More strategies to help with weight loss and motivation

Estee44

Continuation of my last post (http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1094461-weight-isn-t-everything) with some more advice / help that has gotten me over some of my plateaus:

- Make sure you weigh yourself at the same time each day if you really want to monitor your progress. Doing it at different times has huge variables in water and other factors that can influence what the scales say. I know that if I weigh myself before and after I workout, I lose from 1-2 lbs alone from sweating. Same for if I weigh after I eat. Just pick a convenient time and stick to it, so you won't get too upset when weighing yourself.

- Don't starve yourself! When I first started, I limited myself to roughly 1200 calories. Mind you, I'm a grown man and was doing cardio AND weights at the same time. I lost a few pounds at first, but quickly hit a plateau after around 8-10lbs. After I started eating more, I actually started to lose more weight, had more energy to workout, and fueled my metabolism to burn off more efficiently throughout the day.

- Take care of yourself! I hit the weights and do cardio routinely, but am also active in outdoor activities, so I'm probably more prone to getting minor injuries or hit by some sickness. When I do get a cough, aches, or pains, it makes it much tougher for me to continue with my daily diet/workout routines, which in turn affects my weight and motivation. As the old saying goes, take your vitamins or an apple a day to make the doctor go away. Your well being is as vital to your weight as anything else!

- Try to befriend others who are also trying to lose weight or already have! It makes a world of difference to be able to talk, question, and share your experience with others who are going through or have gone the same ordeals as you. It also helps you to keep your motivation to encourage each other one more (as noted by myfitnesspal). I've made a lot of new friends at work who see what I've been doing/accomplished and are intrigued by my experience.

- Lastly, I still can't stress how important exercise is to everyday health. Dieting is great start, but add in some exercise to kickstart your metabolism, burn fat, and build muscle! And more muscles means that your BMR goes up making it much easier to lose more weight. Now, I'm not endorsing going to the gym and lifting 200+lbs daily. It could be something as simple as a 1 hour walk burning 100 calories to help you make the day's goal, or a night out at the local club dancing your heart out.

Hopefully this helps folks out more! Feel free to add anything else and keep up good work everyone!