Needing Some Motivation....

courtyjane

Hello
I am new to MFP. I am not over weight but I am extremely lazy and unhealthy. I got engaged this year and plan to get married next year so I am wanting to shed a few kilos and start to look forward to a healthier lifestyle for when I am ready to have a family. My biggest problem is eating poor and getting myself to do anything... I get home from work and I am always so tired and I cant be bothered to do anything esp cook! My lack of motivation effects everything in my life esp my work and my relationship. I am a lazy eater and never stick to exercise so hopefully things will change I want to look and feel fabulous for my wedding day! Keen to here how others stay motivated??

Puffins1958

Welcome to the group. I've found it very helpful just keeping track of my food. I exercise when I can get to the gym. So far it's been about 5 days a week. I hope that you have a wonderful experience here. ENJOY!!!!

Kyliechristie

hi courtyjane. you sound like me about 2 months ago. fairly metabolically lucky, living on takeaway and too tired to do ANYTHING! considering how much crap i ate it was a wonder i wasn't morbidly obese. One day I just got up and said to myself JFDI which is now my mantra. the first 2 weeks are tough but now i go to the gym every morning and do group classes which is what i enjoy (you have to like it to some degree) and i eat really well 90% of the time. The other 10% of the time I treat myself but use restraint (ie. half a vegie pizza on a thin base or 1/2 a cupcake vs a whole meatlovers pizza on thick base or 3 pieces of chocolate cake). And when I am completely lazy and don't feel like cooking I eat wholeweat toast and a piece of fruit - not much effort involved there.
And I know it sounds really naff but there is a lot of negative self talk happening here! Be nice to yourself - good luck and I am sure you will find mfp a great tool to help you keep on track.

dashbeaujippers

Have you been to a doctor? Perhaps you have a medical condition that makes you so tired all of the time, example: hypoactive thyroid. Maybe you are not lazy, as you say, perhaps you are just "wiped out" because of something going on in ur body. See what ur doc says, then let me know. I will be happy to help u stay motivated, but you must make some effort as well. Ever think of joining one of the challenges on here? I find them to be helpful. Start small though, or u may become overwhelmed and not stick with it. Unfortunately, there are no easy fixes or magic potions, just consistency and hard work. Good luck to you. :flowerforyou:

youngmum

What about turning this onto itself? You are not feeling motivated. You feel tired. If you exercise & eat more wholesome foods the result promised is increased energy for life, and increased motivation. I know you asked how to become motivated to live healthily, eat better & exercise, but really you need to do those things in order to become motivated. That's probably the main reason why I'm on here as it's what I want to do. I'm hoping that as I start to work out more and eat better foods, this sense of dedication, and the increased healthiness and strength of my body, will enable me to become more passionate for life, more focused & driven. I hope that the strength I gain from living healthily helps me to feel more motivated. I know it sounds odd but it makes sense to me & it's how I find motivation most days so thought I'd share.

The other motivator is stress relief: exercise is great because when you push your body hard you have to focus on your body 100%. You have to be present. That means you can't be thinking about the things you should be doing or whatever, only on that moment. It's a good thing for pre wedding stresses.

Good luck & congrats for your engagement!

BloomingLily

Have you been to a doctor? Perhaps you have a medical condition that makes you so tired all of the time, example: hypoactive thyroid. Maybe you are not lazy, as you say, perhaps you are just "wiped out" because of something going on in ur body. See what ur doc says

I agree with this. Could be low iron or something. If there is something there, correcting that could make getting up and moving easier. Good luck!

Diveryanfitness

You are not feeling motivated. You feel tired. If you exercise & eat more wholesome foods the result promised is increased energy for life, and increased motivation.

That is pretty much the case. If you put junk in your body as fuel you're going to run out of steam because your body isn't getting high quality nutrition. Because your body isn't getting what it needs, it tells you to eat more. Once your body starts getting the stuff it needs, the better it will perform.

Exercise improves your mood, helps with depression, energizes you, and helps you sleep better. It sounds odd, but if you get a reasonable amount of exercise your energy levels will increase. Exercise coupled with good nutrition will take care of that "all I want to do is crash in front of the TV" feeling when you get home from work.

If you're not used to eating right or getting exercise it will be a bit of an adjustment. It will be hard work, but once you get over the hump you'll see that that work was worth it. How do I know? I've lost about 70# and have been through it. I've fallen, got off track, over indulged, and whatever. But I remembered what my goal was, why I was doing it, and kept at it. It's OK to slip up. It's not OK to give up!

