goals and rewards

blessingsfromabove721

Hi all! I am 31 , 5'7 and weigh 297lbs. My goal is around 155-160lbs. I've heard that it helps to make one big goal and small goals. so what are/ were some of your goals with your weight loss? what did you reward yourself with? just looking for ideas thank you!

jemhh

I made 5 lb goals along the way. I didn't actually do any rewards for those. But I did routinely buy new clothes as I shrank down in size. A lot of people wait until the end of weight loss to buy clothes. If it is fiscally possible, I am a fan of getting them along the way.

HeyShaunie

Hi! I don't think I've given any thought to a big goal, but for my small goal it's to bring my lunch to work everyday in the month of March. To reward myself I'll buy a new bathing suit for my trip to Puerto Rico and come up with a new small goal in April. Good luck to you!!

JaydedMiss

i go by 5 pounds. I dont "reward" self but i do nice things for myself that dont involve food, Beter yet if it gets me out walking. Think long walk to a far dollar store for nail polish, Pretty and keeps me away from food while im doing it and they dry. Or a long walk to the store for some cherry tomatoes or a tub of strawberries. yumm, I also stash money away monthly if i lost what i hoped, And at the end ill use that money (money i saved on eating out and smokingg mainly anyway) ill go on a shopping spree for clothes

_runnerbean_

Last time I did mfp I put one euro in a pot every time I lost 1pound weight. When I reached my goal I bought a pandora charm for my bracelet.
You could do a mini goal of 10% body weight lost as a start, or celebrate 10lb lost (a massage or manicure are good non-food treats to aim for). Good luck with your new lifestyle

kayeroze

I have 5 and 10 lb goals that are more along the lines of things I've wanted to buy but haven't. One does include clothes shopping, but others are like dye my hair, new kitchen knife set, etc. And I have a cork board with push pins that represent each pound I want to lose that I can move to the weight loss section. Physically seeing that helps me out and gets me excited to do more.

susanp57

In about 5 lbs I will have a nice gin and tonic. Possibly two.

brittyn3

I had 10 lbs goal. First 10 - sunglasses, 2nd 10 - running shoes, 3rd 10 - new bag. Goal weight - finish my sleeve.

I also have mini goals of 5 from time to time, such as, next 5 - personal day!

Tacklewasher

I've not gone with the 5 and 10 lb marks, but set different goals based on % lost, or crossing a BMI threshold or that kind of thing. Right now I'm trying to get to 247.5, which is 25% of my starting weight gone. I should be there but I got stuck at 250 ish for almost 2 weeks. After that, my goals are 27.5% and 30% gone. My long term goal is 33% gone, but I will still be overweight at that point.

leanjogreen18

I have 10lb goals but no rewards.

I do however have fitness goals and rewards. For example after 6 months of consistent exercise I bought a Fitbit. After reaching milestones (miles or certain hikes) I get socks, workout clothes etc.

megzchica23

Because of health issues going down in weight is hard. And even if I'm losing, I have water retention and bloating from these issues which makes it difficult to get accurate weight readings. I am trying to not make weight my priority this time so much as my health and feeling better and dealing with my health issues and getting off medication. So I like to reward myself for sticking to my calorie limits and exercise goals. Like last weekend I told myself if I made it past 10,000 steps I could have a candy bar.

denato1

I do 10, 25, 50lb goals. For the 10 and 25 I don't really reward. For my 50lb I bought a gear s3 watch, 100lb I was thinking of finishing my sleeve. But nothing is set in stone.

cwolfman13

I wasn't so much focused on the scale...I was focused primarily on health markers and fitness. I didn't have a particular weight goal in mind...more of a composition/BF% objective and really, just wanted to improve some nasty health markers more than anything.

I never really had rewards...I remember going to my 12 week checkup for my cholesterol (that was the time frame my Dr. gave me to make progress or be prescribed pills) and I had taken it from the 160s to around 140...I was ecstatic and recall tears of happiness as I drove myself to the gym to celebrate with deadlifts. In another 12 weeks I was in the normal range...after about a year I was around 90 and a whole host of other bad markers were resolved. That all was reward enough for me. I have two young boys at home, and staying healthy and alive for them and my wife for a very long time is my highest priority.

