Help! I've got to stick to this

angela_mangold

I have been active off and on. Lately, more off. My weight is slowly going up, and want to reverse this cycle. I have no motivation to keep at it. I do great for awhile, then just stop. I get so frustrated with myself. If you have any words of wisdom or ideas, I'd love to hear them. Thanks.

cmriverside

Well, only you can do this.

Honesty with yourself without beating yourself up is a good way to approach weight loss. There were many days I didn't stick to the plan, but I did get right back at it the very next day.

I would say just log your food every day. No excuses. I log my 1500 calorie days and my 4000 calorie days. They are all equally important. At the end of the day, look at your choices. Eat what you like, not just a can of tuna and a bag of lettuce. Eat your favorites in moderation.

Weigh yourself daily. That's also important. You need to see the changes daily. Put the numbers in some program - whether it's here or a weight-trending app.

Old_Cat_Lady

You can't exercise regularly? I lost weight by just logging my food. Might not be healthy, but hey, it works.

sarraheclark

I have found that it has taken me about 2 months to really make the changes feel like habit. Tackle it one day at a time. You can start with small changes until you reach a point that you feel you can stick to it. But the toughest part is that only you can make the changes and the choices. If you've started this journey several times, you know what hasn't worked, so try something different until you find what works for you.

arrghmatey1

Belonging to MFP is a good start.

Logging is everything!

Seriously that 10 or 15 minutes a day is time invested in yourself and caring for your needs.

It is you who has to do that.

I had to go back to March 31st to find an entry in your diary.

You seem like a nice lady and the logging I saw was showed a good grasp of dieting nutrition.

At the end of the day basing your motivation on how much you lost or what other people say will probably leave you where you are at right now.

Make a decision to take the 10 minutes a day to log and log accurately and set it aside just for yourself. Something for you.

After a little while it will come second nature and you will own it.

You will have taken the most important step.

It will bring confidence and I guarantee you will lose a little weight along the way.

From the simple little act of logging will come personal greatness if you will just take that small step every day.

Jruzer

Remember that you don't have to be perfect! Losing weight isn't an all-or-nothing proposition. Set a modest calorie deficit and stick with it as best you can. You can do it - many of us have!

everher

My advice? Stop stopping.

I know it sounds simpler than it really is, but that's really what you have to do in order to lose the weight. You don't have to be motivated - you just have to be dedicated.

And yes, bad days will happen. Just log it and keep going. Always keep going and no matter how long it takes eventually you will get there.

4legsRbetterthan2

I find mini goals more motivating. Celebrate your overall loss in 5 lb increments, set side goals along with your regular calorie goal (trying to increase protein to a certain amount for example), or a fitness related goal. Give yourself something new to try and a reason to celebrate in a couple weeks instead of several months. It will add alot of enjoyment to the process.

texteach66

I couldn't agree more with logging your food. Make a commitment to yourself to log all your food, no matter where the calories land. That one habit is what keeps me from slipping - I have to log. It keeps me honest and aware of what's going in my mouth. Is it easy?? No. Do it anyway. I know you can.

acorsaut89

Well a couple things come to mind . . .

1. From looking at your logging, you have entries like Amy's Burrito (or something) and based on your user name, I'd say you're Angela. Is that correct? If so, do you know Amy? How do you know what went into that food entry is the same as what you ate? If you find you're gaining (or, not losing) this could be why which will eventually lead you to feel less motivated if you aren't seeing the results.

2. You don't have to log here but if you keep a food/mood journal you might be able to see some patterns. Like on Monday you ate this, and you felt like this you can see how certain foods affect your mood or motivation. It's very interesting stuff.

3. Figure out what works for you - there's so many people on here who do X but if it's not going to work then don't do it, seriously. You're going to hate it and then you'll dread it, eventually you won't do it and it's all for nothing. Find what you enjoy and what works for you. Once you figure it out you will likely find you're way more motivated.

4. Switch it up - you don't necessarily have to eat the same things, and if you're someone who doesn't enjoy eating the same things then you will definitely get bored with your food and you'll stray. Someone once said to me, eat better not less. In my case since I work out and performance is important to me it meant a lot, however if you fill your diet with more nutritionally sound foods you'll likely find yourself getting more bang for your buck in terms of volume of food for less calories.

DebLaBounty

Walk every day, 30 minutes or so. It's an easy thing to do. I find this lifts my mood, and it gets me away from the couch where I tend to brood over my inactivity and life's difficulties. I celebrate every half pound loss, as it's an incremental change in the right direction and why shouldn't I be proud of that? I don't freak out when the scale shows I've gained weight, because it's highly likely that it's just a temporary stall due to water retention. Set these smaller goals, log your calories every day, and congratulate yourself every single day just for showing up.

nokanjaijo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTuElM6T50w

CutlerBay2015

Hi Angela, I completely understand what you mean. There's a lot of sound advice from the community. Perhaps that's the way to go, build a community of friends on MFP. Motivation is powerful and it may assist you with staying commitment.