75lbs down looking for motivation

Nchristenson

Hi All!

A little bit about me, I've lost around 75 lbs in the last year through diet and exercise but in reality.. a life style change. I went from a size 18-20 (pushing it) to depending on brand 8-10, or XXL to L or M. From 5'8 245 to 170. I'm very proud of where I'm at but here's my current dilemma: After New Years and a 10lb Vacation/Christmas/New Years weight gain I told myself I'd finally lose the extra 20 in addition to that new 10 that I want to lose to get down to my goal weight. I watched what I ate like a hawk, ate well and exercised at least 4 times a week for at least 1 hour sometimes more. For 2 months I didn't go out, cooked all my meals and even tested out a personal trainer for 2 weeks. The results were a little underwhelming to say the least: -10 lbs (back to pre balloon weight) within 2 weeks but the last 6 weeks of my 2 month overhaul resulted in -0, absolutely nothing. I have to admit, I kind of snapped at that point. And lately I've been indulging and dabbling in the old lifestyle a bit (dinners out.. lots of food). So here I am, hoping for motivation to continue my journey and not throw in the towel. Its a slippery slope and I don't want to go down that road again after all the hard work it took to get here.

rdelsaz

First of all, great job so far! You've accomplished so much!!! Hang in there and think how far you've come! Keep doing what you've been doing and you will see the lbs will start to melt off. You've got this!!!

I know exactly how you feel, I started MFP on Feb. 11, 2013, I decided to not weigh-in for an entire month. During this time, I've tracked everything I've been eating healthy and working out five days per week. On Monday, when I weighed myself, I had gained 1.5 lbs! I was livid to say the least, especially because not only I've felt that I've lost weight, but people at work as well as my husband and family are commenting on the fact that I look slimmer.

I almost felt like giving up but I thougtht about the healthy changes that I've made in the last month and even though, I was not "rewarded" on the scale, I've been feeling healthier, happier and I'm able to follow and finish my spinning classes without feeling that I am about to die. I thought to myself that that should be reason enough for me to keep on and the weight will have to come off. Hopefully sooner, rather than later!

carlwfranke

Great job! 75 pounds? That's amazing.

Just keep up with your food. That's going to have a huge impact. Try to avoid eating out, since they like to secretly load up the food with butter, salt and sugar. None of which is going to help you.

Assuming your diet is good, you're going to need to focus on exercise. As frustrating as it may sound, you burned more calories when you were carrying an extra 75 pounds around with your everywhere. So if you want to maintain that same weight loss pace, you're going to have to make up for it with extra exercise. That or, accept that the new skinnier you is going to lose weight more slowly.

As for working out, Cardio is King! Additionally, research has been showing that HIIT workouts boost your metabolism, which you may want to try. Essentially, it's short 10 second sprints followed by 30 second walk breaks. You do 5 of these and you're going to be exhausted. Over time, you'll work your way up to 10 or 15, then start to change it up by doing longer sprints or shorter breaks, or a combination of the two. Either way, as long as you're doing it, you're burning calories and boosting your metabolism.

Also, take a multivitamin. It'll help keep your body firing on all cylinders. And that's a low effort, zero calorie metabolism booster.

Good luck.

lfergurson1

You look great I would reevaluate my calories and workout and really try to watch for any impurities maybe hit up a organic food section and raw food stuff might help. Drink water and remember stress maintains fat.

cranium853

You're MY motivation today. My goal is to get to where I won't gain or lose anything, to where I can feel comfortable with my body and with my choices. Sometimes it's hard to do the right thing when there isn't the payoff we want. I've been doing the logging and the reporting, and finally have started to exercise, and in a month will attend a family get-together. If they were to see me now, I'm right where I was eighteen months ago in terms of weight. My attitude is way better and my compliane with my eating plan is spot-on. I have to be glad to be back and willing to keep working. Some days it is work.

teahoffmann

You have done what few people can...lose a signifigant amount of weight. I am stuck right now as well, but trying to just have faith in the knowledge that I feel so much better, know I look better, get compliments on how I look, feel more confident and have tons more energy. So, the weight is not coming off as quickly as I had hoped...have been at the same place for weeks despite eating 1200 calories per day and exercising 45 minutes 5 days per week...but, it is all good becuase of the things I listed above. Have faith (I am!) that the weight will come off if "we" stay the course. You have done so much already...you are an inspiration. If you give up now, well, you will regret it for a lot of reasons. Plus, you never know who you have inspired...they are watching your journey as well. You can do this...already have proven that. Hang in there.

