lifetime thing. I have struggled my entire life. And I still have to be ever diligent, even now. But the alternative is being unhealthy and hurting... and that is now my motivator. Plus it is still my clothes that give me the warning signal when they start to get tight, like they did again a number of months ago.

Never give up!

:flowerforyou:

rpmtnbkr

I get that way sometimes... it's frustrating to see yourself stall out.... For me... I just keep plugging along, make a few changes here and there and things start changing...

Good Luck

Marlene1667

If I gave up every time I felt like giving up, I wouldn't have lost all the weight I've lost and probably be bigger then I use to be. What I do is think about what I really want, to give up or to see the body I wish to have. I tell my mind to shut up and I push harder. I didn't feel like working out today, but it's not my rest day and it's a habit to workout, it's a commitment, this is not something I'm interested in, this is something I have to do, for myself. It's not about anyone but me and if I give up, I fail myself, so many people have started pushing harder because of my progress and I can say that because I've been told this, and if I give up, I give up on them as well and it feels like I'm responsible for where they go so me giving up is not an option.

Marlene1667

When I feel like giving up - usually because the scale hates me - I stop and really think about why do I feel this way. Rather than pushing the feeling aside I explore and then reframe it into my real goal. I read inspiring success stories on MFP. My weight loss has been very slow and I get frustrated but at the end of the day I am a much healthier and happier person than I was. I am losing weight - slowly - and I know I will get there and along the journey I am figuring out how I go here in the first place, so that I won't gain it back. All the best to you! Keep going.

JeffInJax

Very simple i look at my "before" picture, cringe and get back to the gym haha.

shimmerNsparkle

I look at where I was a year ago and 75 pounds heavier(I had just had my second baby). Now I am 125 and Healthy, still have 10 pounds to reach my target but its alot better then having 50 pounds or 60 pounds left to go ;-)

dimple_gal

Sometimes I do need to take a break. I think I have got to the point where I will keep the exercise up, but I don't want to be a slave to the tracking of food. I miss a day sometimes, and I will usually go back and add it in. It is a good reminder of how easily you can slip into bad habits.

I love to feel that layer of muscle on my stomach, it reminds me of how strong I have become. Sure, no one can see it yet, but it inspires me to keep it up. I know if I keep it up, I will see it too someday!

spacelump

I do two things: 1) look for motivation, usually in "Success Stories" and 2) Give myself some self care and down time. Usually feeling unmotivated means I'm tired (which is good). But, to continue this path I need to also recognize when my body and mind are over worked and deserving of a lazy day and some foods some would refer to as "cheat foods". ( I don't call them that because it infers a diet is taking place versus a sustainable life change).

Lately, hell, for the last three weeks I have been focused on moving, have reached a goal of mine and frankly not felt driven. That's okay. I am still mostly choosing to eat with intuition of what does my body good and what is calorie nutritious. I still make a point of playing at the park with my kiddo, of going for leisurely walks around the neighborhood and of how my measurements are looking. I haven't been to the gym in those three weeks nor calorie counted (I don't anyway), but am sure despite this that because of my still somewhat deficit and remaining active, I have lost.

Sometimes, in short, we don't have to always be in hyper focus mode to succeed, if we continue practicing the healthy habits we have learned while in "on" mode, it's acceptable and a normal part of living to have some down time. Listen to your needs. Find inspiration. Remain active. Try a new class. Listen to music and dance. We don't have to be gym rats or perpetually watching ourselves to make lifestyle changes that last.

SaltNBurnBoys

bump

SaltNBurnBoys

Everyone's advice is really great apart from one thing.

Almost every single person says "look at how far you've come" or something along those lines, and that just doesn't apply to me. I counted every calorie and weighed every bite of food I put in my mouth for two months and saw no results at all. Not a pound lost- my lightest weight was actually my FIRST weigh-in- no better-fitting clothes, and I didn't feel anything but exhausted. I've come back to give it another try, but it's so hard to find any motivation in the face of that.

_Resolve_

I remind myself what giving up felt like, and remembering the reasons I started keep me going.

btanton27

its been a long journey but as long as I keep going in the right direction, im happy! Granted, I slacked off for most the winter ( I get really bad seasonal depression) but I only gained back about 5 lbs during that time. And it only took me about a week or so to drop it again. We all have bad days or weeks or months but I know after that bad day, Im still WAY ahead of where I first started. I will never let myself go back to where I was before, ever!

mlk0812

I can't give up forever because the alternative "feeling like crap" is worse. So I have to make wiser food choices, and workout because if I don't do those things I feel awful. In a nutshell I would rather feel and look awesome then feel sick and bloated.

btanton27

Everyone's advice is really great apart from one thing.

Almost every single person says "look at how far you've come" or something along those lines, and that just doesn't apply to me. I counted every calorie and weighed every bite of food I put in my mouth for two months and saw no results at all. Not a pound lost- my lightest weight was actually my FIRST weigh-in- no better-fitting clothes, and I didn't feel anything but exhausted. I've come back to give it another try, but it's so hard to find any motivation in the face of that.

Even though you probably have heard this a million times, it really is calories in/ calories out. you are most likely underestimating your calorie consumption or overestimating your activity level. it took me awhile to get mine straightened out.