I am beyond frustrated, defeated,

noah49822

OK, So there are more than a few factors going on here, but this is the short of it. I have successfully lost about 30 lbs and only have 4-7 Lbs to go. I seem to have lost all motivation to continue the weight loss battle. I have so much going on with work, and life i just can't keep it up! I currently live away from my home most of the time for work, and when I am home i don't even want to be there anymore. I am also days away from possible significant work changes and I have no idea what is going to happen. I keep trying to stay positive and motivated, but I feel that the reward is not worth the effort.

tinkerbellang83

4-7 pounds isn't really going to make all that much difference to you right now, perhaps time to consider just taking a diet break and focusing on just maintaining the fantastic loss you've already achieved.

noah49822

tinkerbellang83 wrote: »

4-7 pounds isn't really going to make all that much difference to you right now, perhaps time to consider just taking a diet break and focusing on just maintaining the fantastic loss you've already achieved.

Honestly the past 5 weeks it's been a struggle just to maintain,

kimny72

Are you sure you need to lose those last pounds? Is that last bit of progress worth the effort, or are you just sticking to it because that's the goal you picked 6 months or so ago?

There is no law that says you have to lose all the weight in one pass through. Why not take a regimented break? Like change your goal to maintenance for the holidays, and pick a date to get back to it. Then you can set a goal of 0.5lbs per week and have another few months of effort. When I was losing weight, I always changed my goal to maintenance December 1 and then went back to a deficit Feb 1 because it was so hard for me to stay at a deficit and keep my activity level up in the middle of winter!

Sometimes the problem is psychological and taking the pressure off helps.

noah49822

kimny72 wrote: »

Are you sure you need to lose those last pounds? Is that last bit of progress worth the effort, or are you just sticking to it because that's the goal you picked 6 months or so ago?

There is no law that says you have to lose all the weight in one pass through. Why not take a regimented break? Like change your goal to maintenance for the holidays, and pick a date to get back to it. Then you can set a goal of 0.5lbs per week and have another few months of effort. When I was losing weight, I always changed my goal to maintenance December 1 and then went back to a deficit Feb 1 because it was so hard for me to stay at a deficit and keep my activity level up in the middle of winter!

Sometimes the problem is psychological and taking the pressure off helps.

It is not even a hard goal, I can just feel myself wanting to eat like crap and emotionally support my life with amazing delicious food, I have almost completely quit logging so it doesn't matter what i set my goal for.

LyndaBSS

I hope your life calms down. It's not healthy to be in a high state of stress all the time. 💙

steph2strong

It sounds like you have a lot going on right now and have many competing commitments for your time and energy. What aspect of the "dieting" are you feeling overly burdened with right now? the logging? preparing meals? feeling hungry? are you used to using food and eating as a stress coping mechanism? It's all understandable. You don't have to eat in a rigid deficit all the time, you don't have to log food, you don't have to prepare food at home, you don't have to be perfect. But letting go of some of these things doesn't mean you have to go the complete opposite route and eat until stuffed, chose all the high calorie, nutrient devoid foods in large quantities. If you're eating out maybe choose the plain hamburger with side salad instead of the double whooper with fries, If you're grabbing some pizza have 2 slices instead of 4. Grab some fruit as a snack instead of a chocolate bar, or have that chocolate bar, but just one and call it a day. Just because one day was less than stellar doesn't mean that has to equate to a downward spiral, the next might be better. Just try and do your best everyday, try and make every choice just a bit better instead of a bit worse, but don't aim for perfect consistently. These changes are supposed to be lifelong, sustainable changes, not quick fixes that fall apart the minute things get tough. Give yourself freedom and leeway, but don't give up.

kimny72

noah49822 wrote: »

kimny72 wrote: »

Are you sure you need to lose those last pounds? Is that last bit of progress worth the effort, or are you just sticking to it because that's the goal you picked 6 months or so ago?

There is no law that says you have to lose all the weight in one pass through. Why not take a regimented break? Like change your goal to maintenance for the holidays, and pick a date to get back to it. Then you can set a goal of 0.5lbs per week and have another few months of effort. When I was losing weight, I always changed my goal to maintenance December 1 and then went back to a deficit Feb 1 because it was so hard for me to stay at a deficit and keep my activity level up in the middle of winter!

Sometimes the problem is psychological and taking the pressure off helps.

It is not even a hard goal, I can just feel myself wanting to eat like crap and emotionally support my life with amazing delicious food, I have almost completely quit logging so it doesn't matter what i set my goal for.

So maybe just try to focus on logging to keep some kind of control. If you go over, you go over, but at least you are forcing yourself to make decisions.

Lots of people backslide due to stressful or emotional periods. Focusing on finding any small way to retain some kind of control, and forgiving yourself for days you just go nuts is the best you can do. If you think about it, periods like this are going to crop up now and again for the rest of your life. If you can find little, easy ways to exert a tiny amount of control, it will be an invaluable life skill going forward.

I doubt this is universal, but for me I find that giving myself permission to take one day and just get it out of my system - lay on the couch eating chips and chocolate and not worrying about how much - leaves me able to get back on track the next day. You WILL find something that works for you if you keep trying and pick yourself up when you fail!

NovusDies

The question is not always 'what you must do?' it is sometimes 'what you can do?'. If you don't think you can log at the moment you just need to get creative in a way that does not tax your mental resources right now. I would not aim to lose but I would try to figure out something to prevent substantial regain.

Can you force yourself to eat several servings of fruits and vegetables with every meal? Can you do simple things to increase your protein if that helps reduce your hunger? Try to think not in terms of limiting your food but crowding out the higher calorie stuff.

A proven stress reducer is exercise but it is also one of the easier things to let go by the wayside. Can you go for a walk for 20 minutes a day?

Have you ever considered meditation?

The best way I know to work around defeat is creative problem solving.

noah49822

Well thank you all for the support, I just need to find a way to gut myself out of this funk!

Namtabmi

Sounds like you've had a rough go. Just remember what made you want to lose the weight initially. do you want to revert back and then get depressed because you lost all that great progress?

Maybe you just need to go to you're favourite restaurant. eat whatever you want order wings and ribs, a burger, a steak and dessert. Then after getting that out of your system get back to a strict healthy diet? That's what works for me when I just get so overwhelmed and frustrated and lack motivation

s131951

What is the hurdle?

Analog_Kid

Sounds like you're stuck in a rut. "familiarity breeds contempt"

Try changing the things you can control.
Eat different food. Maybe try something you've never eaten before.
Change your workout. Try new exercises that you've never done before.

tulips_and_tea

Sounds like you're in a very unstable place in your life right now, not necessarily your fault.

You don't have to answer these questions here but what is it that makes you NOT want to be home? What can be changed? What can't be changed that you can manage short-term with coping skills?

You said you're overwhelmed with work but unknown changes are in the near future. Maybe those changes will be for the better? If not, what are your options?

Personally, I'd focus on these things right now and just eat as best you can. You know that over eating will not solve any of these problems so don't add that to your list.