Commitment Issues

TamLam99

I could use some motivation and tips for staying committed to the process. When I stick to my calories and make time for exercise I lose weight, seems simple right ?? I tend to throw in the towel after a day or two and go right back to bad habits. I know how to do this, why I need to do this, but I get so overwhelmed when I think about how much I need to lose and how to commit for the long haul. I spiral fast when my thoughts get negative and I focus on being too hungry, or how life isn't fun or spontaneous when you have to weigh and count everything. I am over 50 now, 75 pounds overweight and I need to get this under control. I really want to be healthy, and fit, and more energetic. I need a push please.

deniseg31

I am so sorry. I just posted something loooong about this. I find that I will be consistent for 6 months or so but then after losing a good amount of weight I just cave. I hate it. It's just hard. I think we need to make it our priority it's just hard.

goal06082021

It sounds like you might benefit from talking with a mental/behavioral health professional to figure out why you get in your own way like this and develop tools and strategies to change your behavior.

I'm not any kind of MHP, but you might also consider: are you trying to do too much, too fast? Are you immediately cutting to 1200 calories and working out for 2 hours every day? Suffering is not required for weight loss. You don't have to torture yourself, and as you've seen, it's actually counterproductive. You can lose half a pound per week by cutting the equivalent of a Snickers bar or a can of soda out of your diet each day - surely, if you paid attention and logged how you normally eat in a day, without getting bogged down in what you "should" eat, you could find a way to cut 250 measly little calories off of that, yeah? And yeah, doing it at that pace means it's going to take about two years to lose those 75 lbs. But in two years' time, you'll still be 52, whether you're 75 lbs overweight or bang in the middle of the normal range. It's up to you what 52 will look like for you.

tluisa311

I have definitely struggled with this for years as well. I found that cutting back little by little was what helped me. If I was eating 3000 calories a day on average, I cut it back to 2800 for a week. I didn't even notice the 200 calories once I added more water to my diet. The next week I cut back another 200. If that seemed like too much, then I would only cut back 100. Some weeks I had to stay where I was and just increase my calorie burn. Also, walking for 5 minutes every hour to an hour and a half subtracted more calories than I expected. The key for me was making small changes so that I didn't get stressed out and give up. Give yourself a 5 or 10 lb goal to start, and go from there. People put a lot of focus on shedding the weight, which is frustrating. If you focus more on improving your activity level and slowly decreasing your caloric intake, then it's a lifestyle change as opposed to a quick fix. As you improve your health and habits, the weight will come off.

chkrg

I have the same issue, I seem to reach a weight barrier I can’t penetrated after a couple of months and then give up. This time I’ve taken note of expect to lose weight fast in first week due to water loss. After that still weighing daily to look at trajectory. However my focus is not on weight this week, it is to get my water intake up. I want to ensure I’m drinking 8 glasses a day. I’m also ensuring I get out for a walk each day, not focus on on how far, want to get my focus back to prioritising get out to walk each day whatever the weather. So this week and possibly water intake and a walk each day. If I increase both these things this week and next- that is success! I think next week some focus will need to be on meal planning- as I still have not totally fixed that.

88olds

You can only commit to the long haul one day at a time. There’s a significant calorie counting learning curve. It gets easier with time.

I thought weight loss was going to be the death of fun. I was wrong. Weight loss is liberating.

Don’t let your brain wreck you telling you that the task is too big. You don’t have to lose 75 lbs to start making your life better. You can be more fit and energetic with even a modest loss. Try it and you’ll see. You can do this.

wunderkindking

88olds wrote: »

You can only commit to the long haul one day at a time. There’s a significant calorie counting learning curve. It gets easier with time.

I thought weight loss was going to be the death of fun. I was wrong. Weight loss is liberating.

Don’t let your brain wreck you telling you that the task is too big. You don’t have to lose 75 lbs to start making your life better. You can be more fit and energetic with even a modest loss. Try it and you’ll see. You can do this.

THIS.

I don't think I've ever really _committed_. I just see how well I can do today. Most days it turns out I do pretty well. somedays I don't. That's okay. Tomorrow exists.

over many 'just todays', my habits have changed enough to carry me.

ninerbuff

TamLam99 wrote: »

I could use some motivation and tips for staying committed to the process. When I stick to my calories and make time for exercise I lose weight, seems simple right ?? I tend to throw in the towel after a day or two and go right back to bad habits. I know how to do this, why I need to do this, but I get so overwhelmed when I think about how much I need to lose and how to commit for the long haul. I spiral fast when my thoughts get negative and I focus on being too hungry, or how life isn't fun or spontaneous when you have to weigh and count everything. I am over 50 now, 75 pounds overweight and I need to get this under control. I really want to be healthy, and fit, and more energetic. I need a push please.

Wanting to and committing to it are 2 different things though. When you're committed, you take the good with the bad, but somehow find a way.
Here's a funny story a mentor told me a long time ago.

Think of a bacon, egg and toast with coffee breakfast. Now in that breakfast you have the egg which was laid by a hen. So the hen was involved in the breakfast. You also have bread. The bread was made by a baker, so he was involved in the breakfast. The coffee was brewed and imported from Colombia. So the farmer who grew the beans are also involved in the breakfast. The pig..........................is the only one committed to the breakfast. Gotta be like the pig.

You can be involved or committed to your own journey. Again wanting and committing are 2 different things.


A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition