Starting Over: What are you going to do different this time?

tetoniadoss

Have you tried and failed at your weight loss goals more time than you can count, like me? Are you just starting over after yet another epic fail, like me? Did you reach your goal only to slid back into old habits, like me? Do you feel too smart to continue making the same mistakes over and over again, like me?

Well here's my problem:

I need to identify the reasons I've failed in the past and solution for them.

Here are some of my reasons:

-Not preparing myself for success (If I dont plan my meals and pack my lunch, I will end up at the vending machine)
-Ignoring the obvious (More Water + More Vegetables + Exercise - Carbs = Weight Loss)
-Dreaming too big (Only seeing the skinny end result without envisioning the work that it takes to get there)
-Starting too aggressive (I can’t go from 0 to 100 in one day without spraining something, can you?)
-Being scared of my goals (104lbs in a year = 2lbs a week, but those triple digits seem scary as hell, dont they?)
-Not building in contingencies (104lbs in a year assumes that everyday will be perfect, which is never the case)
-Ignoring the emotional impacts (Diets can be depressing, especially for the emotional eater)
-Fear of failure (I have a fortune tapped to my lap top "Don’t let the past and useless details choke your existence.")
-Self sabotage (Anyone else ever finally get down five pounds and completely overeat for no reason. This happens to me often and I've discovered it's due to fear, the fear that i'll try my best only to fail in the end.)
-Not having a set goal to reach for (Pounds and smaller dress sizes are good and all, but I need a prize to strive for iPAD here I come)
-No noticeable results (This is by far the hardest one. We want to see that our hard work and sacrifices are paying off in our appearance or on the scale, but the truth is small progress won’t even be noticeable to you. 6 years ago I lost 100lbs yet every time I looked in the mirror I still saw a size 24. I didnt even notice how small I was into I had gained more than half of it back. I am learning that I must measure my success by my efforts and not by the instant results. Yes it's nice to drop 5lbs week 1, but what happens when you lose nothing week 2?)

So this is my something different, actually taking the time to identify what's caused me to fail in the past and attempt to correct those errors?

What do you plan to change this time around?

narwhalpr

I applaud you for the self-awareness you have brought to your table! It takes a lot to get to that level and it will bring you more control this time and you will succeed! As for me, the two past times I have done dieting and exercising I have had a really good outcome; however, the only thing I failed was at maintaining. But that was one thing I didn't know how or what to do. Understanding how my metabolism works, how many calories I needed to consume so my body stays active for the day it was an eye-opener. Now I found MFP 3 weeks ago and it's an amazing tool and resource that had helped me understand what I was not understanding or knowing. I feel this time stronger than ever and that I will reach my goal once again and be able to maintain it. I am looking forward to that moment! I was so happy to find out that I could eat 2,220 calories or so and still lose weight the right way. I love food, can't survive on a 1,200 calories diet. This time I don't call it a diet but rather a lifestyle change.