How do you keep yourself motivated?

AliceLiddell13

Hey! You can call me Jay, and I've been trying to lose weight for a few years now, which means that I've tried a lot of weight loss things, but could never stick with them in the long run.
This app has helped me lose a tad bit, but I always end up gaining it back. I know that I can't be the only one with this problem, and I just need some enlightenment on how you stay motivated to keep with the plans for nutrients, calories, and exercise. :-)

george5911

Motivation is fleeting at best, and easy to come by. If you want long term sustainable changes you need discipline. Your body isnt like a car that you take for a lube-n-tune every 5k miles, it requires constant maintenance and upkeep. Sometimes that means making undesirable choices (Unless you're @Will_Workout_for_food ), like cucumbers over cookies. Protien shake over french toast. Theres nothing wrong with choosing cookies and french toast, but you need not fool yourself in to thinking that's going to lead to gains (or losses, however you prefer) over the long run.

You have to think of this maintenance like it's your job. You may not want to do it, not feel like doing it, be absolutely sick of doing it, but in the end you do it anyways.

Please don't take any of this in a condescending way, its just facts. I've been there.

psychod787

Because being 400+ lbs sucks... that's my why...

Cutemesoon

I look at my old pics & remember how unhappy I was went I was there. Then I try on an old pair of jeans & smile @ the fact that I can now fit in ONE pant leg. Also, I consider this my new lifestyle. Working our regularly & eating healthy is for the rest of my life. I would suggest figuring out WHY you want to get healthy then focus on that. Never stop having goals. Goals can help motivate you. Good luck on ur journey!

kami3006

I made changes into habits (exercise, logging, reading labels, etc.). Now it's part of my life, like brushing my teeth, and not something I feel I have to do. No more motivation needed.

imgritz

My coaches and fellow athletes at my CrossFit box. We always keep each other motivated towards better nutrition and achieving better athletic goals. We are constantly cheering each other on.

Candyspun

If we wait for the motivation fairy to sit on our shoulder, it will never get done. For me personally, it's very simple: I want to lose weight, very, very much. There's only one way to do that, and it's not by trying to feel motivated, it's by being disciplined. There are so many days where I don't feel like exercising because it's winter here and the thought of changing into my workout clothes makes me shiver. But, I don't stop to think about how I feel about that. I just DO it without giving myself time to talk myself out of it. Once I get going, I love what I'm doing again.

As for food: I try to make healthy choices, but if I'm craving something, I don't stop to think about how motivated I'm feeling. I just make a decision on whether or not I'll eat the food I'm craving, and if I eat it, I track it. I want this. Nothing is going to stop me.

kommodevaran

I figure out how things work - and weightloss, simple as it is, works when you eat less and move more, for real, consistently and for a long time. There is no trying in this. There are also no weight loss things. Only being in a calorie deficit, or not.

If I don't like the way I eat and exercise, I can just stop doing it. No matter if it's a perfect diet and exercise regimen, even if it makes me lose/maintain weight, and produces a great body, I'll regain if I stop following it. There's no way around this. So I rely on intrinsic motivation: Food I like for every meal, fun and necessary daily activity for exercise, a lifestyle that makes me feel good every day.

88olds

Agreeing with others who find motivation too unreliable for something as long term as weight loss. I think mostly in terms of good habits and, when needed, determination.

Try this. Pick a time frame for an experiment. Log everything you consume that has calories during your experiment. Try to hit your calorie number. But if you go over, keep tracking. Even if you run off the rails, everything gets put in your diary. Don’t know the calories in that meal or dish? Make a good faith estimate and keep going.

A good test would be at least 1 month, 3 would be better.

You don’t need a big wave of motivation to wash over you to carry you along. Just try this one habit. It can be a pain in the neck, especially at first. But it gets easier.

bufger

A picture of fat me on the fridge
A cool phone screensaver of a bear weightlifting with the caption 'the bigger the mountain, the better the view'
Finding excercise I enjoy
Replacing ingredients (ie Almond flour instead of regular flour. Sweet potatoe instead of white..)
Taking a selfie every day and seeing progress.
More attention from the opposite sex.

Xerogs

Initially I set up an overall long term weight loss goal and constantly strive to meet that goal and then once I hit it I will re-evaluate my health (where I was and what I will be when I hit that goal) That is long term motivation, I see it and know its there. I know I will make mistakes along the way so I don't beat myself up over them I just stay on target.

Now that being said my short term motivation is just noticing the little things, sure I would like my gut to shrink faster but it has shrunk and I need to take notice of that, not what I think it will be after my long term goal. One of the first things I noticed when going on my weight loss journey was my collar bones becoming more visible, my face losing fat, and muscles replacing flab. Take the time to notice the physical changes and the mental changes as well. I am able to cope with stress better these days, I sleep better, I am definitely more creative and productive these days and my blood tests have been the best they have been since my early 20s. Take all of those little things and continue to improve them is what keeps me motivated short term. I don't focus on the scale as much these days since it can cause negative feedback loops in a sense and I know weight will fluctuate so there is no point in adding stress. I was able to finally fit back into an XL shirt with room to spare recently, heck that is motivation enough to keep me going through the rest of the summer.

Lastly make it all routine. I login to MFP through out the day, I track steps, I work out at regular times, I meditate daily, and work on something creative as well. I really try to keep to a regular sleep schedule as well. It's gotten to a point that when my routine is interrupted for some reason (travel, visitors, etc.) if feels really odd and not right. Also when I really don't feel like working out or meditating is when I really need to do so and those times are usually the most beneficial to my state of mind.

Themajez

I have a deadline. It's the date which my girlfriend and I shack up. I really don't want to be dieting when we live together.

netitheyeti

I don't want to get back to my highest weight (BMI 36-37)... also, got tired of always being tired because I was so out of shape... and I was only 18 when I got to my heaviest! I should have been in the best shape of my life, not tired after walking up some stairs or down the street

urloved33

i don't - I am disciplined. motivation comes and goes...discipline is a constant.

kbmnurse1

I look at my fat belly in the mirror. That is enough to motivate me.

VUA21

My motivation comes and goes, I am just disciplined. No matter how much I don't "feel" like going for my morning run, I still go (except for exercise limiting illnesses - stomach flu + running = very bad idea!). No matter how much I would love to eat everything in sight, I don't. I know the consequences, and am not willing to ruin years of hard work simply because it's "easier" to not monitor and self-correct my behavior.