PLEASE HELP ME!!!!

AmyRobinson86

Ok so I'm not new to "dieting" or to this website either. I've been trying to lose weight on and off since January last year, I started (as I always do) with good intentions, I was really focussed on eating well and exercising and I was really enjoying it. I lost 27 pounds and then like a flick of a switch I just completely lost my motivation! I just couldn't get in the right frame of mind for some reason and I ended up putting 12 pounds back on. I decided in January of this year (usual new years resolution!) that I was gonna give it another go because I know I can do it when I put my mind to it and yet again I was incredibly focussed on both my eating habits and my exercise and I lost the 12 pounds I gained back last year. The last time I lost any considerable amount of weight was on February 26th and since then I've completely lost my motivation again! I feel like I could scream because I know I can do this but I just can't seem to get my head into gear. I'm worried that this is like a weight barrier I always hit and whenever I get to it I'm just gonna start gaining again. Please help me, I need some serious talking to! lol

crudd123

Just take it one day at a time! Are you exercising? I've been stuck on a plateau for a very long time and I've upped my calories and I've gained some of the weight I lost back! I joined a gym a couple of months ago and I'm also walking 3 1/2 miles 3-4 times a week with a friend! Just keep going! You only lose if you quit! You can do it! You've done it before and can do it again! I sent you a friend request too! Cathy

NotParis

Okay first off, you have lost weight and kept it off, so good job. This is less about being a diet and more about making it your everyday life. If you look at it like it is a diet and you go "on" the diet and "off" the diet then you are going to continue to yo yo. This is my lifestyle, period. I am constantly aware of the food I put into my body and even when it is a candy bar or potato chips (which I had for lunch today) but I enjoy these things in moderation. You still have a life to live and ENJOY but you just need to decide that this is going to be a lifelong journey, not a diet.

rfrizb

I know how you feel. Try getting a diet buddy that way you guys can keep each other motivated.

Maurice1966

I couldn't have said it better NotParis. Quite often it's a not a physical or physiological barrier which stops us achieving what we want, in anything, but a psychological one.

dixeyk

There will be setbacks...its the nature of the beast. You've lost some weight good. You've gained some back...not the end of the world. It's okay to stumble. We all do it when learning to walk. Just get back up and start again and remember what's past is past and cannot be undone and the future has yet to happen. All you have is today. Make today count and that's it. When you wake up in the morning it'll just be another today starting. You'll get there.

Scubanana7

I would gladly help you stay motivated. I am 57. I was skinny/fine (haha) util my mid-30's. I have enjoyed life, but watched a lot of it as a FAT person. I would give anything if I could go back and do it again as that size 7 I used to be. My life has been great, but I am angry that I lived .a big part of it fat. I let myelf get diabetes because I was toooooo LAZY to get healthy. You have all the time in the world ahead of you. You CAN DO THIS. YOU MUST DO THIS! DONT trade in the joy of being healthy, looking cute and feeling great for food today. You eat it, you poop it, it's gone.....except for the fat. Life is SHORT. You live it, it's gone. Dont trade stupid food for a healthy life like I did. You CAN BEAT THIS. i FINALLY am winning the battle. down 20 pounds in 2 months. that's good for me. i exercise daily and i feel much better. I am not going to have another single freaking birthday being FAT. I have until November. We can help each other.

amycdsteinberg

Oh my. You wrote my story! I am struggling right now to get back on track-I lost 27 pounds since January 1st and at this point I have put back on about 10 pounds. I am so angry with myself, but I do find that the more friends we have to motivate us, the more it helps-you can add me, we can help each other!!!

mynameiscarrie

try buying new workout clothes! it seems stupid, but it always motivates me! i bought a new pair of nike running shorts today and i'm excited to go work out tomorrow! (i already ran today or else i would go today lol)

edit: another thing i do when i'm not motivated is just put on my workout clothes and go. the hardest step is the one out the door. don't think about it, just do it! works every time

AmyRobinson86

I don't treat it as a diet really as such, it was just a lack of better words really. I always eat what I want really, I've just been eating a bit too much of it at the moment! I have been exercising but I'm finding it harder to keep myself motivated with it at the moment. Thanks everyone, any advice is well appreciated! Also anyone who wants to add me as a friend is very welcome to.

dvisser1

The best thing I can say is shake up your whole routine from time to time. I have to do this or I fall into a rut and backslide into my poor habits again and again. If you're eating the same things day after day, week after week, stop and cook completely different things for two weeks. Do the same thing with your exercise routines. If you work out and home or at the gym, if you do the same thing every single time it's going to get boring unless you really love that one thing you're doing or love a routine.

For me, when I get bored I get self-destructive with both my diet and exercise habits. While I love exercising, I also like to be lazy and can not stand daily routines for very long. Make it interesting and/or make it social and I'm there.

MMarvelous

Change up your routine. Every month I change my workout by adding a new class and dropping one at my gym. I still do some of my classes. Add a new piece of equipment to master. I recommend the arc trainer. Do some workouts outside as weather permits.

