Struggling so bad - need help!

shanna5

I have lost 16 pounds since June and am about 9 away from my goal. The last few weeks though have been really tough. I am losing my motivation and determination. I am losing the battle with food and letting it take over. I just keep thinking about what I shouldn't eat and it makes me want to eat it plus some! I'm giving in and then feel terrible about it afterwards, but it doesnt change anything. It's an ugly cycle! Anyone out there got any advice, words of encouragement, tricks to get over this? I need to get back on track, especially with all the sugary holidays coming up! Thanks for your help!

Nadine32

Wow! I came on here to get ideas for motiviation for the same thing. I am about 15lbs away from my goal, 27lbs lost, so I know I can do it, but I am not excercising, eating at night and I just generally feel low. I understand how you are feeling. I am giving myself 2 days off, no guilt, no stress and then getting right back at it! Good Luck

Tabby615

I know the feeling!!! What I would suggest honestly is give yourself a break once in awhile if you do then you wont want to eat so much of the bad foods.. But when I'm not on my break and I REALLY want a snack.. I found that Wal-mart has these light yogurts and I love them. They are so good and help me tons with my cravings..

Holton

No real secrets, just wanted to let you know I think that most of us experience the same thing. I felt like I was almost sabotaging myself! I was successful in losing 25-30 of my goal 40+ pounds and all of a sudden I became complacent about it all! I had stayed motivated watching the scales drop quickly (2+ pounds per week) and receiving TONS of compliments on how my appearance was changing. Then the scales slowed and of course the compliments were not as frequent as I had accomplished most of my goal. All I can say for myself is that I dug deep and recommitted myself to reach my goal and looked back at my food diaries from when I had began, and started recreating those earlier meal choices and adding 1 day of workout activities (not much on exercise, so walking is my venue of choice). Again, just know you are not alone. Revisit your reasons for losing weight; look at your success so far, and recommit to achieving what you set out to do! Here to cheer you on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

sing1998

when i get like that, i try to distract with an activity so i don't keep thinking of the food i want. i go brush my teeth (okay, it's not like eating chocolate chip cookies but it is oral), go for a walk, call someone, wash dishes, blah blah, you get the idea. too often, i give in instead of moving on to something else. i also try to "psych myself out" by saying, "okay, i'll eat that tonight but right now i'm going to scrub the sink". the craving passes as i do the activity. what causes the problem is when i say, "okay, i'll eat this now and tomorrow i'll get back on my program". reverse the process. keep in mind though the weight loss may be slow or plateued, that's still a victory in the long run.

sharoniballoni

I say let yourself indulge, but at a price. You can have some pepperoni pizza for dinner, but not until you drink a full glass of water and eat two servings of veggies (like steamed broccoli or a salad with a little oil and vinegar). Shovel those veggies in. Don't touch that pizza until they're gone. Once you've paid upfront for your indulgence, you can be rewarded with that pizza. You'll likely only eat one or two slices instead of four or five because you will already be full from the water and veggies.

I use this method. It works for me. Balance is key. If you can't enjoy the naughty foods, what's the point?

Edestiny7

Try viewing the food in terms of how long it will take you to exercise those calories off. So if you burn 400 calories an hour, how many minutes of exercise will that one, or more, food item(s) cost? If you have already eaten the food, plan to exercise those calories off, if not that same day, the next day at least.

I keep dark chocolate 70% around and eat 2 squares when I am craving sweets. 20 grams of it every 3 days is supposed to be beneficial health-wise.

Good luck! :flowerforyou:

dushkeen2007

First of all, don't forget that we aren't perfect, so don't beat yourself over your lack of motivation 'cause in addition to feeling terrible you will also get stressed out & want to eat more, then feel bad, stressed & eat more, & so on... get it? So be nice to yourself

Now every day is a new opportunity, so take it one day at a time or even one meal at a time. Think about your goals, why do you want to loose weight? Maybe 9 lbs. feel overwhelming, so small goals feel more manageable, maybe a goal of 3 lbs each time.

Keep a daily food diary has worked for me in the past 'cause it makes me accountable. Keeping healthier snacks around is important too, that way when you get those cravings you have better options. I like greek yogurt with fruit, it tastes to me like dessert. Natural peanut butter with toast is a good one too. There are lots of healthy recipes out there, hungrygirl.com is a pretty cool site with healthier versions.

Think about what is going on in your life, maybe stress? When I am stressed out I tend to crave sweets, so I find that working out after work usually takes care of the stress. Are you working long hours? Are you not preparing your meals ahead of time? There is a lot of true in this statement: "If you fail to plan you are planning to fail."

I also give myself one day a week to cheat. On this day I can eat whatever I want. At first it seemed like craziness 'cause it could backfire everything I had worked for all week. I have been doing this for almost 3 years now & I find that these days I hardly remember this cheat day. The fact that on that day I can eat whatever I want makes me not crave forbidden food. Sometimes just knowing you are not allowed to eat some food (that you probably never ate) all of the sudden you want to devour everything.

Anyway, it seems that you have already done a bunch of work, so relax, be nice & good luck!

I hope this helps!

Dushkeen2007

NatalieWinning

It's a habit. If you can force yourself to get going for a few weeks it might help keep the habit going. Don't give up. Trying is most of the effort. Every day is a new one. Start over trying every day.