To people who have fallen off the wagon....HELP!!

Been there... it's hard to get your mind back on track, but you need to...for yourself, for your family. Start looking at all the success stories that people post. It will help your mind focus and hopefully get you back on that horse! This is for life... make it happen again. You can do it!

Analysis paralysis' is, I think, the opposite of 'bright, shiny object syndrome'... a jargon-ish term that many of us have become familiar with over the past couple of years.

With 'bright, shiny object' syndrome, people jump from one good idea to another without really thinking through the implications. 'Bright, shiny object' syndrome tempts us to try the next big thing.

'Analysis paralysis' occurs when you can't STOP thinking about the implications of a wrong choice. If I do this, then this might happen, or that might happen, or what if this other thing happened. Maybe it would be better if I did this other thing over here.

Analysis paralysis results in a lack of execution. Nothing gets done. No movement forward occurs... only because you can't decide what move makes sense to make.

So, how do you break free from analysis paralysis? Try this...

1) Instead of being afraid of potential failure, embrace the experience.

If we followed the 'perfect path' every time, we'd never really be able to speak to what doesn't work... and sometimes, that information is just as valuable as what does.

>From every life experience, every business venture, every project dared, we learn something about ourselves. We learn what works, what doesn't. We begin collecting life wisdom that is unique to us.

2) Overcome inertia by picking something.

Do you remember high school physics class? An object at rest tends to stay at rest. An object in motion tends to stay in motion.

If you've been stuck in analysis-paralysis mode, chances are it's going to feel like it'll take a pretty good 'oomph' to get you moving.

At the risk of making it sound way too simple, there comes a point when you just have to do something. Choose what feels best to you at the moment, flip a coin, roll a dice... but start somewhere. You can even make it something very small, but the key is to start somewhere, doing something.
Once you're in motion, it gets easier to keep moving forward.

Author
Joy Duling

If you don't have your heart in it look at it as a job. We don't always want to get up and go to work in the morning, but we do because we need to pay the utilities. We don't want to clean the house, but we do to be sanitary. The same thing with eating, you need to eat within your calories and macros not only to save the insurance money but also to be healthy. When the weight starts coming off I think your motivation will return.

I came back after getting on the scale and seeing it higher than it was when I started here before. It's all fine and good for people to talk about eating only healthy foods and working out at the gym. If it works for them, that's great, but you need to find what works for you. Studies have shown that willpower is a finite resource, but, like a muscle it can get stronger with practice, and it can be recharged with rest.

Start small and work your way into it as you go. Be patient. Don't spend all your willpower points at once and then burn out again! Make sure your daily goal is reasonable. As long as you're below maintenance, the scale will move in the right direction.

Logging your food every day only takes a few minutes. That's not hard. If you're embarrassed because you haven't gotten the hang of meal planning or staying under your goal, go ahead and keep it private. One thing at a time. Log it even if it's junk, even if the number goes red. If you logged your day honestly, then it was a good day.

Second, try to think of a way to burn calories that is fun. If you think you're not in shape enough to do that activity, do it anyway. You don't have to look like "Dancing with the Stars" to learn ballroom dancing. Some people tell me they can't take my tai chi class because they're not coordinated. That's what the class is for! Practice beats natural talent any day of the week. The other way to tackle exercise when you're not very into it, is to go in short bursts. You can say "It's only 20 minutes. I can do that much." (This is exactly how I handle exercise. Tai chi sword is fun. The exercise bike is not so fun, even with music, but it's harder to say 'no' when I know that it won't take long to do.)

This lifestyle change will take time to show the results you want. You may end up paying the higher price for awhile, but if you stay with it, you'll get to the magic number eventually. One thing that going away and coming back taught me was that this 'diet' does not end. Eventually I'll be in maintenance mode, but even then I will have to keep checking in so the bad habits don't start creeping back. Don't change so radically that you dread the idea of doing this long term. If your plan makes you want to run away or scream, then it's not the plan for you.