Here is a challenge - http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/535513-april-lose-4-challenge

Here is a burn 3500+ calories challenge. I do this one regularly. It is a weekly challenge and you can do less than 3500 calories http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/547788-3-500-calories-burned-challenge-4-2-4-8?hl=3,500++Calories+Burned+Challenge#posts-7689825

Last one I will post is a challenge to exercise so many minutes a week. Check it out too http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/546966-april-move-it-180-to-360-minutes-a-week-challenge?hl=+MOVE-IT+180+to+360+&page=2#posts-7695577

MMarvelous

Oh yeah if I see a good Groupon or Living Social deal for Zumba, Yoga, Pilates, Boot Camp, etc for 30 days, I buy them and hold on to them to use when I get BORED lol

KathieSwenson

try buying new workout clothes! it seems stupid, but it always motivates me! i bought a new pair of nike running shorts today and i'm excited to go work out tomorrow! (i already ran today or else i would go today lol)

edit: another thing i do when i'm not motivated is just put on my workout clothes and go. the hardest step is the one out the door. don't think about it, just do it! works every time

I do the same thing. Even when Im not motivated i put on my work out clothes. 1. it gets me into the thought of working out and 2. once I put them on the hardest step is the first one then I'm gone.

sphinxdust

My motivation is the mirror! If I don't like what I see, I don't care what the scale reads. You look at yourself completely naked, assess your weaknesses, and zero in on them. If you only work out 3 times a day, that's three weaknesses you can work on, and in a month you'll already be a new person.

SuffolkSally

There's lots of great suggestions here! I struggle too, will be really focused for a few weeks and lose well, feeling fine. Then I fall of fthe wagon (an emotional upset, weekend away, visitors bringing copious amounts of booze, whatever) And I do find very difficult to find my motivated brain into place! Logging every day helps but I tend pass over bad days ;(. Anyway free free to add me if you like. I am getting there despite my variability but I would like to be more consistent

Tonya_me

When you feel your motivation slip and your heart just isn't in the fight, change your strategy from one of wt loss to wt maintenance. You won't feel defeated by gaining wt and the undoing of all your hard work. I recommend being emotionally kind to yourself and giving yourself a break but creating a definition that you think you can succeed with of what that break will be. I'm not saying put a time limit on it - but do that if you respond well to that. For me, a short term time limit would stress me out and I would probably binge. But, if you just tell yourself "when I'm ready" and make your focus maintaining your new wt, it will be excellent practice for maintaining your newly achieved wt loss goals in the future. A good learning opportunity.

NotParis

You know when I am tempted to over eat or eat something really bad, this is what I say to myself in my head.
1. How long will I have to workout to burn this off?
2. Do I want to look like this forever?
3. Is there something else I can choose that will make me feel just as good but not be so bad for me?

deetra

I TOTALLY agree with Carri, I am exactly the same !! I also bought some new workout clothes today because although I already have loads, its a physcological thing, the same as wen u buy a new dress u cant wait to wear it and i find the same works when i buy some new workout clothes, it motivates me to go home and start working out !! And as Carri says the hardest thing is getting your gear on and starting working out but once you start your fine. What I find really works for me if Im not in the mood is I put my workout clothes on and then I do some light cleaning (washing the dishes, hanging out the washing etc) and once you have started moving, you think well im dressed now I might aswell work out !! its like trying to trick your mind but it does work I find !! Try it see if it works ! But regardless fair play to you, you have lost the weight and in some ways I feel that puts you in a better position than most because you for one KNOW you can do it as you already have. Think back to how you felt when you had lost the weight and how pleased you were with yourself..........you need to get back into that mind frame and just go for it.................SUMMER IS COMING !! :happy:

hanniejong

You know we all go through this at some time or another, the thing is to keep at it. Change the wway you cook add a new exercise or as one person here said go for the challenges to keep you motivated. I know you can do this just as I know I can do it.
I have sent you a friend request too.

EliteDancer2012

Don't think of this as a diet, think of it as a lifestyle. As a dancer I know that the more veggies you eat the better your body feels-notice i didn't say fruits. A lot of fruits are good when you're young because the carbs give your body a high boost of energy but as an adult they slow you down. So to stay on the bandwagan find yummy healthy recipes that you actually want to eat and read up on the horrible side effects of all the everyday processed junk.(Lots of it can cause cancer) My mom trained my brain and i'm to the point where just the smell of fast food makes me want to throw up. I can't walk into the school cafiteria anymore because the smell makes me sick! My friends and i eat in the library. (Ice cream however is a whole other ball game!) Also it's good to give your body ONE overeat day a week where you eat 1-2 hundred calories over your normal so your body doesn't go into starvation mode-for me this means my icecream treat!! Also i find when i'm in a rut and feel like giving up on everything, and i see how far i still have to go with exercising i look back at how far I've come, play some motivational music and dance my butt off!!! I promise if you train your brain to HATE foods that are bad for you your life will be much easeir. Also read how some of the things are made-like chicken nuggets(i used to love these) they're made of the bone and fat of the chicken. THE BONE. EWWW!!! Needless to say i've never touched one since. GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!!

roshart

I know how you feel. Try getting a diet buddy that way you guys can keep each other motivated.

roshart

I know how you feel. Try getting a diet buddy that way you guys can keep each other motivated.

My diet buddy and I weigh in every Monday morning and report our weight. We also put £3 each into a pot. If we gain weight we have to pay £10. When we have enough in the pot, we will treat ourselves to a spa day. Whenever either of us is struggling we phone each other for support and a good talking to.. It really works

grannynickel

Sustained motivation is a problem for me, too! It seems I wake up with the very best of intentions and before I've finished my first cup of tea I've wrecked my day by eating something I didn't really want and that didn't taste good to me. Blech!!! I've been plateaued for almost a 3-month time period and I'm not happy about it! BUT, I know that I'm not really working at it either. So, what's to do; what's to do. One day at a time and one meal at a time. If you eat it, own it. It's okay. Understand where you are on your journey and try not to confuse the issue with excuses. While I hate the plateau I am on, I must not hate it enough to make the changes I need to start losing the weight again. I refuse to beat myself up about it, however. As long as I remain honest with myself I can keep it all in check and I know that one day I will wake up with the very best of intentions and that will be the day I will not wreck my day with unwanted food. Good luck to you. You can friend me if you want to share this journey.