How to you motivate yourself day to day?

magicpickles

I don't have trouble with exercise, but staying within my calories. I'm allowed about 2000 calories a day, but could easily eat 6000.

I find that I have lots of long term goals/desires/hopes/aspirations, but I don't find them particularly motivating because they are somewhat abstract. Its like saying you want to grow your hair long... you have to be patient to see big results.

Do you reward yourself in different ways daily for doing things? do you fit things into your day that you bring joy or comfort outside of food?

What drives you?

After all, tomorrow is not guaranteed, and next week, next month, next year etc is too far away to really think about. Its hard to make sacrifices for things you may not see results for. All we have is today (attitude from over-eaters anonymous).

Wotan39

Can so relate... I learned to find replacements for some of my favorite foods. Like instead of chips, I have baked snap peas or instead of cookies a handful of cereal. Oh and goals help me, like that pair of jeans I always wanted

kommodevaran

I've experienced this myself; I also recognize lots from your other posts today. It took me a long time to figure this out - for myself; I can't guarantee my answer is of any help to you.

I belived I was some kind of freak of nature because I could eat so much. It turns out that most people can eat that much, but normal weight people choose not to, at least not all the time.

I too had trouble connecting long term goals with short term satisfaction. Being able to play with your grandchildren isn't a particularly effective motivation when you've over forty and childless. Lots of advice out there was equally off. Overweight and eating habits way out of control, I felt miserable, worried and ashamed, I didn't do what I really wanted to do, but I couldn't help doing what I did either, because some of it also felt good and I didn't want to be that strict health freak hippie hipster quinoa and wheat grass eating lady that I imagined being the only alternative. I had to find my own ways to bridge the intention-behavior gap. I read and read about psychology, nutrition, food and marketing, plans and behavior, hunger and satiety, took part in many discussions, tried out many different approaches, and found these strategies effective, some of them sound a bit like daft slogans, but hey, they work for me:

• My habits have changed through lots of tiny adjustments to lots of tiny behaviors; but the greatest change has been to my attitude.
• I eat anything I like, but not everything at once, and not all the time.
• Food should taste good, but not too good - mostly choose food you can eat to satiety - love food that loves you back.
• I'm not supposed to stop eating, just stop overeating. Getting into a rythm of four meals a day has been good for me.
• I meal plan, cook a lot from scratch, only eat food I like, and portion it out appropriately. This makes me look forward to eating, and I genuinely enjoy my meals. Cooking good food is fun, I'm confident that what I make is healthy; eating for pleasure and nutrition at the same time has made eating rewarding in itself.
• I write shopping lists based on what I need to make the meals I want, and I only buy food I intend to eat. It's a lot easier to resist temptation for a few minutes twice a week, than continously, every day.
• Stepping out of your comfort zone makes your comfort zone bigger.
• I eat what I want, but what I want, has changed a bit.
• I eat the same things as before, but in different amounts and proportions.
• I also aim to get enough sleep and rest, and fun and exercise.

SugarySweetheart

@magicpickles

I agree you need to enjoy life and the fact you exercise is great. Having said that, in order to live a long life to enjoy, you need to make healthy choices and 6000 calories is too many for ANYONE. I hope you continue to eat within your caloric goals in mind and remember you're extending your life and health by eating less. You don't want to jeopardize your health for a few high calorie meals, right? They could lead to obesity and all its side effects, high cholesterol, high blood sugar, hypertension, body aches, tumors and cancer.

Be good to yourself.

debrafm

I find that looking at the big picture is not the way to go. It's much easier to feel confident about about losing five pounds, as apposed to twenty five pounds. In the beginning I discovered that using anything food related as a reward was not the way to go. So I decided on something that's not for everyone. Something more permanent. Tattoos. I got a small one when I lost half of what I wanted, then another when I lost half of what I had left. Now I just need that final one. And it's been a struggle.

frando

Multiple things, I imagine myself walking into my school reunion being hot as *kitten*

Then there is also the wonders of going into a highstreet shop with my friends and not coming out with just jewellery (a fat girl will never be beaten on accessories) as I can't fit in anything.

Lastly, also again kind of shallow but I want to cos play, I want to do a gender bend of one of my favourite popular manga characters;



I'm debating on the cat ears, but I have time

magicpickles

frando wrote: »

Multiple things, I imagine myself walking into my school reunion being hot as *kitten*

Then there is also the wonders of going into a highstreet shop with my friends and not coming out with just jewellery (a fat girl will never be beaten on accessories) as I can't fit in anything.

Lastly, also again kind of shallow but I want to cos play, I want to do a gender bend of one of my favourite popular manga characters;



I'm debating on the cat ears, but I have time

That all seems like long term motivation though

frando

magicpickles wrote: »

frando wrote: »

Multiple things, I imagine myself walking into my school reunion being hot as *kitten*

Then there is also the wonders of going into a highstreet shop with my friends and not coming out with just jewellery (a fat girl will never be beaten on accessories) as I can't fit in anything.

Lastly, also again kind of shallow but I want to cos play, I want to do a gender bend of one of my favourite popular manga characters;



I'm debating on the cat ears, but I have time

That all seems like long term motivation though

The first and the last yeah, but I've started to be able to 1) get the guts to try on clothes at high street shops 2) have on more than one occasion bought something.

That and I'm a continual day dreamer.

MissBlunts420

Honestly, the fear of developing health problems is a huge daily motivator for me. It's not pleasant motivation, but it's motivation nonetheless.

MakePeasNotWar

I learned after many years of isolated short term "accomplishments" but no real, lasting success, that I work better with process goals than outcome goals. I try to figure out the behaviour that would get me the outcome I desire, and then I make that behaviour the goal.

For instance, right now I am very unfit, and I would like to be in the kind of shape I was in a few years ago. Honestly, though, that isn't as motivating as I'd like when I am tired, or sore, or busy and I don't want to go to the gym. Also, if my goal is to be in the kind of shape I was (or any specific fitness goal), it just makes it depressing to see how far from that I am right now, and anything I do feels like a failure, or at best a drop in the ocean.

So my goal is to go to the gym 3 days a week. I don't even visualize myself doing things I used to be able to do, or looking a certain way, I literally just visualize myself going to the gym, and (I don't know if this makes any sense) being "the kind of person who goes to the gym 3 days a week, even if she is tired or sore or busy". Instead of thinking of the gym with dread and fear of failure, now the very act of going feels empowering and like I've "made it". That doesn't mean I don't work as hard as I can when I get there, but I do it from a feeling of success and power, instead of "making" myself go so I won't be in as terrible shape as I am right now.

Paradoxically, while this is a very short term (daily or even moment to moment) goal, it also is more long term than a traditional goal, because there isn't an endpoint, where you reach the goal and stop what you were doing to get there.

Not sure if this would work for everyone, but it works very well for me.

lorrpb

If you want to grow your hair long, but trim it once a week, or can't get past the "ugly" stage, u will never get long hair. If you want it, you WILL be patient and will develop a hair care routine that will help u have beautiful healthy hair when it is long.

It's the same with weight loss and fitness. Set a plan thAt will get you towards your goals, then develop the HABITS of following it. You don't have to ""feel motivated" every day. Most successful people don't. You just. Commit to doing what is needed to meet your goals