You make it seem so easy, how?

NazKBaz101

Well I see these success stories and I'm like dayumn. And the way some people out it in the end is as if it was a piece of cake... Or a protein bar... Or something.

Tell me how u did it

anwylyd_un

It's one day at a time, one meal at a time, one workout at a time. The weight didn't go on overnight, and it won't come off overnight. It will however come off and stay off if you log honestly, keep to your goal calories, and stick with it.

Unfortunately there are no quick fixes - that's why this isn't called "myslimmingpal" but "myfitnesspal". You are changing a whole lifestyle, permanently if you want the changes to last.

Hang in there, you can do it too.

JustMeee333

Commitment.

They get up, eat well, exercise, look after themselves, go to sleep.
Wake the next day, and repeat, and the next day, and the next day... and so on.

Instead of talking about it, you just have to do it. No excuses, no if's and but's, Just do it. :drinker:

BrittanyMegan88

Once you find what works for you it actually does get easier.
There's definitely still tough days though but it does get more habitual and even more enjoyable, well in my case anyways.

headfullofsongs

Once you finally make up your mind that you want to do it, I think it really does become easy. Every single morning, my alarm goes off and I whine about having to get up so early to get on the treadmill. Then I think about how much I hated having to buy clothes from a special store, and it makes it a little easier to get going.

JesterMFP

Commitment, consistency, habit, patience. Not making crazy drastic changes you can't live with. Not giving up the second things go wrong, or it gets boring, or it feels difficult. Just keep plodding on.

theloftlady

I've only lost 23lb so far but for me that is amazing! I have tried so many 'diets' and found them difficult to maintain, expensive to continue and humiliating to be told 'what went wrong' when I've gained as little as half a pound. With myfitnesspal it is easier, much easier. I track everything I eat, I try and walk most days to fit in some exercise and I plan ahead my food for the day. If I end up over my calories for the day, I go and do some more exercising. That way I don't feel deflated and want to eat every sweet thing in the house because I feel I've failed. I'm learning to be much much more active and with M.E. Believe me it's really tough some days.
I am so proud of my weightloss so far and today I feel awesome because three work colleagues commented on how much weight I had lost! Up until now no one has really noticed and I was becoming a bit cheesed off with that but I know what the scales are telling me and my belt now being fastened six holes in, instead of only one hole in ????. So today when people were commenting it inspired me to walk even more and one colleague commented on how well I am looking and always smiling at the moment ???? Seriously, this isn't a piece of cake, it takes commitment and will power but it works....and for me that it what makes it worth that commitment. Then you log in at the end of the day and you see other people doing the same, encourage others, yourself and giving advice. This is the place to be if you want success.
I still have a long way to go but for once in my fat life I actually believe I can get there, I can't see why I won't! Now that is a whole different attitude to my normal approach of dieting.
Get on it and log in often to be inspired and encouraged and before you know it you will be losing weight and just daily keeping on track because you enjoy the way you feel and how you look as well as the friends you make on here.
????

ravengal

It is not easy, but putting my plan on auto-pilot gets my head out of the process so I don't have as much time to "think" about what I don't "feel" like doing. I schedule my food and exercise as part of my mandatory daily activities like going to work or paying bills. The payoff for every hour or two out of my day I spend logging, planning, and exercising is consistent, gradual weight loss.

gmthisfeller

Well I see these success stories and I'm like dayumn. And the way some people out it in the end is as if it was a piece of cake... Or a protein bar... Or something.

Tell me how u did it

The way you are doing it. Do you realize how much you inspire others who are having a much harder time than you in believing in themselves? Look at the weight you have lost. Clearly it hasn't as easy as you thought, but look how far you have come!. I am within 10 lbs of my goal --135-- and these last 10 are incredibly hard for me. I now run 4.5 to 5.5 miles every day, and every fifth day it is intervals. Still the scale creeps down so darned slowly. One day, maybe by Spring, I will see that 135, and it will have been worth it for me.

You can do this....heck....you WILL do this!

bobbijodmb

A lot of us people who have lost a lot of weight were where you are awhile ago. I know for myself, I didn't think I could make the changes or would keep with them long term at the beginning. I didn't think I would have a big success story to share. But when you find your motivation and keep with it, its an amazing feeling that you just want more of. Just keep making small changes over time and keep with them and you will have a success story.

hstoblish

I've got to say, it hasn't been "easy" exactly, but I was so ready to take my health into control that it felt simple.

PunkyRachel

Commitment, consistency, habit, patience. Not making crazy drastic changes you can't live with. Not giving up the second things go wrong, or it gets boring, or it feels difficult. Just keep plodding on.

This! P.S, its taken me 2 years to drop 68 lbs. I am still 33 lbs from my goal weight, but I have faith I will achieve it!

fishermanmatt

I agree with a lot of what's been written.

One day at a time. One meal at a time. One workout at a time. Always looking for a healthier option but allowing yourself the thing you enjoy. It's not a edit, it's a lifestyle change. Never letting myself get down. There have been plenty of days when my diet sucked. I think about why I made those choices to try to avoid the mess up in the future and let it go. The changing of my mindset has been key. I don't beat myself up. I see the victory in a half eaten bag of candy when I would have finished it all in the past.

