What keeps you on your plan?

BombolinaM

You never realize how big you are until you see pictures. I took new ones today and posted them on my profile. I've been feeling depressed and stuck in a rut. It happens every winter but I want to at least get under 200 pounds. My son asked me today Mommy why do you always say you want to lose weight but never do it. I want to prove to myself and family that this time I am going to get to my goal of losing weight and getting healthier. I'll be 40 in December this year and have been fat my whole life...With that being said...What are some good tips with stayin on your plan? Good go to quick snacks? I want to be able to reach my goal without giving into myself.

tameko2

I really like being fit. I thought I didn't mind being fat, and that all the delicious food made up for it, but now that I'm back to fit again I know that I was wrong and being fat really sucked. I really like going to stores and buying cute regular clothes that fit me without alterations. And I really like that I'm lifting the kinds of weights that make people go "woah!" (well, non lifters anyway).

For me, working on my exercise goals (mine are lifting goals) keeps me on track more than anything. For one thing, being active gives me the ability to enjoy a lot more food than when I sat around on my butt all day long.

In terms of food... just looking at my diary and saying "this is it, this is how much you get" really helps. Otherwise its been over a year and a half of experimenting for me, trying different times of days and amounts to eat, and different food options. Don't be afraid to try something new. Don't be afraid to eat 5 or 6 small meals, or only 2 big ones. Don't be afraid to try eating reduced carbs or LOTS of carbs. Don't forget to eat enough protein. (1.5g/kg of bodyweight). Just figure out what helps you personally stay on plan. For me its 2 big meals and 0-2 snacks (depends on the day and what my big meals were) and super lazy IIFYM eating.

in terms of quick go to snacks....oranges, apples, and kashi bars lately. Oh and salami. Salami is my evening go-to snack these days. I'd eat more cheese if I wasn't lactose intolerant.

c_faulkenburg

Strive for balance. I keep vegetable sticks in my fridge, but doggone it I'm going to have hummus too. If I have an apple, I eat it with peanut butter. I make sure I measure out the serving size on any snack food that I eat and stick to that. My biggest problem is mindless eating. I am a stay at home mom and I find myself eating to keep myself occupied, and I have got to stop that.

kimad

Hey!

I made it realistic for ME. Saying I am going to give up something I enjoy forever just doesn't fit in my plan.
I have everything I once enjoyed but in moderation... that said some stuff I didn't mind giving up. I exchanged bread for wraps, potatoes for rice, etc. I rarely eat pasta but it's too heavy anyways.

I may have 2 granola bars in one day and I don't care.... I need to stick to this for LIFE!

Good luck!

photojunkie28

Getting your mind in the right place is the hard part. Once you can do that , the rest will follow. I applaude you for getting going again. Tell yourself that excuses are for weak people and that you are not weak. Strong confident people get what they want and you deserve to be one of those people.

I feel like it comes down to consistancy and preparation. If you can make eating healthy convenient, fast and tasty than you can do it for life. Search pinterest/google for healthy recipes, snack storage and other things that you get excited about when you look at because you say "hey, i can do that!".

Speaking of snacks these are some i reccomend :

Arctic Zero (hard to find and expensive, but if you look it up you'll see why it is a must have for those 'need a pint of icecream days')
emerald cocoa almonds
yoplait greek 100 peacn yogurt
carrots/broccoli and sabra roasted red pepper hummus
pure protein bars - double chocolate deluxe please!
100 cal mini bags of plain popcorn (not a lot of nutrition, but sometimes you just need to snack for the sake of snacking and not feel bad about it)
sargento light string cheese
healthy life high fiber bread and sugar free jam
oatmeal with raspberries and cinnamon (I could eat oats for every meal and be happy)
myofusion cinnamon roll protein whey - add silk unsweetened almond milk , ice and a touch of coffee - blend and its pretty close to one of those mocha frappe things

Okay im drooling thinking about so much food now, hope I was some help!
Best of luck, you got this!

zMuffin

Have you thought of getting a hobby? To keep your hands busy.

lilpoindexter

What keeps me on my plan?
I enjoy walking a block without having to stop three or four times to catch my breath more than I enjoyed that soda.
I like it that I'm comfortable in 80F + weather without getting all sweaty and uncomfortable.
I like it That I don't feel my *kitten* cheeks hanging over the sides of the toilet anymore.
I like it that my butt actually fits in the seat of my Miata again.
I like it that I'm stronger than the magnetic pull of McDonalds advertising.
I feel I'm one of the elite that stuck with it long enough to make a visible difference.

