How do you stay motivated?

Saphira291

I have to admit one of the things that has deterred me from trying to start this sooner is knowing how long it will take to reach the weight I want to be. How do you keep yourself motivated and on track knowing that you have a long way to go? I'm definitely going to need all the help I can get because I know myself and how easy I fall back into bad habits. It's like I want the weight to come off fast but I know that's not healthy and that I need to take it slow and steady if I want to do it the right way and get lasting results. So difficult for me.

Lives2Travel

Here's my advice:

Don't focus on the big scary number. Focus on smaller goals (both the next weight you want to attain and things like logging every day and staying within your calorie goal). When you reach those goals, reward yourself and then set others.

Don't make changes that are unattainable and/or unsustainable. I know plenty of people swear by clean eating or paleo or any number of eating strategies. Good for them, but those are not for me. I had to be honest with myself and admit that I just don't want to cook anymore. Been there, done that for 30 years. So unless DH throws something on the grill, we eat a prepared meal from Trader Joe's and a big salad or a steamed veggie. It's less about what you eat than how much you eat.

Don't take on more than you can handle. I spent the first 6 months focusing on my eating and doing little to no exercise. And I lost a LOT of weight. It's not necessary to do it all all at once.

Be kind to yourself. When you mess up (and you will) own it and move on.

Seek out people who are supportive. They're here on MFP and out there in the world. I've always had great support and even some unexpected support right when I needed it.

Lastly, and most importantly, DO NOT QUIT. The people who are successful are not perfect or super human or have willpower made of iron. They just don't quit. Not ever. Emulate these people and you will succeed.

You can do this!

PRMinx

The more you do, the better you feel. Eventually, feeling good to great to awesome is motivation in and of itself.

farfromthetree

Great advice from Lives2Travel. All of it!! For me, failure is not an option. period.

nictheman

There's nothing more motivating than achieving a goal. IF you have a good long-term goal (say, losing 15kg), nothing is better than having small short-term goals. Say, losing 0.5kg per week. IF you see 0.5kg coming off every week, you will feel amazing every time you check the scales and see your weight lower than before. Even if you have a week with lots of eating and drinking and don't feel like you're reaching your goal, seeing your weekly goal in front of you will continue to motivate you. Eventually you'll get used to the minimum allowed drinks for a load, and then you can apply different loads.

Eric_DeCastro

I didn't look to see how far I have to go and just concentrated on what I have to do now. I had to eat clean and exercise. that was a hard enough battle to win in itself. everyday I win a little more before I knew it I had lost 81lbs. now I'm just running out of habit. eating clean is just so it won't make it harder for me to run. after my 5K this Sunday, I'm going to up my distance from 4 miles to 4.2miles. everyday is an adventure, are you willing to do it or going to sit on the couch?

Susie_1

Here's my advice:

Don't focus on the big scary number. Focus on smaller goals (both the next weight you want to attain and things like logging every day and staying within your calorie goal). When you reach those goals, reward yourself and then set others.

Don't make changes that are unattainable and/or unsustainable. I know plenty of people swear by clean eating or paleo or any number of eating strategies. Good for them, but those are not for me. I had to be honest with myself and admit that I just don't want to cook anymore. Been there, done that for 30 years. So unless DH throws something on the grill, we eat a prepared meal from Trader Joe's and a big salad or a steamed veggie. It's less about what you eat than how much you eat.

Don't take on more than you can handle. I spent the first 6 months focusing on my eating and doing little to no exercise. And I lost a LOT of weight. It's not necessary to do it all all at once.

Be kind to yourself. When you mess up (and you will) own it and move on.

Seek out people who are supportive. They're here on MFP and out there in the world. I've always had great support and even some unexpected support right when I needed it.

Lastly, and most importantly, DO NOT QUIT. The people who are successful are not perfect or super human or have willpower made of iron. They just don't quit. Not ever. Emulate these people and you will succeed.

You can do this!

Brilliant philosophy and so very true,

salemsaberhagen

Ignore the scale and focus on how well your clothes are fitting- that's the best motivation of all. Weight loss should be more about body composition rather than a numbers game.

Blokeypoo

Don't look at the longer term other than sticking with slow but steady loss for long term success.

Every day is a new success, focus on that and see it as the start of new good habits not a diet or something to be endured.

mkcmurphy

1. Small goals (e.g. 5 lbs, 10 lbs, the wieght I was after first child, etc)
2. Easy long-term goal so that, if life happened or I fell off the wagon, it would be relatively easy to get back on and still have a shot at getting there (25 pounds in 10 months; I figured 2.5 lbs a month for 10 months would fit the bill) (it did).
3. Listen to your body. 1200 calls per day did not work for me so I adapted it and it worked.

Good luck! It's a wonderful trip!

zeal26

Time will pass, whether I'm losing weight or not. And if I'm not losing weight in that time, I'll most likely be putting it on! I just think about 6 months from now- do I want to weigh less or do I want to wish I'd started 6 months ago?

I am not always motivated. Most days I am honestly just plodding along and hoping it pays off.

I recommend taking progress pictures. Last week I was really fed up as I hadn't lost any weight so I decided to compare my first picture to a new one. And yeah, MASSIVE difference and made it all worth it.

emilyharber1990

For me, ive got my goals written down and stuck on my wardrobe door- that way i see them every morning when i wake up and it keeps me focused.
Also don' t cut things out completely- everything is good in moderation. And don't beat yourself up over a slip up. Just breathe and get back to it.
You will be surprised at how quickly change can happen and good results will keep you going. Good luck

ToraChan2310

Whenever I feel like backsliding, eating junk food, or skipping workouts, I go into my bathroom and look in the mirror at the fat on my body.

That immeidately gets me back on track.

