Why do I always lose my motivation?!? HELP

brittaney10811

Motivation is an initial kicking off point.

If everyone kept their motivation up all of the time, there wouldn't be an obesity epidemic. But it DOES fade.

What makes results, is dedication. Prepping your meals for the week even though it's the absolutely LAST thing you want to do. People who are fit haven't gotten that way because they've stayed motivated. It's because they knew on the days that they had no motivation at all, that eating clean and working out is STILL the right thing to do.

you'll never regret a workout you've completed and given your best at.

you'll never regret taking the time to eat healthy instead of giving in on a 99cent drive through 'convenient' splurge.

in the end, health is A HECK of a lot more convenient than diabetes, hospital visits, insulin shots, heart problems, etc.

Discipline will keep you going. It'll become habit to eat right and exercise, and eventually will be HARDER to skip a workout and eat crap food than it is to do it. You just have to be disciplined enough to get to that point.



respect yourself enough to remember how motivated you felt in the beginning, and use it to push you through the rough days. Your body is capable of being SO BEAUTIFUL, strong and healthy. You owe it to yourself to find out just what it can do.


If you're sick of starting over, then STOP giving up. :flowerforyou:

Vivian06703188

Change motivation to commitment. If you you fail your body will betray you and the body you want will be gone.

kazaroona

You need to have a little heart to heart chat with yourself and really figure this out.

For me, the lightbulb really went off when one of my best friends asked me why my last diet (Atkins) didn't work out. At first I just blew the question off because that's in the past and why harp on it - but I couldn't get it out of my head. So I started thinking about what the common denominator was with all of my (many many many) diet attempts failing and finally realized it was deprivation. Every time I started a diet I was all gung ho about cutting out all these yummy foods I loved and trying to live on salads, diet products, frozen meal, etc - which I hate and leave me hungry. So I decided there was going to be no more of that. I eat what I love but make the healthiest choice I can and/or watch my portions. And I can't tell you how happy I am that it's working and I've been able to stick with it for 3+ years!!

Same goes with exercise. Are you starting out working out hard, way more than you usually do? It may feel great at first but you are going to burn yourself out eventually, especially if you're not eating enough calories and/or the right foods.

As other said, set small obtainable goals for each week/month. Set long term goals too so that you have something to keep you going. Have you filled out those sections on your profile page? If not, do it now. if so, maybe you need to tweak them a bit. I also strongly believe in setting fitness and nutrition goals instead of specific weight loss goals. If you're eating better and working out consistently, the weight loss will follow.

Best of luck!

This has totally struck a cord with me!!!

I ALWAYS fail with exercise and blame it on me being lazy/rubbish/not motivated enough and generally feeling upset and angry with myself and then probably comfort eat becuase 'whats the point'.

Do you know what my exercise goal was this week? (Bearing in mind that last week all I did was walk 5 miles, the week before that I ran once and walked 10 miles. At best in the last 8 weeks, I ran x 2, walked) This week, my goal was to do Ripped in 30 x 5, run x 4 and do my 15 minutes ab workout x3!!! So no wonder I fail when I am already struggling to fit it into a pretty packed week where I work 9-5 and also in the evenings and have a toddler.

So now I have changed this, to Ripped in 30 x 4.

Wolfsunriz

I think this was the best repsonse; it will help to make thing a part of your routine so they become habit:

Motivation is what gets you started, you need to develop a routine that works for you so it becomes a habit. Working out is part of my morning routine just like showering, brushing my teeth, etc. In the beginning when it wasn't a habit I had alerts on my email that said it's workout time, and I treated them like I would any other important meeting. I put them in there as goals I still do that this weeks goal was to ride 30 miles on my bike, now I have 2 weeks to get to 35 miles.

As for nutrition part of it, because I don't deprive myself of anything that isn't hard to continue, I just cut back how much I eat of it.

ninerbuff

Motivation is an initial kicking off point.

If everyone kept their motivation up all of the time, there wouldn't be an obesity epidemic. But it DOES fade.

What makes results, is dedication. Prepping your meals for the week even though it's the absolutely LAST thing you want to do. People who are fit haven't gotten that way because they've stayed motivated. It's because they knew on the days that they had no motivation at all, that eating clean and working out is STILL the right thing to do.

you'll never regret a workout you've completed and given your best at.

you'll never regret taking the time to eat healthy instead of giving in on a 99cent drive through 'convenient' splurge.

in the end, health is A HECK of a lot more convenient than diabetes, hospital visits, insulin shots, heart problems, etc.

