Do Better

langelis212

I want to do better. But as the day progresses and the stress in my life builds, I lose my desire to do better. I start the day like this every day. I am tired of losing my desire as the day progresses and am afraid if I don't start to actually do better there will be consequences. How do you sustain your desire to do better throughout the day? I lost 90 pounds 20 years ago and no it's not overnight to lose, but I just keep gaining and now I am back to where I was before I started losing 20 years ago.

xbowhunter

Lacking motivation can only be fixed by you.

Did you ever notice the best things in life come when you dig in and work hard.

Well most things are like that unless your born with a golden spoon in your hand...

weight loss is about a positive attitude.

COGypsy

"Do better" sounds like a very big thing to accomplish in a day. What does that mean to you?

I like to focus on habits and not so much pure motivation. I don't know about you, but by mid-afternoon, I have virtually no motivation left. I pick small habits and never more than 1 or 2 at once. For me, I like to use a habit tracker to see how well I'm doing. I only do them a week at a time though. When I do the monthly ones, it seems monumental to see all 31 days looming ahead. But that's probably just me. Some examples of dietary habits I've worked on are adding vegetables to anything I cook at home; recognizing hunger cues; and balancing my meals to include all macros. All of these were single step that I'd work on for a few weeks and see how things went. If it all went well, I'd move onto something else. If not, I'd stick with working on that habit for another week.

And remember-- if you can get 1 percent better each day for one year, you'll end up thirty-seven times better by the time you're done!

Corina1143

Make a plan. Early in the day, when you're motivated, prelog your food for the day. Later in the day when you're not motivated, don't think, just eat what you have logged.
On mornings when time allows, plan low calorie meals for the week, make a grocery list. When you're not motivated, stick to the list. Prepare accordingly.
On mornings when time allows, plan activities to move your body each day of the week. Through the week, adjust as needed, but don't abandon these goals.

frhaberl

I 100% agree with what @COGypsy has shared. I also have recognized that I can't sustain motivation more than a week or two, so I use that motivation to instill a new habit that self-sustains. Sometimes that process is faster or easier if I find a way to leverage something I naturally do or enjoy to implement that habit. MFP was a pretty easy habit for me to pick up because I love data (scientist by training) and find it very satisfying to collect and review data. Other habit formations have been made easier by linking them to my social nature or by making them a game or competition. I've also had some habit formation "flops" where I refocused my energy on finding a different habit that would achieve the same goal, or dropped that goal a bit further down my list so I could focus on something that felt more achievable in the short term.

I also agree that "Do better" can feel very big and like you're never quite good enough even when you're making tremendous progress. A podcaster I have enjoyed listening to is always reminding me "progress over perfection", and I think it's very important to hold onto that concept. My lifestyle is much healthier today than it was a year ago, but that's after 10 months of adding in small adjustments a week or two at a time. If I went back in time and asked year ago me to live as I live today, year ago me would be very uncomfortable and constantly feel like they were failing. Yet here I am, 10 months and a couple dozen new/adjusted habits later, living a lifestyle that is healthier and that I can see myself continuing for the rest of my life.

I do think that's another big key to success to focus on as you figure out what "Do better" looks like for you today and in the next week. What is something that you could incorporate into your lifestyle that you would want to continue doing after you've lost the weight? For me, the first step was literally taking more steps. I joined a virtual walking challenge and set a goal for myself that felt achievable. That helped me form a walking habit (my dogs continually reinforce said habit) that has expanded to jogging and sometimes includes time on a treadmill. Another goal I set was to figure out ways to meet my fiber target on a regular basis. That led to some food substitutions (LOVE the "low carb" tortillas available now) and some food additions (raspberries are tasty little fiber nuggets) that are now part of my habitual shopping list/meal plan. I have every intention to continue walking/jogging and eating a higher fiber diet long after I reach my target weight because I enjoy those things. I think those are the best "Do betters" you can aim for.

MaggieGirl135

Something you may wish to consider…
Give thought to the times when you become overwhelmed/stressed/lose motivation. Is it when your boss discusses work projects with you? When the kids come home from school? Or is it just after four hours or so? Then, prior to that time or just after, take a moment to sit back. Do a mindfulness exercise (do an internet search) or meditate or stop and visualize as your ‘better’ self, whatever that may be. This could be as short as several minutes. It may allow your brain to calm and reset.