I like that I've made a lot of progress, which has made me realize, that there is still room for improvement. Now that the bulk of the fat is gone, I can attempt to put on some damn muscles.

midcenturymodern69

I'm with you, I want to get serious and get the weight off too. What's helped me so far is portion control and trying to have healthy snacks. My go-to snack of choice right now is frozen red grapes. We can do this!

myogibbs

I just made up my mind one day that I WAS going to do it this time. My father was diabetic & had heart disease. My abdominal fat was getting bigger and bigger & the threat of diabetes was terrifying to me. I hated the way I looked & felt. The gym here is really great & they had a program for 8 weeks that included nutrition classes once a week & personal training twice a week. I rediscovered how much I love to work out. I learned how to eat better...I knew what I needed to do, but I learned how to substitute lower fat options & still stay satisfied. I learned portion control. Then I saw improvements in my cardio fitness, then muscles and then I dropped 3 pant sizes!!! Mfp has been a godsend...so many supportive and caring people on here! You don't have to change all at once...just drink more water & make that a habit, then cut back on sodas one week & make that a habit, then substitute a lower fat option...experiment with different foods. Remember that it is a lifestyle change. You are getting healthy and that is forever.

For salty crunchy fix-Kellog's Special K has cracker chips, or Quakes (especially the cheese ones) are good
For chocolate fix -WhoNu cookies taste a lot like Oreos, or WW has a lot of ice cream treats that are good (giant fudge bar is my favorite)
Protein shakes are good too, especially if you are in a hurry. Syntha-6 makes yummy protein powder (Chocolate or Vanilla Ice Cream are both yummy)

I got a Nutribullet for Christmas & I love it...it helps me get more fruits & veggies in...I have trouble getting enough on a daily basis b/c I don't really like to cook.

Good luck!!! You CAN do this!!! YOU ARE WORTH IT!!!

00sarah

Results! After 2kids and once being 189lbs.... I did this.... I can continue to do this! Hell, I feel like superwoman! And the fact that my daughter is 3 and can run, thinks McDonald's is yucky, loves fruits and veggies... Plus I can keep up with my military husband! (Who told me I inspired him to start running...before bootcamp)

HeatherStorey

I think a lot of people fail b/c they think of the big picture (how much they have to lose). It is overwhelming. I make small goals every week on what I want to accomplish and I only think of and focus on that week. I also used to weigh in daily... that can be very discouraging. Now, I only weigh in once a week on Saturdays.

kestrel359

I figured out that the reason I always failed in the past was that I didn't set defined goals/boundaries which caused me to cheat more than I should and eventually would lead to giving up entirely. Now I'm very much "this is what I want and this how I'm going to get there". When I find myself thinking I could cheat just this once I tell myself no and leave it at that (exceptions for holidays, birthdays, and other similar rare occasions).

For snacks I do:
Lara bars (approximately 200 calories)
Zone Perfect caramel cluster bars (200 cals)
frozen greek yogurt (100 cals)
Smart Ones key lime pie (150 cals)
2 pieces of light bread with one wedge of laughing cow cheese (125 cals)
Smartfood Hummus chips (app. 150 cals)
bread and butter pickle spears (35 cals each)
Terra BBQ sweet potato chips (150 cals)

mygrl4meee

I think for me it's helps that I have it set to lose one pound per week and it gives me more calories to play around with. I tried to find treats that replaced some of my other go to high calorie snacks. I had a really bad habit of stopping at McDonald's and it probably was 1200 calories or more with the chocolate shake. I rarely stop there anymore but what I did in the begining was change the items so I would still get the mcdonald's craving taken care of but less calories.
I rarely eat there anymore and when I do it's cause I decide that I can afford the ice cream cone or the chicken wrap. the car no longer drives itself there anymore. LOL Good luck!

LMick1986

I found what I wanted first of all.....like why I wanted to be better. Pictures are great motivation! When you don't like things about yourself that cause you to not want to be in pictures, it's sad. All those memories you miss out on. I'm not good at sticking with anything. I thought I'd fail in no time because in the past, I gave up. My friend asked me to do this with him, so I said ok! (Fully expecting to fall out by about week two.) I made one goal to begin with. Log everything! It didn't matter if I went over or not, just log it. I reached a goal I had set! I was happy!! Then after I realized that was easy, I set another. Change something in your diet. Soymilk instead of regular milk in my coffee. So simple. I just make small steps and I'm still here three months later and now almost 15 pounds down! You have to find what motivates you (go back to that whenever you have a down moment) and take small steps. You can do it! We're all here to support you!

Aquarii

What keeps me on my plan: Knowing that if I stray too far from my plan, I won't see results. Knowing my current caloric deficit is only temporary, and in a few months I'll be eating more than double of what I am right now (to maintain/bulk up). Knowing that whatever foods/substances I put in my body are going to be used to build/maintain it.

Good to go quick snacks: Light string cheese, yogurt, raw fruit (banana, apple, pear, etc.), raw vegetables (cucumbers, carrots, bell peppers), 1 serving of your favorite cereal, granola/protein bars (check labels for simplicity).

