so the weight is gone...
newhighnewlow
Posts: 50 Member
Today I celebrate the end of my current weight loss program - down 65 pounds (from 224.8 to 159.6) over 21 weeks!
This is my ideal weight, and the best weight I've been at on my 8-year up and down roller coaster of nutrition.
So this feels like success... but I still need help figuring out what to do now, and how to prevent myself from swinging back up like I have the past several times... the motivation seems so much easier when your goal is "change" but I struggle finding strong motivation to "stay the same."
Has anyone else struggled with this? How do you keep yourself motivated when you dont need to keep losing weight?
This is my ideal weight, and the best weight I've been at on my 8-year up and down roller coaster of nutrition.
So this feels like success... but I still need help figuring out what to do now, and how to prevent myself from swinging back up like I have the past several times... the motivation seems so much easier when your goal is "change" but I struggle finding strong motivation to "stay the same."
Has anyone else struggled with this? How do you keep yourself motivated when you dont need to keep losing weight?
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The maintenance motivation works for me - and using the logging streak and the "under calorie goal" keeps me logging along. I don't want to have to start over. It has just become one of my daily habits, log my food, and track the calories, even in maintenance mode.3
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Awesome! Well done! Now, come up with plans. What's your next goal? Good luck!0
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How about a fitness goal? Maybe run a 5K, or learn to lift weights, or get a bike, or golf, or join the company softball team, or bowling league? Whatever looks interesting and keeps you moving.12
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well....ideally, you learned over your experiences how to eat better, however, it seems your intent in the process was to "just get there" as opposed to developing a way to eat that is sustainable and desirable for the rest of your life.
this calorie intake thing is how you should eat all the time so basically there should not really be a overwhelming desire to "stay motivated" in staying with the changes you've made.
it could be your mindset that needs the overhaul now that you've succeeded in reaching your goal. and congrats on that!! awesome job.
its no wonder your tired of it as you've lost a ton of weight in a very short amount of time. over 3lbs per week average...typically very unsustainable many people.
I think its really time to learn how to eat from now on. new goal, hit it with the same intensity you did to get to you goal so quickly and you'll be fine.6 -
Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »Awesome! Well done! Now, come up with plans. What's your next goal? Good luck!
next goal is my 5th marathon, this January. havent set a fixed goal pace yet... but definitely aiming to beat my 3:39:09 PR1 -
How about a fitness goal? Maybe run a 5K, or learn to lift weights, or get a bike, or golf, or join the company softball team, or bowling league? Whatever looks interesting and keeps you moving.
my marathon gives me 17 weeks with at least something to look for... but I've really had trouble sustaining in the past.0 -
Tomk652015 wrote: »well....ideally, you learned over your experiences how to eat better, however, it seems your intent in the process was to "just get there" as opposed to developing a way to eat that is sustainable and desirable for the rest of your life.
this calorie intake thing is how you should eat all the time so basically there should not really be a overwhelming desire to "stay motivated" in staying with the changes you've made.
it could be your mindset that needs the overhaul now that you've succeeded in reaching your goal. and congrats on that!! awesome job.
its no wonder your tired of it as you've lost a ton of weight in a very short amount of time. over 3lbs per week average...typically very unsustainable many people.
I think its really time to learn how to eat from now on. new goal, hit it with the same intensity you did to get to you goal so quickly and you'll be fine.
thank you! I agree this is how I should eat all the time... I just find it harder and harder to keep at it once the big, easy successes aren't around to make me feel good about myself. There's a disconnect between the brain and the rest of me, for sure!0 -
newhighnewlow wrote: »Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »Awesome! Well done! Now, come up with plans. What's your next goal? Good luck!
next goal is my 5th marathon, this January. havent set a fixed goal pace yet... but definitely aiming to beat my 3:39:09 PR
see i think this is really really good! keep going with the goal setting that enhances your health and eventually it will be your new lifestyle. you going to do fine buddy. for sure! great idea.1 -
The maintenance motivation works for me - and using the logging streak and the "under calorie goal" keeps me logging along. I don't want to have to start over. It has just become one of my daily habits, log my food, and track the calories, even in maintenance mode.