Discipline will keep you going. It'll become habit to eat right and exercise, and eventually will be HARDER to skip a workout and eat crap food than it is to do it. You just have to be disciplined enough to get to that point.



respect yourself enough to remember how motivated you felt in the beginning, and use it to push you through the rough days. Your body is capable of being SO BEAUTIFUL, strong and healthy. You owe it to yourself to find out just what it can do.


If you're sick of starting over, then STOP giving up. :flowerforyou:

Agree with almost all of this. Eating "clean" is a choice that one makes on their diet, but isn't necessary to still have good health.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

princess71080

I suggest having a good support group! We got together a group of 6 of us at work that all are working to lose weight/get healthier/stay active. We check in with each other constantly, we weigh in weekly and share our results and we text/call/email each other when we hit obstacles or a lack of motivation. More than once I have had to email a co-worker who talks me into NOT eating that bag of chips I want or who helps me get off the couch and outside for a run! We celebrate our achievements together and support each other thru the challenges we face. To have a group of people that knows EXACTLY what I am going thru and how hard this journey truly is makes me feel less alone. It's kind of like our own little "Weight Watchers" group, but for free! In my experience, It is almost impossible to do this journey by yourself, so find a small support group and lean on each other! It has made ALL the difference to me, especially because I am accountable each week for the choices I make regarding food/exercise! Good Luck to you!

4daluvof_candice

Honey its a journey..some are shorter than others some are longer...I KNOW I have a long journey ahead and I'm cool with it. You have to crawl before you walk....then run! Take baby steps (changes) ex. starting today I'll drink more water...then concentrate on other things YOU know you want to change. Form HABITS, healthy ones that is, that is heading you toward your goal.. You're not alone...GOOD LUCK!!!

trcoope

In regards to exercice, I have to set an event. I am a bike rider, so I register for a couple of rides so I have to train.

98777

I don't know if this has been said already, but gather up some unflattering pictures of yourself overweight and pull them out whenever you lose sight of your goals.

Write out a long list of why you want to lose weight. Make it emotionally charged if you have to.....that will make it more effective. For example, my thin sisters used to make fun of my weight years ago, so whenever I want to quit, I think of that.

Think of future events that you want to go to or things you want to do. If you have a wedding coming up in 6 months, realize that you have to change your habits, stick to it, and work hard to be comfortable and confident at that event that's on the horizon. If you have a trip planned to vacation or something next summer, think how good you'd feel there, so much more comfortable in terms of temperature, energy, and self-confidence.

The bottom line is that you have to realize that weight loss is not an easy thing. But if you work hard, make sacrifices, and persevere, you can achieve it and all the great things that come with it, and you won't regret it. Good luck....you can do it!

MoJoPoe

We all have surges and slumps. Just stay the course. What goes up, must come down - and then up, then down, then up.... :laugh:

cesse47

I believe there is a trigger event that fuels our initial motivation. So, we use that motivation to fuel our initial successes in weight loss. Well, with success comes failure ... and failure is where we learn. Say you have a particularly bad day and hit the drive-thru for supper. OK ... failure. The easy decision is to give up. The harder decision is to re-motivate yourself, accept the failure as a natural part of a successful journey, and jump back into the journey. Past successes are very important but our past failures are also important. They provide points of learning about ourselves and teach us that we can overcome failure in order to become successful.

And, our motivation has to change as well. What may have triggered the initial motivation may no longer exist or be important to us. Set achievable goals that will help keep you motivated. For example, if you only drink 3 glasses of water a day, set a goal to drink 5 for the next week or two. Then, once you are successful for a couple of weeks, change the goal to drink 7 glasses a day. Or, lose 10 pounds and you can buy those new shoes you want. Use what is important to you as a motivational "carrot".

Be diligent about logging all foods, beverages, snacks, and exercise into your diaries. It will help you keep on track. And if you are having difficulties, Ask for help. If you hit a plateau, ask a couple of successful friends here on MFP to look at your diaries. Perhaps they can make suggestions to help you make better choices.

Most importantly ... do NOT give up. This is a journey ... not an overnight fix. Remember, the choice to be successful in this journey is YOURS to make.

I'm hoping I can be successful in my journey; wishing you success in yours. :flowerforyou:

jack_yve

I like action_figures response. I'm implementing it right now. Cause my motivation died last fall.