StarFall90

The way I see it, I know I have a few years worth of work ahead of me. I'm ok with that. I have felt the same way you have in the past. And if I had stuck to it then I could be done by now. A year from now I don't want to look back and say "if I didn't give up I could be 100 pounds lighter now."

cchew686

I agree with everyone about setting small, obtainable goals. You'll still see progress and be able to stick with the changes as opposed to drastic plans.

From the emotional side, I tend to focus on a couple of things. I have a young kid and I want to not only be around for him, but to be able to do all the things a parent should do with their child. To a lesser extent, my spite drives me. As sad as it may be, thinking about people that have judged me in the past motivates me to be better.

bandit5125

small goals and one day at a time!

Eric_DeCastro

Whenever I feel like backsliding, eating junk food, or skipping workouts, I go into my bathroom and look in the mirror at the fat on my body.

That immeidately gets me back on track.

I have done that when it was raining here in San Diego. I took my shirt off and stood in front of the mirror and got dressed and hit the pavement, very carefully.

mschicagocubs

Ditto to everyone! Small goals in the beginning!

I wanted to lose 10 lbs...DONE
Now I'm on to the next 10...
Then I'm going to add muscle...

And so forth. I'm setting small checklists.

Also...if Chicago ever decides to warm up, I want to rock this hot bod at the beach

CharleeCali

You are a brave man, Prince Eric, I'm scared to DRIVE when it rains in San Diego.

SherryTeach

I never set weight goals at all. I only focused (and still do) on the current day: am I eating nutritious food within my calorie goal? I'm a getting some (any) exercise? Did I get enough sleep? If I could answer yes to those, that was good enough. I've done that times 636.

Julez467

I'm a newby & need to lose about 25 - 30 kg, I'm really struggling atm with motivation when I look at that figure & know that I need to break it down into 5kg lots but it's still a daunting task.

I lost 10kg about 3 years ago & then hit rock bottom so it all came back on with friends so now I need to start again, I'm still struggling to get my head in the right space but hoping I can do this with small baby steps at a time

1Cor1510

I take pictures and measurements weekly. Every week (3 months in) I have seen a difference. And now, my beginning pic and current there is a HUGE difference. Keeps me going.

ktsmom430

Take it one step at a time. Do not look at the final goal. Every little achievement takes you closer and increases your motivation to stay on track. I keep asking myself over, and over, and over, is it really worth it to eat something that I really shouldn't. The answer is invariably, "NO". I just do not want to EVER start over again tomorrow. No momentary gratification that I would get from indulging is worth going back to where I was, and I have to keep telling myself this, multiple times, on a daily basis. That is just the way it is for me now.

Eric_DeCastro

You are a brave man, Prince Eric, I'm scared to DRIVE when it rains in San Diego.

oh it was an adventure. I'm so glad it only rains once a year here in San Diego. lol

Eric_DeCastro

I never set weight goals at all. I only focused (and still do) on the current day: am I eating nutritious food within my calorie goal? I'm a getting some (any) exercise? Did I get enough sleep? If I could answer yes to those, that was good enough. I've done that times 636.

I agree with this. losing weight is a bi product from this.

nanimoose

It's taken me 3 years to lose 25 lbs. But it has been consistent, small changes that got me there. That's all it is.

Saphira291

I just moved to MD from Chicago and wish I were back there haha.

Saphira291

Thanks everyone, there are some really great tips in here. I've been debating on taking photos but I hate how I look so much that I've been avoiding them big time. I guess it's time to get over it and just do it.

monstergirl14

Everyone is different. I tend to do 5 pound increments, and it makes it a lot easier. I enjoy every day because I know I'm eating well, I know that I'm improving my strength and cardio, and I know I'm on the track to being healthy. Also, take 5 lb progress pictures! Watching your body change through pictures is the best! Scale weight cannot compare to those pictures!

DavidSTC

I have to admit one of the things that has deterred me from trying to start this sooner is knowing how long it will take to reach the weight I want to be. How do you keep yourself motivated and on track knowing that you have a long way to go? I'm definitely going to need all the help I can get because I know myself and how easy I fall back into bad habits. It's like I want the weight to come off fast but I know that's not healthy and that I need to take it slow and steady if I want to do it the right way and get lasting results. So difficult for me.

Before I started counting calories, it was a very slow process. I was active, I ate better, but I still consumed too much. I lost like 20 pounds over a couple years. But, I was happy I was moving in the right direction, even if I had a setback now and then. Then, I started MFP. If you count calories, if you do it every day, and you stay active, you should see results more quickly. You just have to keep at it. It's a process. And, I would say that if you make it a habit, eventually it becomes second nature. You will be so excited about your progress, you won't want to stop. Just get yourself a good food scale, and don't overestimate the calories you burn. It's all about math for losing weight. And, it's all about consistency. I've lost nearly 30 pounds in the past few months, and other than a few hunger pangs here and there, it hasn't been bad at all. And, lo and behold, I look forward to exercise now, partly because I'm in so much better shape that it's EASIER to exercise now.

But, you MUST have patience. Tell yourself that. You will likely have a setback or a stall here and there. You must stick with the program if you want to reach your goals. Don't ever get too mad at yourself. We all have some regrets. We all make mistakes. And, I think back to how I over-ate here and there, and as long as it was just the random big meal or bad day, I overcame it easily by getting back with the program.

Good luck! Feel free to add me as a friend if you wish.

monstergirl14

Thanks everyone, there are some really great tips in here. I've been debating on taking photos but I hate how I look so much that I've been avoiding them big time. I guess it's time to get over it and just do it.

Yeah, just do it! It makes my physically cringe when I look at my before picture, but the progress pictures are what make you happy. Trust me, you will thank yourself in a month from now.