Tricks for when you crave "bad" sweets (cake, brownies, cookies, etc.): Chew gum, brush your teeth, drink some water.

cdidaho

My food diary really helps me, especially in the evenings. Following my meal plan during the day is easy because breakfast is always the same and lunch and snacks are prepared in advanced. But when I get home to cook dinner and I'm hungry and wondering how many calories I have left to "spend", I can hop on the website and map it out, and if I'm really hungry or having a sweet tooth craving I can cook accordingly. I also discovered these calorie free noodles at my local organic foods store, and found out Safeway has them too. Not sure what they are made of-fiber I think-like unflavored metamuccil spun into noodles or something. They have no flavor, including the "flavored" ones. So they taste like whatever sauce you put on them. Texture might be hard for some to handle. Kinda rubbery, though I find if I don't chew them too much they slide down just as well as spaghetti. I find they turn out best in an asian noodle dish as they remind me of rice noodles the most. The two different brands I found were Miracle noodle and WildWood Pasta Slim. The Mircle Noodles cost more, $3 a pack. Pasta Slim on costs $2, but I like the texture of Miracle noodles better. They both say 2 servings per pack, but who's kidding, one pack just about equals one modest sized serving of spaghetti. Depending on which brand and what flavor you get they can have anywhere from 0 to 50 calories per pack, so check the labels. I try to have one meal everyday that have these fake noodles in them, so that I can splurge on the sauce that goes on them. This way a 700 calorie bowl of pasta drops down to just 300. Perfect.

LaMujerMasBonitaDelMundo

The things that keeps me on my plan:

I love how I can see sexy muscle definition on my body
I love how I can pick up any clothes that I want and look good on it
I love how I look in a bikini
I love how I'm becoming stronger
I love the confidence boost that I get
I love how I'm becoming less sickly, be able to keep my blood sugar at bay and be able to get out of hypertension meds.

BombolinaM

Thank you all for the tips and motivation...I think looking at the whole picture of what I want to lose is what's scary but you're all right..Health, feeling good and having my self confidence back is all worth it..I love this site and everyone is always so supportive and inspirational..Congrats on everybodies success..I am ready to make the little changes to become the healthy woman I want to be

Mrsmartin61

I want to be healthy!! As a retiree I am just beginning to get this right! Its not to impress anyone! Its for me! I enjoy looking fit and having the fitness level to ride horses and keep up with the grands!

I also want a tattoo (not a rocking chair) and to learn to ice-skate this year!

:flowerforyou:

larryc0923

Who keeps me on my plan? Me, myself and I. Afterall I am the one that eats and/or exercises.
What are the most important items to do to lose weight? Three easy steps.
1. Log what you eat in MFP. Be consistent and honest.
2. Keep it below you your target especially your net average weekly needs to be under your target. While there typically more nutrional foods than others it really does not matter.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 until you reach your goal weight. Typically a good average weight loss is about 1 lb a week so if you need to lose 50 lbs then it will take about 50 weeks.
What keeps me motivated? A healthy more active life that I can provide for my family, friends, employees and myself.

Hope that helps. You can do it!!

TheRealParisLove

To stay on plan:
1. I log everything and keep my diary open.

2. I also weigh myself daily and log it.

3. I try to pre-log my meals the night before so I don't have to stop and think about what I should be eating. I almost never stick exactly to the plan, but I at least come close most days.

4. Exercise six days a week. No excuses. Even when I am sick. Even when I don't have time. A minimum of 30 minutes of exercise is squeezed in somewhere. Sometimes it is in 10 minute chunks. Sometimes I use my lunch break at work. Whatever it takes I exercise 6 days a week.

5. I give myself 3-4 "free days" a month where I eat whatever I want in a 24 hour period. I also log everything, but no food is off limit to me on that day.

Crochetluvr

Dont deprive yourself. You can still have some of the not so good stuff as long as its in moderation. If you deprive yourself of foods you enjoy, odds are you wont stick with any plan. You CAN do it. Good luck!

laurawand

I have to get my mind in the right place first. But logging absolutely everything really helps, it keeps me from eating some unhealthy foods occasionally, because I just don't want to do the math about it all. Weighing daily too. And small changes! Small changes is the biggest thing. Your pictures are pretty, don't feel so down about your size!

breesasha

I try to stay on plan by not controlling what I eat so strictly. I mean I try to plan out what I'ma eat in advanced, like I know for breakfast I'll have cereal with soy milk or oatmeal, and a different soup for lunch, and by working out I try to make sure that I work out as much as I can on days when I know I'ma go out to eat or if I ate a lot over the weekend. I try not to worry so much about my daily count as long as I don't go over a certain number of calories for the week.