I need motivation! How do I even get start??

drianna123

I've tried many of times to lose weight, I feel like nothing is working. I work out and eat right for a few weeks and I lose a few pounds, one time I even lost 10 pounds and I could see the difference already, but something is always getting in the way and I get distracted from my goal. Then I end up gaining all the weight back PLUS MORE. School and family are distractions when it comes to weight lost. I'm not good at focusing on too many things at once so I always end up putting my weight loss aside.
How should I balance out school, family, and weight loss. I don't even know how to get started up again without getting discouraged that I will just fail
What do you guys do to stay motivated? What are some tips on starting weight loss? Any beginner tips? It's my first time using this website and I don't even know where to begin.
I want to join a gym, but I don't want to spend money on something I will never go to. I don't know how to motivate myself to work out everyday or watch what I eat. Should I make a work out schedule? Should I work at at the same time everyday so I can be on a routine?
Also, money is a huge factor. I want to buy all these healthy foods, but at the moment I can't afford to go to the grocery store and pack up on salmon and avocados. Tips on eating healthier on a budget?

Just any tips on how to make this easier would be great, I'm going insane with not being motivated enough lol
Thank you

Capt_Apollo

sign up for a race. it'll help keep you working towards something.

TVNerd95

I have been having the same issues as you -- I know I need to exercise and lose weight but I just haven't found that inner thing that keeps me going. I've recently decided to start focusing on other things where exercise/weight loss will help me with my goals. An example, I want to move out of my little apartment next year -- so to do that will take some money. I've decided to save the money I have been spending on new bigger clothes towards my moving expenses. This means as long as I don't have to buy new clothes I am one step closer to a better place. Not sure if this will help you any but I just wanted to let you know you aren't alone in trying to find the inner motivation to keep going.

laurie04427

Logging the day's food ahead of time usually helps with me. I don't bring money to work so I pretty much HAVE to eat what I've logged and brought with me. I lose my enthusiasm for trying to get healthy too and sometimes I'm just too tired to think so logging ahead and just sticking to the routine gets me through most of the time.

Edit: noticed you mentioned eating on a budget. Some tips. Yes they aren't fun tips but anyhow lol: I buy a great big thing of oatmeal, the slow cooking kind and make some up for a few days. Buy a bag of apples and chop it up into it for breakfast. I buy dried beans and make a big vegetarian chili and eat that all week. The dried beans save on sodium too but they're also really cheap. Lately I've been buying the big tubs of vanilla greek yogurt and just mixing honey or peanutbutter (yum) into it. Bit cheaper and less sugary.

Anyway good luck on your journey.

MagnumBurrito

Change one small habit at a time. Try it out for 2 weeks, and then pick another one. An easy starter: First thing every morning, chug 20 ozs of water.

Chelz2013

All I can say is you have to find your motivation. It's different for everyone.

Start with one small goal. Then two. Then three. Maybe today you'll log every morsel you eat. Tomorrow, or next week, log your food AND make sure you're drinking enough water (8+ glasses a day). Maybe your first exercise goal is to walk every day for 5 minutes. Next week, walk every day for 10 minutes. Keep doing more.

Take your measurements. The scale isn't always friendly, but you may see changes in the way your clothes feel or see the difference in your measurements.

Stay positive. We can be our own worst enemies.

Decide if having a work out buddy will help keep you accountable.

Take advantage and use this website. It's just one tool. There's many, many work outs on YouTube for free. Many people I've seen recommend Leslie Sansone (sp?).

Personally, I used my free community gym until I was ready to make the commitment and I got a gym membership. I love Zumba and I always make the class at the gym whereas I'm not always motivated to work out at home. (many, many people certainly make the commitment to work out at home and are very successful!!)

And also remember, keep at it. If you fail one day, pick up the next. If you feel you've failed one week, do better the next week. Write down your goals if that helps. Treat yourself to something special when you hit certain goals (buy hand weights, a DVD, a new sports bra, new shoes... something non-food related)

jackeroo83

Great job for taking the first step of signing up and getting yourself support! I've found that even reading the boards and searching on past posts has been really helpful in educating myself / helping me get started.

