How do you stay motivated??

sarahertzberger

I am so unmotivated right now, I want to lose the weight so bad, but I'm just not at all motivated to get up and workout, I was doing so good 2 weeks ago, I had gotten back into tracking my food, and working out every day but I missed one day and from then it just snowballed and I am so disappointed in myself for getting away from that. So, what makes you motivated, what makes you get up and do it every day? Share your tips with me when you're down! Thank you :-)

victoria_1024

Pretty much the only thing that motivates me to work-out is knowing that I get to eat more calories. I love food so much. I hope I'm not the only person who does this, lol.

I first started on MFP last May and only made it about 11 days before I lost the motivation and quit. I went on a long weekend vacation over Memorial day weekend and just couldn't get back into it after that, so I can relate! It took me several months before I got the motivation to start up again!

victoria_1024

Oh, I should add that this time around I took baby steps rather than just change EVERYTHING right away. I started with my diet first, and logging everything and trying to stay within my calorie goals. I told myself I would just work out if I felt like it. Or I'd work out for just 10 minutes. So the first 2 weeks it was mostly focusing on food. Then as I got that part down, I brought in the exercise more regularly for maybe 30 minutes, or longer on the weekends. Now I'm consistently doing 60 minutes 5 days a week and it doesn't feel overwhelming at all. But if I had started it all at once, I think it would have been too much and I would have been more tempted to quit.

Iwishyouwell

Being fat was one of the worst conditions I ever had the misfortune of living through. It was detrimental to my self esteem for a very long time.

Not wanting to be a fatass who is constantly miserable with the state of his body is motivation enough. Going back is not an option.

marieamethyst

I remember why I'm doing this. My daughter is a constant reminder that I need to be healthy, so I can keep up with her and be around for awhile! I also look at how far I've come, and that usually does a great job of getting me up and moving to see how much further I can take it. Plus I've discovered after consistently working out for over a month now, it's become somewhat of an addiction. I crave those endorphins! :laugh:

Start over. Forget about these last few weeks and pretend you're starting for the first time. We all have our off days; you just gotta pick yourself back up and keep going! :flowerforyou:

baileyang33

I decided I need to put me 1st sometimes. I take care of the kids, dogs, hubby, house, school, activities, dinner, etc. Exercise is for me to succeed. Eating more or having some adult drinks sometimes work as well! :drinker:

Stripeness

What *used* to motivate me was a "suck it up and workout harder" mentality - so just some good workout music or inner drill sergeant would do it.

Which was all good until medical issues prevented me from doing the kinds of workouts I was used to.

What I do now has been strangely MORE successful: I simply think about who I am. I'm an active person. Someone who loves going outside. So I do that. I'm someone who looks at a mountain and wants to get to the top - and CAN. So I do that, or do what it takes to get to that point. I also enjoy lifting, both in the gym, and 40-lb feed bags. So I do those things.

One of my friends doesn't see herself as active. She sees workouts as a mandatory body maintenance task. So she dutifully does her scheduled whatever with no more enjoyment than getting her teeth cleaned. That works for her (has for decades), because that's who she is.

If you're gonna be successful over the long haul, it all comes back to "who ARE you?" and act accordingly.

:flowerforyou:
“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” - Oscar Wilde

ETA: just noticed you mentioned working out every day...remember you need rest days! As another commenter mentioned: baby steps! http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

rjmelton

Celebrate the small victories along the way! Enjoy those new SMALLER pants you "had" to buy. Take pride in that half pound off the scale. Enjoy that hike with the one you care about.
The small things along the way should point you like stars in the sky to that place you want to be!

joleenl

This isn't an easy question to answer. I am struggling so bad. I guess falling in love with lifting and my trainer become a good friend helps too. I have several weeks were not even those things can save me. I just get back up again. Everyday I start over. It's the only way.

The saying, "your body is a reflection of your daily average effort, not of your best day and not of your worst day" helps me a lot. It reminds me that I will not get fat from a few bad days as I will not look like a model if I have a few good days. I just do what I can each day and know that my body will reflect those changes over time and even if it didn't I am still further ahead then if I did nothing.

beamer0821

imo, motivation is fleeting, as you have experienced. so you need something in between to keep you going. there are a number of things that help contribute to keeping my weightloss journey going. there is no one-two punch for me. first, i go easier on myself and not beat myself up for something i ate or didnt do that wasnt perfectly according to plan. that is life and i roll with it, i just dont turn one bad decision into a weeks worth of bad decisions.
also i try to understand what is preventing me (psychologically) from taking care of myself. am i tired, overwhelmed, stressed, etc. sometimes just simply identifying what it is (not even solving the problem) makes me feel better and allows me to make better choices for myself.

also having response ready for those times i dont want to make healthy choices helps. while you are in a good mind set take out a notebook (or even the notepad on your phone) and write down responses to yourself when you want to give up or not stick to plan. and make sure they are supportive, like what would you say to a friend? what would you say to your child?

good luck!

oBuckethead

I keep a picture of what I used to look like (60 lbs ago). That's all the motivation I need.

devilwhiterose

I get off-track once in a while. Life gets in the way. A week of working late, sick kids...all kinds of things can be monkeywrenches.

My motivation is looking in the mirror. What I see isn't what I want to be. I don't like the jiggle, the wiggle, the chin I can see under my chin.

Coltsatc

I look through the progress pics on this forum and remind myself it's a journey and a lifestyle, not a crash diet.

Or I put on my swim suit and then the motivation comes back pretty quickly. lol