Can anyone relate?
agrube1968
Posts: 132 Member
I just cannot seem to get 100% back on track. It seems when my eating is good and I am tracking then I’m not getting any exercise but when I do exercise daily my eating is out of control and I’m not tracking! I start the day with good intentions and then sometime throughout the day I lose my motivation. I know I can do this! I’ve done it before (most I have lost is 40 lbs before I screwed up and started gaining again). Now I have an Apple Watch and I love it and it’s really motivated me to move and get those rings everyday, but my eating is still horrible. I have got to dig down and try and find my motivation again! I don’t want to continue this pattern, I want to be able to set a goal and reach it and no let anything steer me off that path! So any words of wisdom, advise, prayers etc would be greatly appreciated!!! Just FYI my current weight is about 292 lbs and I’m 5’8” and my goal is 175 lbs!
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Replies
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Why do you stop tracking? Going over your number is not a reason to quit tracking. Defend the process and the process will see you through.8
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Hi. I can totally relate. I was starting out great and then detailing myself in the afternoon. I would also eat well and then not exercise. When I would exercise, I seemed to get hungrier. I am using my Apple Watch to track my exercises and heart rate. I’m using MFP to track my calories. So far so good this week. You are not alone. This is a good place for support. I have set a short term goal of 10 lbs by December 1 and longer term goal of 10 more by March. It’s easy to get off track. The important thing is to not let one bad day defeat you. Get up and make tomorrow better. You can do this.2
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I would say one thing that's helped me during my relapse has been to keep tracking my food. It was easy to say to hell with it I've blown it, why bother. But I make myself, even on not so stellar days because it does give me a clear idea of what will happen if I continue to overeat. I've come too far to throw it all away.8
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Track your intake, good and the bad. String a bunch of goods days in a row, you will be good. We all have bad days.5
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Yes, you are approaching it all wrong, and I think some harsh words, but from a loving and caring place, is what you need. (You will get some sayings too; if you like them, you can think about them as wisdom.) You are relying on motivation, aiming for perfection, walking the same path that has made you regain before. The definition of insanity is doing the same things and expecting different results, and the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Your plan does not need to be "perfect" - perfection is not only an illusion, it's the enemy of good. You need to plan for your real life situations and your personal challenges. Why is your eating horrible? Eating should be enjoyable. You are eating too much overall - why? Are you trying to eat too little, or boring food, or both?
Set behavioral goals. They must be concrete, as well as reasonable and realistic. We can help you set that kind of goals, but you have to stick to them, so they must be yours, and you will still have to apply some willpower now and then, even with the most optimal and customized plan.10 -
For me my friend what finally worked was eating at a level I could maintain and walking daily. The most important thing is the food. Walking helped lower my stress and gives me about 125 calories extra (I got a lot more before I reached my goal). I don't really exercise for the weight loss and if you can only handle one change at a time I would suggest focusing on keeping your calories in line but don't try to lose too fast. It has to be livable especially with the amount you are trying to lose. Trust me I have been where you are. If it's miserable you will never keep it up. Take your time and do it for the last time this time.3
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The thing is - when you exercise you are SUPPOSED to eat more. That's how it works. Eat more, have more energy, exercise more get to eat more.
My body was designed to move. When I do so on a regular basis and I eat enough to fuel that extra expenditure, everything works as designed.
I still log food eleven years into this. I have to - I don't like the freefall feeling of not knowing, I start making the unintended decisions to eat more than I need.
Log food. Exercise. Eat more on exercise days. Rinse, repeat.1 -
I can relate. Your starting weight is a bit under what mine was back in May 2018. I am 5 9 and I started at 305. I refuse to give myself a end goal at this point in time. Why because that may get me off track. I know and accept I have well over 125 pounds to lose, when I started.
So this is how I am doing and making it very doable. I am doing mini goals. 8% body weight loss. So first one was lose 8%, made it yeah, then set it again for another 8% which I have made. So on my third round of 8% off.
For the first two months I did very little exercise. But as I lost weight I have started moving more. Now I am using at home a recumbent like bike machine and doing 7-10 miles 3 times per week. Walking at a nearby mall twice a week. And I want an Apple watch for Christmas.
I have lost 60 pounds since beginning of May. I am a diabetic trying to get off as many medications as I can. So on lower carbs than just a regular diet. But not KETO or super low carb diet.
The key for success is you need to find a diet/lifestyle food change you can follow and you do not feel deprived or it will not work. I still get treats about once a week, and that keeps me from going wild and falling of the wagon. And makes each day a breeze.
Oh and if you do not have a food scale, that is a must. Weigh everything before you put it in your mouth. For me success has meant logging every day, weighing everything. And the number of things I have learned by reading posts has been mind boggling.2 -
The world is full of secretive paths through life. Some of them are best explored with a spirit of adventure to figure out what you enjoy doing and how you enjoy doing it. Inspiration for what will sustain you must come from within.
Eat the things you enjoy, but moderate their bulk. Life is more than mere diet, but experience.
Do the things you enjoy and don't constrain yourself to exercises for the pure sake of feeling as if you must exercise.
Do you like being outside? In a gym? Moving and getting stronger benefit your health, but it is the calories you intake that benefits your weight the most.