I've been up and down with my weight over the years, and the one thing I've learned is that you just have to take it one day at a time. There is no easy fix, and consistency is key. Rather than looking at the end game, make small changes and take baby steps. You may find that even making smart substitutions (like plain greek yogurt instead of sour cream) or switching to diet soda will add up over time and you won't feel deprived.

Also, if you set aside some time on the weekend, maybe an hour or two on a Sunday, to do some grocery shopping and food prep for the week it will help you a ton. Wash your veggies, make your salads, grill your chicken - and instead of grabbing for something quick and unhealthy when you're hungry or on the go, you can stick to the good things and be prepared.

For working out, pick a couple days a week to start and stick to it. Don't try to go 7 days a week and then be mad at yourself for not keeping your commitment. Even walking a few days a week is better than nothing!

I could go on and on, but I hope that helps! Just some of the key things I've learned over the years that have helped me.

fatalis_vox

I have a hard time with motivation. I tend to use a work/reward system on myself.

For example: I think about an outfit that I want (usually from an online store) and think about my weight loss goals. For example, one pound a week = X weeks until I meet my goal. I take the total cost of the outfit, divide by X, and every week that I meet that weight-loss goal, I set aside that amount of money. (total / X = weekly amount) and then at the end of the loss, I take the money I've set aside and I buy the outfit! (Hopefully in a smaller size than I was when I started!

I might start a little higher, with something like: The first time I (get up and workout, stay within my calorie goal, lose that first pound) I'll purchase one lower-priced item from the outfit. Like a necklace, or earrings. Or give yourself milestones: When you lose one pound, buy the necklace. When you lose five pounds, the earrings. Ten pounds, the purse. Fifteen pounds, the shoes. Twenty pounds, the dress. Whatever helps you want to KEEP GOING. (I can't get the accessories without the dress! It would drive me CRAZY.)

Alternately, I think about my edible rewards. If I do so much exercise today, I'll be able to eat (a cookie, small piece of cake, extra serving of protein) at dinner.

Or the reverse: I'm slammed at work today, I guess I'll have to get someone to bring me fast food. If I eat fast food today, I will earn it later by doing X more minutes/rounds/sets of exercise, and cleaning my kitchen.

It helps me stay motivated, and also helps me feel less guilty about the times when I indulge a little. (I don't really call it cheating. I call it indulging; it's important to indulge yourself once in a while. Otherwise, if you're like me, you turn into a crankypants and throw the whole thing out the window in frustration for "failing" or "cheating.")

So the bottom line: When you do something good for yourself, find little ways to reward yourself. It keeps things fresh and makes you want to get to those goals.

cwolfman13

You have to start to make nutrition and fitness an integral part of your life and who you are and what you do. In that sense, it has to be about more than just Lbs on the scale...if you're putting all of your stock into some number on the scale, it is likely that this pattern will continue.

You have to realize the your path towards health and wellness...your nutrition and your fitness is a never ending one. These things are life long endeavors and must just become a part of who you are. People obsess about a number on the scale and making that their primary goal...if they're lucky, they get there...but then what? For many, they think they've arrived at some endpoint when in reality, they've just arrived at the starting line of a much longer and more arduous race.

Understand that this is a process, not an overnight kind of thing. If you would have told me two years ago that I'd be where I am now I would have laughed in your face...because two years ago I didn't understand the process...I just wanted to weigh XXX Lbs. It is a series of baby steps that get bigger and bigger as you move along your path. You learn and you grow and then you learn some more and grow some more..it is a never ending, life long endeavor.

Start putting your focus on just being a better, healthier version of you...little by little and day by day you will become that healthier person. When you have a bad day it's ok...go to bed and sleep well in the knowledge that you're going to wake up and rock the **** out of it tomorrow. There is no start and there is no stop...this is one continuous life long journey to the betterment of yourself.

The following is a quote from a fellow MFP member from way back when...when I was lost and seemingly couldn't figure any of this stuff out...."focus on the results and you rarely see the change; focus on the change and you always see the results."

I took that quote to heart, and here I am today getting better nutrition than I probably have in my entire life...here I am today participating in 1/2 century rides, crits, and cyclocross races when a mere 1.5 - 2 years ago I could barely walk around the block without needing a nap. Here I am today as lean and fit as I was in my early 20s. Here I am today rocking it, loving it, and loving life.