In short, one day at the time always looking for little victories and healthier options while maintaining a positive attitude and allowing myself the things I enjoy.

elyelyse

Easy? Nope. Simple? Yeah. Once you figure out what you need to do, it's pretty simple. Which is definitely not the same as easy.

Eat at a caloric deficit. That's it. Sometimes it takes a little while to figure out how much that is. And you have to figure out the best way for you to manage that through through your choices (what foods satisfy your hunger the best, what kind of meal frequency and timing helps you stick to the plan, etc) but after some trial and error...it's mostly a matter of consistently making those good choices.

eheinze12

Its not easy.. it's hard work everyday. wake up and get it done.. no excuses! There are days I'm exhausted, I workout.. unless my body is really telling me otherwise. I just woke up one day and said.. I need to make this a priority not an option.. and here I am 90 days later.. 20 pounds down..and learning to love exercise and eating better. you can do it.

pwittek10

It is not easy, but it is simple
calories in = calories must be burned
If you do not want to "burn" it, DO NOT EAT IT!
Stops me a lot.

samanthahix12

Easy? Nope. Simple? Yeah. Once you figure out what you need to do, it's pretty simple. Which is definitely not the same as easy.

Eat at a caloric deficit. That's it. Sometimes it takes a little while to figure out how much that is. And you have to figure out the best way for you to manage that through through your choices (what foods satisfy your hunger the best, what kind of meal frequency and timing helps you stick to the plan, etc) but after some trial and error...it's mostly a matter of consistently making those good choices.

This. You'll wonder why you never tried it this way before and you'll have that light bulb moment. It IS simple when you get the hang of it and see results.

schonsdragon

It is a slow process and at times it is not easy but I take each day at a time, each change at a time, and celebrate each small victory at a time. Motivation comes and goes so I am continuing to work on creating healthy habits to cometinue to carry me during those times when my motivation is MIA.

Hornsby

The key for me was finding something active that I enjoyed. I realize that it's all about calories in versus calories out in theory, but that didn't work for me unless I was doing something active.

rduhlir

The process of losing weight is easy. What makes it hard the the fact that you have to implement self control. That means controling how much you eat, how much you exercise, and how bad you truly want it.

SonicDeathMonkey80

6 months of [honest] logging at a calorie deficit, a food scale, and a bit more choosiness with my foods (did I really want to waste 2/3 of "my day" on that fast food?). The only thing that really sucked was being ashamed of my old habits, and they were badddddd. The new habits formed were more sustainable and rewarding though.

BeingKevin

The first thing is to do whatever it takes to create a new way of living your life, a new lifestyle if you will, that combines eating less and moving more. The second thing you have to do is to never under any circumstances give up.

While it certainly hasn’t been easy, I did just that about 14 months ago and every day I wake up and live that new lifestyle I created another day. Then every night I go to bed with the promise of doing it all over again the next day.

MinnieInMaine

it's not easy, even if it might look that way. Ever feel like people are "lucky" to be skinny and eat whatever they want? Yeah, guess what, 99% of the time, that person is eating really well and working out, you just see them eating goodies at parties or holiday meals and assume they eat like that all the time. No one has a magic metabolism, they all work at it. Trust me, I used to think that to but I really started paying attention to people's habits for the last few years and learned differently.

Have patience - weight loss takes time. I've been at this for nearly 4 years now. While I'd love to get to goal by this time next year, I know it may take another year or two due to things that just come up in life.

Keep perspective - along those same lines, even though I'm not yet at my optiumum weight, I have made HUGE leaps and bounds regarding how I treat my body now. I eat much healthier foods, keep within my goal most of the time and exercise 4-6 days per week.

NEVER give up - just because you have a rough day or week or month (or even year), it's not worth giving up completely. Go back to the beginning, start tracking everything, weighing and measuring, try new recipes, try new exercises, etc. Keep things interesting and keep going. My tracker may look impressive but my weight hasn't actually changed much in the last year. Life happens...

Keep learning - I have learned so much by keeping an open mind about things. Just because someone told you something 20 years ago doesn't mean it's still true. There has been so much research in the nutrition/fitness industry that the facts are always changing. Be a cynic and do your own research and find out what works best for you. Especially when folks tell you "hey, I'm doing this new diet (or pill, or shake) and losing crazy weight, you should try it!". No...wait and see how they feel about this fantastic diet in 6 months. If it's really that great, they'll still be at it but more likely than not, it's over and done with by then like most other fad diets.

Concentrate more on healthy and fitness than "getting skinny". No extreme diets, no starvation.. Fuel the body, take care of it and it will reward you with success.

Best of luck!

Bry_Fitness70

All fitness progress in my case has been as a result of making better choices, day in and day out, over a period of time. In reality, choosing to eat a little better, eat a little less, exercise a little more, etc., provides momentum that builds upon itself, and your habits become integrated into your lifestyle rather than just being a part of some separate program that you only plan on doing for a finite amount of time.