No one can do this for you ~ you have to do it for yourself. Come up with a real "why." Why are you really doing this? Have you watched friends die too young, and realized that life isn't forever? Do you have kids who want you to play with them but you can't keep up? Did the doctor tell you to clean things up or you won't be here in 10 years? Until I had a real "why," it was very tough to find the motivation to stay on track. (FYI my "whys" were the first two.)

People make new years resolutions to get fit. Lots want to loose weight to fit into those old jeans or look good for that upcoming cruise. Even wanting to look good for that special someone or reunion have been reasons for wanting to get fit. But I've found over the years that none of those reasons were strong enough to make ME really commit.

One thing that really helped me maintain focus on my "why" was Facebook and all those pictures of the old fat me. When I felt the urge to snack, I'd look at old pictures of me. That's not what I wanted the new fit me to look like. Also some old, but good advice is to make a motivation board. Stuff and pictures of healthy people you want to look like. Pictures of that wedding dress. Pictures of healthy people in swim-suits. Special motivational phrases you've read or something you overheard someone say. Keep this near where you often walk by so you see it all the time.

Congrats on your engagement and good luck with your motivation! I've found this website is full of positive encouragement so it's a good start!

The_Saint

Hello
I am new to MFP. I am not over weight but I am extremely lazy and unhealthy. I got engaged this year and plan to get married next year so I am wanting to shed a few kilos and start to look forward to a healthier lifestyle for when I am ready to have a family. My biggest problem is eating poor and getting myself to do anything... I get home from work and I am always so tired and I cant be bothered to do anything esp cook! My lack of motivation effects everything in my life esp my work and my relationship. I am a lazy eater and never stick to exercise so hopefully things will change I want to look and feel fabulous for my wedding day! Keen to here how others stay motivated??

For as long as this planet has been around, for as long as people have been thinking and inspiring others. I find motivation in 3 things.

1 - I find motivation and inspiration in Lao Tzu who said these things.

"If you correct your mind, the rest of your life will fall into place."
“When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.”

2 - I also find motivation in motivating others. I have posted this on my wall last week.

"While others may appreciate your body; success in fitness is not the body you posses, it's how you motivate and challenge others to achieve their fitness goals."

3 - I also find motivation within myself.

I know I am the only one who can get the work done, I know I'm the only one who can eat better for myself, take care of my body, and I also know that I'm the only one that make sure that I have the opportunity to make the millions of memories that I want with the one I love. We are on this earth for a very short period of time, and if my life was shortened based on something I had complete control over, I would wonder what memories I would be giving up, I'm not sure I could ever forgive myself.

courtyjane

Wow guys some real words of encouragment thanks Every single one of you is so positive and it sounds like you have all motivated yourself each step of the way instead of relying so much on others!

I use to have a medical problem with iron but it was self inflicated because I dont eat meat and havent for about 16 years! I have also struggled with glandular fever previsouly so these probably still effect my energy levels...
when I was younger my iron levels were extremely low so this would effect my moods, motivation and energy levels... Since I have matured and now actually care about what is going to happen to my health I have become a better eater and I am finding this calorie counter fantastic because it really shows me all the crap I put into my system! I also went to see a naturopath after many doctors told me my irons levels and everything else was in the normal ranges - the naturopath actually prescribed me with liquid iron, energy booster tablets and a probiotic and within 2 weeks my energy increasec dramatically and so did my moods! but like everything else I got lazy with it and let the routine of taking these vitamins at certain times in certain orders overwhelm me....so its probably my fault I am feeling tired and not motiavted lol

I read health magazines and get all excited about what my plan of healthy activity is for tomorrow then I go to bed and wake up and reset my alarm and find some excuse not to do it - So today was the day I told myself I would get up and go to Bootcamp - I have been previsouly about 3 times 3 months ago and then stopped for any reason I could find, so this morning was my day 1 challenge and I am so happy I DID IT! I got up at 545am and made myself go what a ncie feeling it was when it finished :happy:

Anyway thanks for all your words of encouragment hopefully as I start to see myself fitting fitness into my everyday activities I will be able to motivate others.... Feel free to add me as a friend if you want to continue to share your daily struggles...

Have a great day!

Diveryanfitness

"this morning was my day 1 challenge and I am so happy I DID IT! I got up at 545am and made myself go what a ncie feeling it was when it finished"

Way to go! Sometimes you have to push yourself. Tonight was trick or treating with the kids, and I didnt even start the main part of my workout till 1:00 am. I wanted desperately to just go to bed, but my procrastination isn't a good excuse so I made myself do it. I feel great now!

Just have to get up in 5 hours, which isn't so great, lol!