Set small, achievable goals for yourself and stare not at the mountain. No one climbs a mountain in one, giant leap. One step at a time, and make sure your steps are achievable!
Gather up your tools (food scale, watch, MFP, etc), put them in your proverbial backpack, and see where your choices take you. Experiment. Find out what's right for you. Once you do, jot them down and make a commitment to do small changes to adhere to your new plan.
Instead of "I want to lose X pounds" as a goal, set goals that build new habits:
Fitness motivated type goal suggestions ->
"I want to close all three rings for two days in a row this week."
"Now that I know I can close all my rings in a day, I want to double that! Four days this week, and four days next week!"
"I've closed my rings four days for four weeks in a row! I want to commit to closing my rings all seven days for one week."
Consumption motivated type goal suggestions ->
"I want to change my diet. This week I am going to just log without constriction. See the days/times that pose a problem for temptation."
"I've logged my food all week last week! This week, I am going to focus on changing the calories for one meal."
"I am going to buy a food scale and get used to measuring my portions."
"Now that I know how it feels to measure, I am going to start measuring at least two days this week."
"I'm going to experiment this week to see which types of food give me satisfaction without feeling deprived."
"This week, I am going to put my findings of satiation to the test and try eating the foods I believe will leave me satisfied and nourished while also letting me eat the foods I enjoy."
"This week, I understand the types of foods I like, the types of foods that leave me satisfied and so now I am going to reduce my calorie intake by 10% of what I have historically been eating."
"This week, I'm going to reduce my calorie intake by another 10% of what I was eating."
"This week, I am going to hold to a calorie intake that lets me lose half a kilo a week!"
Gradually up your goals until you are where you want to be! And don't sweat the days you don't achieve your goals. One day is but a breath of a memory in the grand scheme of your life.
The important thing is that no matter what anyone says, find the path that's right for you. It's not a race and it is important to take the time for a measured approach that will lead to sustained change. Good luck!2 -
Work on logging food and meeting the nutritional goal. Worry about fitness later. You can’t put-run, swim, ride a bad diet. Results will come from the kitchen. Use exercise to be fit.4
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kommodevaran wrote: »Yes, you are approaching it all wrong, and I think some harsh words, but from a loving and caring place, is what you need. (You will get some sayings too; if you like them, you can think about them as wisdom.) You are relying on motivation, aiming for perfection, walking the same path that has made you regain before. The definition of insanity is doing the same things and expecting different results, and the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Your plan does not need to be "perfect" - perfection is not only an illusion, it's the enemy of good. You need to plan for your real life situations and your personal challenges. Why is your eating horrible? Eating should be enjoyable. You are eating too much overall - why? Are you trying to eat too little, or boring food, or both?
Set behavioral goals. They must be concrete, as well as reasonable and realistic. We can help you set that kind of goals, but you have to stick to them, so they must be yours, and you will still have to apply some willpower now and then, even with the most optimal and customized plan.
Listen to Yoda here... she knows her stuff... hey Yoda!2 -
I joined a weight loss group back in January , and it saddens me that a few women on there are just like you. Every week they post how they're starting again. They struggle with cheating constantly, they lie to themselves and try to take shortcuts, and go from diet idea to diet idea and never lose anything. They also say they just can't get on track.
I am now at my goal weight. I did it by doing the work it takes to lose weight. I buy all my healthy food to have it on hand. I got containers to pack my lunch and have food in my car. I took before pictures and looked at them each day. I quit drinking and stopped all sugar and went to a whole foods diet.
I changed everything and did the hard work.. I've started exercising because I know I must to maintain at my lower weight. It is 10 months later and they still struggle and have lost nothing all year long.
OP...You just have to decide to do it and realize only you can..so do the work. Good luck.7 -
We can all relate to some degree or other. In that, we all have motivation that comes and goes. And that we have all had periods where we have not made optimal choices. In the end, though, this isn't about motivation. It's about immediacy versus delayed gratification. Fritter lovers (such as I) always want that fritter. We just have to determine how worthwhile it is for the immediate pleasure to veer from our long term goals.
This article is pretty good. Read more about it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delayed_gratification
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Focus on logging food. Good bad and/or ugly. Like those two pieces of coffee cake I had yesterday- bad but I still logged it. I don't exercise daily. I'm the kind of person that has to work on one thing at a time because I get overwhelmed. Maybe it's the same for you. Do what you can.2
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I always want that fritter...😏. Yep, pretty much always. Somehow the scale always knows whether I ate that fritter....0
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Persistence is the key. Every day, hour, minute you try even if it is just a little bit you are better off than before. There will be good and bad days just keep moving forward even through the "bad" days it will all pay off eventually. We all have days that we struggle and wonder why am I doing this again? the mountain seems too high to ever accomplish anything....BUT push through those days and what you will find as you continue to work is that you are making progress fast or slow but you continue to try and you will make progress. It is never as fast as we want but anything you do for yourself to be healthier will add up. As you already said - you have done this before so you know its not impossible.
I listen to things like below when working out or driving in the car. Be warned some have coarse laungauge but only in a few spots - the overall message is great. Bottom line just do something everyday and don't get hung up on the "bad" but focus on the good and keep logging your food, do something active everyday. Hang in there.
Prayers for you and your family to support you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bODoHZWZAVU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfIYI1uFOAk 1
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