I am definitely going to try and follow a streak approach now as a way to have regular reminders that there is a goal being met, even if its not as obvious as the weight loss. Thank you for that! I'm also really excited to see my new calorie target since I set weight to maintain! In theory, it shouldnt really be that hard to stay under that target given that Ive been WAY UNDER it the last 21 weeks!1 -
newhighnewlow wrote: »The maintenance motivation works for me - and using the logging streak and the "under calorie goal" keeps me logging along. I don't want to have to start over. It has just become one of my daily habits, log my food, and track the calories, even in maintenance mode.
I am definitely going to try and follow a streak approach now as a way to have regular reminders that there is a goal being met, even if its not as obvious as the weight loss. Thank you for that! I'm also really excited to see my new calorie target since I set weight to maintain! In theory, it shouldnt really be that hard to stay under that target given that Ive been WAY UNDER it the last 21 weeks!
I'm 20 days shy of hitting 1k days logged. It really has motivated me to keep logging and stay on track. Even though I have created better eating habits through logging, it keeps me honest.
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First.. way to go in dropping that weight fast. I personally wish my weight would drop off and then i'd worry about your problem now. Your question does sort of sound like you feel lost. How about..
1. weigh yourself every day or week to make sure you don't start gaining
2. keep working out to get more toned ..keep focused on your fitness and health
3. learn to cook great healthy dishes that taste great so you can enjoy food again.. i like skinnytaste.com0 -
newhighnewlow wrote: »Today I celebrate the end of my current weight loss program - down 65 pounds (from 224.8 to 159.6) over 21 weeks!
This is my ideal weight, and the best weight I've been at on my 8-year up and down roller coaster of nutrition.
So this feels like success... but I still need help figuring out what to do now, and how to prevent myself from swinging back up like I have the past several times... the motivation seems so much easier when your goal is "change" but I struggle finding strong motivation to "stay the same."
Has anyone else struggled with this? How do you keep yourself motivated when you dont need to keep losing weight?
Part of your problem is mentality...you look at this as basically the finish line when in reality, everything thus far has just been practice for the real race for which you have just arrived at the starting line. Really, it has to go beyond some arbitrary number on the scale. I don't look at maintenance in regards to weight...I look at maintenance in regards to maintaining my health, wellness, and fitness and I do the things the lean, healthy, and fit people do and the rest tends to take care of itself.
Hopefully you've taken time during "practice" to develop healthy habits to take into perpetuity. Hopefully regular exercise and healthy eating have become a part of who you are and what you do. Those things aren't just for the weight loss process...those are just as meaningful if not more so to maintaining.
For me, I didn't really focus a lot on weight...that's not what motivated me in the first place...my focus was always on being healthier and more fit and the process of becoming that person...losing 40 Lbs was a nice bi-product of good livin' which I continue to do in maintenance...almost 3.5 years now.4 -
60 lbs. In 21 weeks! Great loss. How did you do it?0
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I have a very simple answer for what keeps me motivated. Fear.
I never want to go back to the person I was. My life has totally changed at this point and I'm doing things I could have never imagined two years ago. I'm a new person mentally spiritually and physically.3 -
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I find if I'm in mid BMI, rather than upper BMI range it's easier to maintain1
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STEVE142142 wrote: »I have a very simple answer for what keeps me motivated. Fear.
I never want to go back to the person I was. My life has totally changed at this point and I'm doing things I could have never imagined two years ago. I'm a new person mentally spiritually and physically.
thanks for sharing!0 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »newhighnewlow wrote: »Today I celebrate the end of my current weight loss program - down 65 pounds (from 224.8 to 159.6) over 21 weeks!
This is my ideal weight, and the best weight I've been at on my 8-year up and down roller coaster of nutrition.
So this feels like success... but I still need help figuring out what to do now, and how to prevent myself from swinging back up like I have the past several times... the motivation seems so much easier when your goal is "change" but I struggle finding strong motivation to "stay the same."
Has anyone else struggled with this? How do you keep yourself motivated when you dont need to keep losing weight?
Part of your problem is mentality...you look at this as basically the finish line when in reality, everything thus far has just been practice for the real race for which you have just arrived at the starting line. Really, it has to go beyond some arbitrary number on the scale. I don't look at maintenance in regards to weight...I look at maintenance in regards to maintaining my health, wellness, and fitness and I do the things the lean, healthy, and fit people do and the rest tends to take care of itself.
