Long Term Weight Loss - How to keep motivated after 5 months?

fitgoals23

I am almost 5 months into my weight loss journey (and 44 lbs down!!) but I still have a long way to go. When I first started, I was very motivated and strict with myself both about nutrition and exercise. I have made significant lifestyle changes that I plan to keep, but my motivation seems to be waning.

I've gone from going to the gym every day to only 4-5 times a week and I have gotten a little lax occassionally when it comes to food as well. I'm still miles ahead of where I was before I started (I was never exercising and eating extreme amounts of terrible, terrible crap), so I haven't completely fallen off the wagon or anything. I just seem to have lost the ability to be as strict with myself that I had for the first couple months of my weight loss, and my results have slowed accordingly.

I'm afraid that if I keep slowing down, pretty soon I will stop. I don't like this trend I am seeing in myself and I think I need something to light a fire under me again.

Does anyone out there have any advice on how to regaining my motivation? I have another 60 lbs to lose and need to get my *kitten* in gear!

MLS1582

I'm 8 months in (and 60lbs down), and I totally feel your pain. I often switch my focus to keep myself entertained. I got a bit stuck just before I hit 50lbs. It was around Valentine's Day, and I just wasn't feeling it the way I had been. I adjusted my calorie setting (I have MFP Pro), so that I had more calories each day, but I didn't get to eat any exercise calories. After, 3 weeks or so, I had gotten used to that so I switched it back. Recently, I've taken a break from focusing on my calories and aim to keep my sugar under a set level (since sugar is my biggest challenge, that's enough to keep my calories in check). I also have a clear long-term workout goal: I'm registered for a 1/2 marathon on Labor Day weekend! It's enough to keep me running at least 3 days each week (usually, I run 5). For me, it's all about keeping it interesting. After this long, it's easy to get complacent out of monotony. I also went through a phase when I kept my calories on the lower end and gave myself a "cheat" day when I planned something super yummy to eat.

melhealthy