Rockstar_JILL

I too am about your size, or was...I started at 259.1 and am currently hovering around 175....80+ lbs. down! I too am tall- 5'9ish" and have a large build. I can't seem to get below 173....that was my lowest in this journey...I am aiming for 170 or even 169....I went from a size 22W to a size 10/12....Maybe we can figure this out together!?? I workout 5-6 times a week and love running and going to the gym, for now....Lets be friends!

gilberts3

Hi
I was in the same boat when I was 14 I weighed 205 lbs and now I'm 143.8 now I'm under my goal but it was a long and hard road you can add me

Gitn_Fit

Well, if you continue with the eating out and having lots of food you'll regain that 10 pounds you just lost and maybe more.
Depending on what you were doing your body may have changed shape without the pounds coming off. Take pictures for a real comparison. Take measurements. Look at those NSVs. Mix it up, do different things. Surprise your body.

Maybe eat and workout at maintenance for a little bit. Then try again.

As someone who lost 60 and was so incredibly proud of myself and then regained 30 of that back after several months, I can tell you when my mind was ready to get back on the wagon I was kicking myself for not at least maintaining and keeping on top of it. BTW I lost a heck of a lot more than 60, I just had to do many of those pounds a few times.

Best of luck.

MstngSammy

Hi All!

A little bit about me, I've lost around 75 lbs in the last year through diet and exercise but in reality.. a life style change. I went from a size 18-20 (pushing it) to depending on brand 8-10, or XXL to L or M. From 5'8 245 to 170. I'm very proud of where I'm at but here's my current dilemma: After New Years and a 10lb Vacation/Christmas/New Years weight gain I told myself I'd finally lose the extra 20 in addition to that new 10 that I want to lose to get down to my goal weight. I watched what I ate like a hawk, ate well and exercised at least 4 times a week for at least 1 hour sometimes more. For 2 months I didn't go out, cooked all my meals and even tested out a personal trainer for 2 weeks. The results were a little underwhelming to say the least: -10 lbs (back to pre balloon weight) within 2 weeks but the last 6 weeks of my 2 month overhaul resulted in -0, absolutely nothing. I have to admit, I kind of snapped at that point. And lately I've been indulging and dabbling in the old lifestyle a bit (dinners out.. lots of food). So here I am, hoping for motivation to continue my journey and not throw in the towel. Its a slippery slope and I don't want to go down that road again after all the hard work it took to get here.

I didn't read through the other comments yet so I apologize if this is a repeat.......but have you tried measuring yourself instead of weighing in? A lot of times you will be gaining muscle and losing fat so even though you aren't getting lighter you're getting slimmer. Just a thought.

Oh...and I commend you on how far you've come. Wow....don't give up now. Not when you've come so far and are nearing your goal.
:flowerforyou:

Pamko57

Another tall, large frame lady checking in. You've done so much and so well. Don't throw in the towel. This a marathon, not a sprint. It's not about getting in and losing the weight then going back to the lifestyles we had that made us in the 240 to 260 range. It's about learning to make healthier choices daily, to love ourselves and to make habits that stick for life.

I lost 128 pounds in 1996/97, the year I turned 40. Actually, my 39th birthday sparked the decision. I did it! I did it! But looking back, I did wrong. I ate a Pop Tart for breakfast. I drank a Coke every afternoon. I did crazy amounts of cardio. I should have developed better habits, learned more about nutrition. If I had, I might not have wound up at 54 right back up at 266. My top weight was 297 back in 1996.

Now we have something I didn't have--this resource available, which means calorie counts AND support at our fingertips.