Hopefully you've taken time during "practice" to develop healthy habits to take into perpetuity. Hopefully regular exercise and healthy eating have become a part of who you are and what you do. Those things aren't just for the weight loss process...those are just as meaningful if not more so to maintaining.
For me, I didn't really focus a lot on weight...that's not what motivated me in the first place...my focus was always on being healthier and more fit and the process of becoming that person...losing 40 Lbs was a nice bi-product of good livin' which I continue to do in maintenance...almost 3.5 years now.
indeed. my entire problem is mentality! "progress" is a great mental reward, but I know that "maintenance" is the real goal. It's always been tough for me though... even though I *know* the right answer doesn't seem to be enough to get me to pursue it correctly...0 -
OP has an extremely amusing personal profile1
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Awesome. Good job.0
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I switch my focus to training for and doing long distance cycling events.0
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I switch my focus to training for and doing long distance cycling events.
My wife and I do some long cycling too (though I am much more a runner than a cyclist). We've done RAGBRAI (7 day rides) together 3 times, and just biked the C&O canal from Washington DC to Cumberland Maryland (a 3 day ride). Theres something so nice about being on a bike all day... and just forgetting the rest of the hustle and bustle of the world!0 -
elisa123gal wrote: »First.. way to go in dropping that weight fast. I personally wish my weight would drop off and then i'd worry about your problem now. Your question does sort of sound like you feel lost. How about..
1. weigh yourself every day or week to make sure you don't start gaining
2. keep working out to get more toned ..keep focused on your fitness and health
3. learn to cook great healthy dishes that taste great so you can enjoy food again.. i like skinnytaste.com
Thanks for the tips! Biggest changes I had to implement with food are much less oil/fat when cooking, sparingly eating cheese, and cutting way down on beer/whiskey. I miss the cheese the most!0 -
it's been one month since my original post. I celebrated my birthday by getting a DEXA fat scan, and now I have running goals and body comp goals to keep me motivated. Unfortunately, both of these can be accurately assessed only on a longer timeline that weekly weigh-ins... and so i am still nervous about how to keep myself psychologically rewarded in the day-to-day... but being within my calorie intake goal each day is a good start.
93 days until the Marathon...
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newhighnewlow wrote: »it's been one month since my original post. I celebrated my birthday by getting a DEXA fat scan, and now I have running goals and body comp goals to keep me motivated. Unfortunately, both of these can be accurately assessed only on a longer timeline that weekly weigh-ins... and so i am still nervous about how to keep myself psychologically rewarded in the day-to-day... but being within my calorie intake goal each day is a good start.
93 days until the Marathon...
54 days to the marathon, and I am making progress!
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/newhighnewlow/view/speed-phase-complete-904602
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newhighnewlow wrote: »Today I celebrate the end of my current weight loss program - down 65 pounds (from 224.8 to 159.6) over 21 weeks!
This is my ideal weight, and the best weight I've been at on my 8-year up and down roller coaster of nutrition.
So this feels like success... but I still need help figuring out what to do now, and how to prevent myself from swinging back up like I have the past several times... the motivation seems so much easier when your goal is "change" but I struggle finding strong motivation to "stay the same."
Has anyone else struggled with this? How do you keep yourself motivated when you dont need to keep losing weight?
I started bodybuilding and do bulk and cutting cycles.. This way I'm at least gaining and losing weight on purpose
Seriously though it's allot of fun and my favorite thing to do!
1 -
Tedebearduff wrote: »newhighnewlow wrote: »Today I celebrate the end of my current weight loss program - down 65 pounds (from 224.8 to 159.6) over 21 weeks!
This is my ideal weight, and the best weight I've been at on my 8-year up and down roller coaster of nutrition.
So this feels like success... but I still need help figuring out what to do now, and how to prevent myself from swinging back up like I have the past several times... the motivation seems so much easier when your goal is "change" but I struggle finding strong motivation to "stay the same."
Has anyone else struggled with this? How do you keep yourself motivated when you dont need to keep losing weight?
I started bodybuilding and do bulk and cutting cycles.. This way I'm at least gaining and losing weight on purpose
Seriously though it's allot of fun and my favorite thing to do!
Just realizing how crazy it is for me to be thinking about gaining on purpose... blows my mind.1
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