MY motivation and my new life plan

lsutigerscage

Hello all!

I am fairly new to MFP. Today marks day 26 of logging in. I technically started my lifestyle change a week before I found MFP. Sorry, this is going to be a long one....

So, here's MY motivation. I've been a yo-yo dieter for too long now. I've tried so many fad diets. Every time I go into 'lose weight' mode, I always expect to see immediate results. So I use crazy diets to get there. I've done juice fasting for up to 40 days, diet pills, raw vegan diets (none of these all at the same time), and on and on.... I have never been able to stay consistent with anything. I have two daughters. One is 7 and the other 4. I could feel myself beginning to spiral back into a depressive state where I was just plain unhappy with my weight, my figure, my self-esteem and my lack of energy. I try not to become obsessive of my weight and talk about it in front of them, but my 7 year old is very perceptive. Two months ago, I could tell she was in deep thought. She looked at me and asked me "Mommy, what are you going to do when you get skinny? WHEN is it going to happen? Can we go somewhere special to celebrate?" These simple questions coming from my daughter in such an innocent way darn near broke my heart. I realized it was time for me to start looking at improving my health and fitness and stop obsessing over a number. This time around, I was going to do it in a healthy way and positive way; and I was going to show her that dedication and hard work will get me to my goals. So my unhappiness combined with my daughters curiosity has now set me on a new path. Those simple questions from her became my "trigger."

I have begun waking up at 4:30 a.m. I do anywhere between 30-45 minutes of exercises when I wake up. I have a six-week exercise plan that mixes up what exercises I do. I am doing a mixture of calisthenics, walking/running, and dumbbell weights 5-6 days a week. By the time I finish my workouts, I have 30 minutes of downtime where I can wind down and just enjoy the stillness of the morning. I've never had this before. I've always been one to hit snooze 10 times before peeling myself out of bed, then rushing to make it to work on time. Just this simple change in routine has had a HUGE positive impact on my mood and productivity. And I have been logging everything that I put into my mouth. I haven't been weighing my food yet, but that is coming soon as my food scale should be delivered to the house by tomorrow. *insert happy dance*

So one month in, and so far I have immense pride in what I have been able to accomplish. I've lost 4.1 pounds this month. It's hard for me to adjust to accepting this number because I've always wanted to see immediate results, but I am finally coming to terms with the benefits of consistency and quality over quantity. The scale doesn't show much yet, but I can already see the changes in the mirror. I've been measuring my waist, hips, thighs, and biceps. I've lost a combined total of 13.25 inches in the last 5 weeks, and my BMI has gone from 29.88 down to 28.38. Some of this was water weight and I know the inches lost will slow down a bit. I am 5' 0.5", so every pound makes a huge impact on my overall appearance. My heaviest weight was 160. I am currently 150.4 lbs and my starting weight was 154.3. My initial goal is to finish at 130 lbs, and my dream goal would be 120. But finally, for the first time ever, I am OK with taking those baby steps and staying consistent. Slow and steady wins the race.

My daughter hasn't noticed any changes in me yet and that's OK with me. I'm not discussing my goals with her as I want her to naturally transition into living a healthier and more active life rather than me planting any bad seeds in her thought processes. But I am dreaming of the day when she finally notices and says "Wow Mommy! You did it!" I'm staying hopeful and motivated and I am now excited to see where I will be next month, and the month after that, and the month after that, and so on. Finally working on a new life and not a quick fix.

So, what are YOUR motivating factors? What was your trigger? I would love for everyone to share and to produce a "motivation ripple effect." I just made that up, but I feel it works well.

tess1209

My motivation...hmmm...I guess it is just that my eldest is going to be 30 this year and I still have the weight gained from her and my other 2 daughters that I have never lost. I have visions of a more slender me, as well as clothes in my closet that I hold on to, in hopes of fitting into one day. Last fall I lost almost 20 lbs, but have gained that back. So, here I am, back at it.

In my many years of wisdom, I know what it takes to lose the weight. It's not a fad diet or cutting out all foods, but healthy choices and exercise. I run, so that helps (although I have not been dedicated to my exercise since the fall). And I like eating healthy. I just have to stick with it-I really do feel better and want to keep it as a way of life. But darn, french fries taste good also!

I will follow you on this journey and hopefully we can motivate each other! Sounds like you have made a good start and have a good mindset for your lifestyle change! You are providing good role model for your children. I agree that you shouldn't talk fad diet and weight with your kids. They should learn healthy lifestyle and eating habits, as well as exercise-make it fun! Keep it up!

-Just another ripple in the water

lsutigerscage

tess1209 wrote: »

My motivation...hmmm...I guess it is just that my eldest is going to be 30 this year and I still have the weight gained from her and my other 2 daughters that I have never lost. I have visions of a more slender me, as well as clothes in my closet that I hold on to, in hopes of fitting into one day. Last fall I lost almost 20 lbs, but have gained that back. So, here I am, back at it.

In my many years of wisdom, I know what it takes to lose the weight. It's not a fad diet or cutting out all foods, but healthy choices and exercise. I run, so that helps (although I have not been dedicated to my exercise since the fall). And I like eating healthy. I just have to stick with it-I really do feel better and want to keep it as a way of life. But darn, french fries taste good also!

I will follow you on this journey and hopefully we can motivate each other! Sounds like you have made a good start and have a good mindset for your lifestyle change! You are providing good role model for your children. I agree that you shouldn't talk fad diet and weight with your kids. They should learn healthy lifestyle and eating habits, as well as exercise-make it fun! Keep it up!

-Just another ripple in the water

It sounds like you and I have a lot in common! I too have my old clothes on stand-by in the closet. I cannot wait until the day where I can start bringing some of them out. Good luck to you, and thank you for adding that extra ripple!

love_yourself02

Hi im selena and ive lost 4.2 pounds since may 16 i know what u mean