Now ask yourself, where will you be a year from now...two years from now...five years from now? Really, the answer to those questions is up to you.

cmhickey616

start small. Stick with one goal for a week and then continue to add mini goals until these become habit and lifestyle changes. It also helps me when I plan rewards for accomplishing certain goals such as getting a new dress once a certain weight is reached (make sure the rewards aren't food related!). It can definitely be hard to get started but if you keep it small and build from there it feels more manageable at least for me. Strive for progress and not perfection

beertrollruss

First, the good news. You're young. It's much easier to get in shape when you're young.

You need to tell yourself, this is a lifestyle, not a diet. You've probably got at least 70 more years of life ahead of you. Focus more on being healthy and feeling good than worrying about your weight.

Eating healthy on a budget can be difficult even for us older folks. Getting quality protein is especially expensive. Fruits, vegetables, rice and potatoes are fairly cheap. Be sure to cut your own fruit. The cut fruit at the stores doesn't keep very long. Most vegetables last about a week. You can definitely save money if you cook. Lean red meats and dark chicken are pretty good meat choices to save money. Red meat is important for iron. Trader Joe's, Costco, and Walmart are good low cost shopping options. Some items are cheaper at Target and some Target items cost more than the grocery store, so it's worth comparing.

If you can handle it, ditch the soda and coffee and drink water and tea. Caffeine interferes with iron absorption. Soda is overpriced unless you buy the liter bottles and it's generally bad for your health. Tap water is free and contains minerals that are often filtered out of bottled water.

If you're not sure you'll be dedicated, save your money on joining a gym. Gyms thrive on people who join and never show up. You can lose weight just by watching your calories. If you have time for exercise, walking is fine exercise. Pushups and situps are also great. If you really want to go to a gym, see if you can work out at your school.

I wish you a life time of good health.

ArwenP

I feel you. I lost 45lbs and kept it off for quite a while but, I've been so stressed the last 6 months, it's all back and I'm starting over. The number one best thing you can do is log everything that crosses your lips. Don't even try to start figuring out what to change until you've logged for a week or so. You'd be surprised what things you eat look unhealthy, but are actually good for you, and what things you think are healthy that really aren't. Once you can see your eating habits, then make small changes. Start just with cutting back on your portions of the high fat / high calorie stuff. Don't deny yourself anything, just try to eat a little less of it, and make up the difference with more of the healthy stuff. Big mistakes in the beginning are not getting enough protein and calcium, because the first things cut seem to be meats and dairy products due to fat content. But you need those things to fuel the fire that will burn your fat. So be sure you're getting lean meats and low fat cheeses, give yourself a moderate amount of whole grains, again to fuel that metabolizm, and then pack on the veggies and fruit to fill you up. A balanced diet is going to do more for you than any fad or restrictive diet out there. I also strongly recomend a good probiotic supplement, it makes a big difference in your abliity to process what you eat when the good bacteria in your system are balanced. The last piece of advise I can give on diet is to ditch sugary drinks, including those that use artificial sweeteners like splenda and nutrasweet etc. Switch to water, unsweet tea (especially green tea if you like it), or flavor your water with just a little fruit juice. There are sooo many hidden calories in drinks, and the artificial sweeteners give you the same surgary cravings as real sugar, so you're more likely to crave sugary things to eat when you drink sweet drinks.

Next, start some activity that you find fun. I can't make myself go to a gym to save my life, but I like to swim and I like to dance. So, I take a belly dancing class and go to the pool when I can. Find what is fun for you to get you moving, and you won't need motivation, you'll actually want to go do the fun things.

Feel free to friend me if you want. I'm happy to be an encourager for anyone.

jamcookies

I had the same problem. I learned that I had to put my health first. School work I will stay up late to work on but not exercising so I would make it a priority to work out before homework. I didn't have a lot of money so I started researching what others do on here and found jullian micheals (tons of dvds for $10 a piece, I recommend 30 day shred), C25K and billions of workouts on youtube. I also made it a habit to prep for the week by cooking every Sunday. I've been lurking on this site reading all the information for months trying to figure out nutrition, macros, why you should eat enough calories, food scales, how to overcome or avoid plateaus and then try and apply it all. So I guess just know it will take time to acquire all the knowledge but start by applying what you do know now. Any little change helps. Its been a slow process for me but I'm getting there and I'm sure you will too.