In need of accountability!

DuckyDale774

I feel odd starting a post...always have felt that I have the power and control of my own destiny. I end up doing it all and most of the things at home...and as a result....have made myself my last priority. I just turned 42 yesterday and need to get my act together. I am a father of a beautiful 8 years old girl. Two years ago, my mother had a heart attack which should have been my wakeup call. However, it has not. Not sure what (and it really doesn't matter)...but I am at a point in my life where I want and need a change in my life. I am sick of being tired and fatigued most of the time. I also want to lead by example and emulate healthy behaviors for my daughter to see and model. I started MFP in October and have done well with it. Lost 9 pounds in 6 weeks, but feel off the wagon in December. Well...it's time for me to get off my (_|_) and get back on the wagon. Between tracking food and getting to my gym 4x/wk, it has proven to work well. I have a goal of getting down 17 pounds by mid-February.

I am looking for other guys or dads to share their journey, success stories and learnings they've had from their failures. I think accountability is key - and am looking for others to keep me accountable (and I will for them, if needed). I need 2013 to be my physical and emotional year of change! Thank you for your time and for reading!

NorthWoodsLee

I got and gladly accepted your friend invite. You're very wise to seek accountability. I think it is very important. But I think accountability, though important, may be second to other things or at least is only one of several factors that are very important to success. One of the most important things to me was getting the confidence that I actually could lose ALL of the excess weight I carried (and I started in May at 306 lbs. and once was 335 lbs.) and could keep it off. I gained that confidence by reading an article in the Atlantic Magazine in May. That article made me realize that even people who had tried and failed many times really could lose all of their excess weight and that there are many things to help, including apps like MFP which allow tracking of calories in and out and provide social support. One other general attitude factor that I have found very helpful is, once you realize that there is no one who can keep you from losing your weight except you, to truly envision what you will look like at your ideal weight and decide that you won't settle for less. You have to first believe it's possible. But then it's at least extremely helpful (and for me at least maybe crucial to keep pushing toward the goal) to visualize what you want to look like and the freedom and joy you'll have to set a good example for your kids and to be able to do anything you possible could want to do physically. I can't wait to be so fit that I can take my sons backpacking at Glacier or Yellowstone or Isle Royale National Park.

There are other more tactical things that are important - for me those include logging every day, eating 5 or 6 small meals a day, and eating as little sugary/processed flour crap as possible so that I'm never hungry and it's easy to keep to my calorie limit. But I think gaining full confidence and having a firm image of your end goal are important/crucial first steps.