What has helped you be most successful?

gamesandgains

Back in the day it was hiring a coach/trainer. Nowadays, patience.

longarmlou

I set a goal for myself. I want go backpacking in the Grand Canyon in April, if we can get the permits. It is about being fit & able to carry a large backpack.

BWBTrish

Persistence & patience & my food scale and weighing everything in grams...no cups or spoons!
Plus i made an agreement/promise with myself..and because i am a person who keeps promises it is hard to break it.
And there are no and i have no excuses to not lose weight.

Unknown

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natboosh69

Definitely patience, realising I don't have to cut out anything and major forum lurking

FatFreeFrolicking

• Food scale
• Meal prep
• Thinking of exercise as a path to health- when I think of it as a part of weight loss, it feels like a chore
• Consistency

whmscll

longarmlou wrote: »

I set a goal for myself. I want go backpacking in the Grand Canyon in April, if we can get the permits. It is about being fit & able to carry a large backpack.

I'm going in September! When you apply for permits, see if you can get a meal reservation at the Phantom Ranch, if that's where you're going. Amazing food. [apologies to others for the derailment]

Asher_Ethan

Food scale and water.

cwolfman13

patience and consistency

pineapple_pizza

Congrats for your longest streak! I'm on mine currently. I've used MFP a few times before but this is the first time it has been sustainable for me.

I agree with others that getting a food scale was the thing that has helped most; there is no guessing measurements anymore! Also learning forgiveness and respect in regards to the process. I'm better at forgiving myself for slipping up and don't just throw in the towel because I've had an off day. Furthermore, learning to respect my body and appreciate it has been really important. I'm changing my lifestyle to get stronger and healthier.

Annie_01

For me it has been taking all the info I learned about food and fitness then putting it all together in a way works for me.

Also sticking with plan that I put together and sticking with it for a given period of time. My last go round at MFP I kept changing it...constantly. This time I mostly just tweak it here and there when needed.

domgibson88

I've been mountain biking and switched from all sugary drinks to WATER... The pounds have melted off..I bought myself a 1000 dollar solid mountain bike..and my boyfriend and I have been driving to the hills and going for an hour and a half rides.. When I type that into MFP it takes off 919 calories!!!!!We love doing it enjoy the fresh air..we go to the gym in the winter time but cancelled our memberships for the summer..find a workout that's fun!!and that you enjoy..summertime is a perfect opportunity to experiment with excersise activities you would enjoy

domgibson88

Oh and water water water...I was going through a jug of pink lemonade a day..when I plugged that into MFP it was adding like 500 calories just from my juice....I hate water..but the more I make myself drink it the more I crave it..now when I drink juice it's wayyy to sweet and I want water... Never thought I would ever say that lol

Kalikel

Eating normal amounts of healthy food and exercising.

ohgeeque

It is cliche to say that nothing succeeds like success but it is true in more than one sense. Every little victory is a success and strengthens my desire and commitment to achieving my next goal.

mantium999

Eating an appropriate amount of a variety of foods, while exercising.

laras29

You need accountability + a solid workout plan that you like and is INTENSE enough to promote change + a solid food plan.

laras29

GreenValli wrote: »

Logging my food everyday and knowing that there are others that are on this weight loss journey like me who are being patient and consistent also.

I agree tracking is critical. It helps you take an honest look at your habits. Plus you get to find out how different foods actually affect you. Some foods may be fine for some, but not agree with you. The logging of the food gives you something to go back to and analyze when you want to "tweak".

lorrpb

shell1005 wrote: »

Realizing consistency and commitment are more important than will power.

YES, these exact words area mantra too. The thing that has enabled me to be consistent is rembering how horrible I ft physically and mentally before I started 13 months & 94 pounds ago. I don't ever want to feel like that again. If I'm not moving forward, I'm headed back to that place. That gets me out of chair and moving or eating right, etc.

cbelc2

Tracking and adjusting as I go is very helpful. I particularly like the button that I push when I'm done for the day.

WeddedBliss1992

i noticed that i couldn't bend over and tie my shoes b/c my belly was getting in the way! THAT was SAD and MOTIVATING! i'm SERIOUS this time!

Liftng4Lis

Patience, consistency and wanting more.

Tahlia68

MFP and myself.

47Jacqueline

Stopping the diet mentality.

AlabasterVerve

LCHF. Having a normal appetite again is priceless.

kommodevaran

Patience. I'm in this for ever. One day or one week will not make a lot of difference for good nor for bad.

I love food, so: Variety and taste has priority. Not eliminating anything I love. But removing "healthy" food I don't like. Fat is good.

Avoiding temptation as much as possible. Realizing I indeed have trigger foods that I have trouble with moderating. Understand the interaction that goes on between marketing and my own mind.

Learning about hunger and satiety cues, separate hunger from cravings.

Food plan - inventory - shopping list, in a continous cycle.

Cooking from simple, cheap, whole, fresh foods, and eating my own food most of the time.

Eating meals, stop the starve/graze cycle.

Portion control, no more mindless overeating. Adequate calorie and macro goals, prelogging in food diary and using food scale. Making sure I get the right amount from all food groups every day, having a special focus on fruit, vegetables and nuts.

Weighing every day, but only watching the trend. Fitbit+Trendweight.

I don't like to exercise, but I am more active generally.

MFP

taty914

I have to say a fitness tracker. I bought an original vivo fit and I love it. Keeps me on my toes ( literally;) I love because they have a challenge every week and o guess I thrive on the competition.
Calorie counting
And after reading all this I'm getting a good scale today...
Support from my husband

NoIdea101NoIdea

Weighing all my food and pre-planning my meals; I eat dinner with my boyfriend so I just save between 400 and 600 calories for whatever that may be, but either the night before or early in the morning I pre-plan and pack all of the food I am planning on eating throughout the day at work or wherever I'm going. It has made such a difference!

I also carry a snack around with me, usually a granola bar or something I can just leave in my bag and forget about in case I get hungry when I'm out; therefore I'm not tempted to pop into a shop and buy something calorific!

Jennak87

MFP in general has made me successful.

Usually when I "go on a diet", I give up because i just seem to lose and gain the same 5/6/7lbs over and over. I think I've been dieting for ages and barely lost any weight and I give up. The "XX day streak" thing on my homepage lets me know that it's actually only been 21 days since I've seriously been trying to lose weight, and 6lbs in 3 weeks is actually great going!

Logging everyday showed me that I can actually eat a decent amount and still lose weight. Before it was all about deprivation and cutting out things that I enjoy, now I know that I can eat a slice of cake if it's within my calories and even if it isn't I can go get active to make it fit within my calories, haha. Before joining MFP, if I had a slice of cake or a bit of chocolate or something I'd decided I wasn't allowed I would have felt like the whole day was a waste and just gone on a mad binge that would not only make me feel awful about myself, but sometimes stopped my efforts to lose weight altogether.

Thirdly, the community here has kept me motivated and on track. Logging on and seeing my friends hit the gym, complete their diaries and consistently lose weight constantly reinforces that this works and that if I log consistently and keep with in my calories I'll lose weight too!