The only reward I really gave myself was a new bike. I started riding about 9 months or so into things when I started training for a sprint triathlon...I had an old and heavy Wal-mart type mountain bike that just sucked to ride. I challenged myself to ride at least 500 miles that summer (which at the time was a fairly big deal) and that if I did I would have a good idea of whether or not I really wanted to cycle and would get myself a proper bike. Ended up buying a decent entry level CX bike that September that was my primary ride for a couple of years...ultimately ended up riding primarily road so upgraded from that to a carbon road bike a couple years ago. I still use the CX bike for trail rides and the like.

megzchica23

cwolfman13 wrote: »

I wasn't so much focused on the scale...I was focused primarily on health markers and fitness. I didn't have a particular weight goal in mind...more of a composition/BF% objective and really, just wanted to improve some nasty health markers more than anything.

I never really had rewards...I remember going to my 12 week checkup for my cholesterol (that was the time frame my Dr. gave me to make progress or be prescribed pills) and I had taken it from the 160s to around 140...I was ecstatic and recall tears of happiness as I drove myself to the gym to celebrate with deadlifts. In another 12 weeks I was in the normal range...after about a year I was around 90 and a whole host of other bad markers were resolved. That all was reward enough for me. I have two young boys at home, and staying healthy and alive for them and my wife for a very long time is my highest priority.

The only reward I really gave myself was a new bike. I started riding about 9 months or so into things when I started training for a sprint triathlon...I had an old and heavy Wal-mart type mountain bike that just sucked to ride. I challenged myself to ride at least 500 miles that summer (which at the time was a fairly big deal) and that if I did I would have a good idea of whether or not I really wanted to cycle and would get myself a proper bike. Ended up buying a decent entry level CX bike that September that was my primary ride for a couple of years...ultimately ended up riding primarily road so upgraded from that to a carbon road bike a couple years ago. I still use the CX bike for trail rides and the like.

That is awesome! Health and good doctor visits is my main focus too. I want to get my blood pressure down, I do not like being on medications.

I use to be so much healthier before I moved to Oklahoma. In Colorado I didn't even have a car. I biked or walked everywhere. On days off I went for hikes. Here I can't survive without a car my job is too far. I really miss being able to do that. Now I have an exercise bike because unless I drive there just isn't a good place to ride.

Afura

Because I have a lot of weight to lose, it made goals a little better. No timeframe on the goals either so no stress over making or not making it. I have things for big goals like taking a one day trip somewhere (or overnighter), a fitness band, a bike, a good piece of jewelry, etc.

CSARdiver

I establish goals and rewards that create a positive feedback loop. Last year it was upgrading a mtn bike and getting my son a new mtn bike if he beat his 100m time. This year I'm upgrading a lot of gear and home projects depending on how well the wife and I do at a Spartan Race.

I also create other motivational goals - as a craft beer enthusiast I have a stout holding in a bourbon cask and will tap this when I get down to 220.

Tacklewasher

CSARdiver wrote: »

I also create other motivational goals - as a craft beer enthusiast I have a stout holding in a bourbon cask and will tap this when I get down to 220.

Where? I'll cut off my left leg to get to 220 and join you

denato1

Itsvkiller being a craft Brewer and not drinking what I brew

RAinWA

When I was losing I set kind of silly goals - weigh less than my husband, weigh less than my drivers license says... you get the idea. It helped me to not focus on how much I had to lose.

I didn't really do reward type stuff though. Just losing kept me motivated!

zdyb23456

How do you decide you made a goal? My weight fluctuates quite a bit. Would it be the first time you hit the 5/10 pound loss mark? Or would you need to see the loss consistently for a few days?

I think I'd like to reward myself for losing 5 pounds. I need some motivation to put the snacks down in the evening.

Machka9

With weight loss, I could do more cycling.

So my reward for losing weight was cycling so much more.


As for goals, my first weight loss goal was 16 weeks. Then I took a month break. My second weight loss goal was 16 weeks. And then my goals became cycling goals.