To use my favorite phrase from my generation, keep on keepin' on. Think about how disappointed you'll be in a year if you don't!

nowine4me

Right there with you. Started 1/12, by 1/13 I started to get bored and frustrated and ready to get back to my life. Gained 10, lost 10. Up. down. It's REALLY tough to stay motivated and even tougher when you get down to the last 10 -20 pounds. I don't have any answers, but I certainly understand what you're going through. I was 225, now 160. Size 20, now 8-10. My goal is 140. At this rate, I'd be happy to get there by July.

twinmom430

Ahh this sounds so much like what I've been going through....I lost 60 lbs....then in October I went on vacation, gained about 5....I got back into the swing of things when I got home, but couldn't lose a lb to save my life....I just fluctuated 5 lbs for the last 5 months... I stopped weighing food, I didn't indulge but I just lacked motivation and stopped counting calories....I think it was the fact that I was frustrated with no weight loss....so I fell back into old habits.
Last week I just found the motivation.....started weighing my food again, stopped snacking, etc....I saw how easy it was to fall back into old habits and I didn't want to undo the 60 lb loss, I was so proud of. The weather is getting nicer, and I just feel like I'm getting out of my winter blues.
I'm back to the lowest weight I've been from October 6th!!
Feel free to friend me, good luck! You will get the motivation back, don't undo all the progress you have made.

rockingranny45

The same thing happened to me. I lost 25 pounds and then nothing. My daughter suggested i start strenght training. Well ive done that and still not much weight loss but i feel healthy. Also i started slipping on the water. Did you buy new clothes ? If so when your tempted to slip back into old ways think of the "new" you. Goodluck slow and steady wins the race for sure.

stinkinstone

I stalled out too, started to follow the group Eat,Train,Progress. Here on MFP.

I saw suggestions that really helped me start to lose again.

I was guessing instead of weighing portions, just that change made a difference for me.

Remember weight loss is not linear. Hang on to the progress you have made. You can do it.,

Cecil_TLB

I commend you for your progress! I was just feeling pretty good about losing almost 2 pounds last week until I looked at how many pounds I would have to lose to be at the low weight given in my healthy BMI. I was happy thinking I could lose 40 pounds before July and I would feel healthy. However, my BMI would be on the border of overweight and healthy. I was thin in high school and I don't think I weighed 81 pounds less than what I do today - more like 60 pounds less.

So, through all of this, YOU provided ME motivation. I have decided to look at my weight loss in 8 pound increments. My goal is to lose 8 pounds per month. If you are stuck, change up your workout routine, look at trying some different healthy foods and don't get discouraged. Be PROUD of what you have accomplished and always look forward!

Good Luck!

prettynotpretty

You've come a long way. Just keep going. Don't stop. You'll break through and the scale will drop again. I've lost a bunch of weight before and then started cheating my way to gaining 10 or 20 pounds back and it is SO not worth it. I feel like crap and the amount of time it took me to eat the food I was eating was so minimal, but how long it takes to get the weight back off is exhausting.

You got this! Put the crappy food down! I promise you it'll be worth it in the end. It isn't easy, but you'll get there. 5 minutes of eating crap isn't worth it. Good luck dear =]

Nchristenson

Thanks everyone for your support and encouragement!! I took a friends advice and she re did my measurements (I just got the results). As it turned out, all the hard work did pay off, just not on the scale! I lost 2.9% body fat and lost 1.5 inches on my hips. (Unfortunately that's not the place I need to lose the most, but a loss is a loss) I'm not sure how my recent binging screwed me over but at least I know that something was happening and it's given me the motivation (that and all your encouragement and good wishes) to jump back on the saddle and keep it going.

I've decided to break out my goal into more reasonable increments so I don't get discouraged. So right now my goal is to lose 5 lbs (and maintain at a 5 lbs loss) and then tackle another 5 lbs.

Again, thanks EVERYONE! This weight loss thing is hard and never ending, we all need a little motivation now and again.

famousmel

You should be super proud of yourself for not going down that slippery slope!! No one wants to lose the same weight twice.

grimendale

I feel your pain. I'm down 90 lbs over the last year, but that last 10-15 lbs is killing me. I've gained and lost the same 5 lbs numerous times now, and it does get difficult to stay motivated. Try setting fitness goals for your workout apart from weight loss so that even if the scale isn't moving, you have NSVs to help keep you going. I set weight goals and running times for myself to help keep me from getting off track.

mjterp

make it lifestyle choices you can live with and not an "overhaul" that you have to suffer through. That way, the weight loss will be permanent and not come back on when the "diet" is over. You can do this AND be happy....people do it all the time!