Know that a healthy, balanced diet that promotes weight loss is not something that simply gets you from where you are to where you want to be. It's also the base diet of what will keep you there. So learn to think of it as a lifestyle, not a diet and think of it more like riding a horse - you fall off a horse, you don't lie on the ground until Monday or next month or whatever. You pick yourself up, dust yourself off and get right back on the horse. Similarly, you blow your diet, you say "Okay get yourself together" and go right back to eating the way you know you should. This will substantially limit the damage of going "off your diet".

Breafast: Big Bowl of oats with milk but no sugar.

Snack: 1 fruit

Lunch: Protein(eggs,skinless chicken,tuna, or chickpeas) + salad

Snack: 1 fruit

Supper: Protein(eggs, skinless chicken, tuna or chickpeas) + dark green vegetables

Drink 2 litres of water a day
No refined sugar in any form
No refined carbs

Dude, seriously?

I have been on and off the wagon my whole life. Drop 30, gain 40. Drop 60, gain 80. I struggled with a lot of emotional issues as well (depression, etc) as well as binge eating disorder. In July, I was DONE. Mentally, I was finally ready. It was time to conquer my demons and beat this thing, and THAT is what has made me finally commit. There was nothing anyone could say to me. There was nothing a doctor could do to convince me. What I needed was to be ready to say I CAN DO THIS.

If you are not ready, you're not ready. There's not much we can do to convince you. All the encouragement in the world won't make it happen if you're not ready to commit to a healthier life.

What I would recommend is to make this as easy as possible. You don't need to cut calories drastically, you don't need to low carb, you don't need to even watch your macros right off the bat. Right now, find your BMR and TDEE. Eat a few hundred below your TDEE, making sure to stay above the BMR. This number will probably be a lot more calories than MFP gives you. Your TDEE is the number at which you maintain weight given your current activity. Anything less than that, you will lose weight. Don't go after this with the mindset that you need to drop 5 lbs a week...that is not sustainable and will only frustrate you. Instead, just eat less than your TDEE and let the numbers fall as they may. A loss is a loss, and doing it slow means the weight is much more likely to stay off.

Thanks for sharing this. Analysis Paralysis is the phrase that has been going through my mind all morning.

First off - Why don't you care anymore? Why have you given up on yourself?

Is it because you don't enjoy "diet" foods?
Is it because you hate feeling hungry?
Is it because you hate feeling limited in what you can eat? (Feel like an outsider when family/friends eat)
Is it because you hate being sore after working out?
Is it because you are embarassed at the gym? (You think people are staring)
Is it because you haven't found an exercise that seems enjoyable to you?
Is it because you are putting too much pressure on yourself to be "perfect"?

I think it's important to really pinpoint why you don't care anymore - then you can move on to how to get motivated. If it's because you don't enjoy dieting or feel hungry, well, there are "lifestyle changes" that you can make and foods you can choose that might help those issues. Maybe adding some supplements to your diet would help...there are some that can help curb cravings. At family functions, dinners, work outings, BBQs, eat your own food first and you'll be less tempted once you get there. Forgive yourself for indulgences...this is a lifestyle - NOT A DIET. You will always have challeges - this is life...it's full of them! It's ok if you have that piece of cake, just don't lhave 6 pieces because your day is already "ruined." No, this is a lifestyle change. You can have the cake (or popcorn, or chips, or whatever your vice) and then you MOVE ON. You work it in to your day and you eat great otherwise. It takes at least 6 weeks to develop a new habit - don't expect change overnight, but with persistency, it will happen!

As for the gym, if you are embarassed - just go! Most people will respect that you are there and working hard. Also, most people are too into themselves to worry about what you are doing. If you haven't found an exercise you like, try some different ones. I hated turbo kick the first time I went and didn't go back for a long time. I love it now. I'm still aboslutely terrible at it, but it gets me moving and the music is good. I forced myself to go to zumba a ton of times and I'm pretty sure that I don't like it now. You have to just get out there and try things more than once! There are some great free apps that you could use even at home if you didn't want to attend a class. JEFIT is a great weight lifting app that you can make your own workouts with and Nike has a great app with bootcamp/cardio and weight routines.

I hope you find what works for you!

ive lost 100 lbs in one year surgery free. since ive shot up about 25 lbs. im in the same boat.i really do miss that lifestyle and feeling good but feel embarrassed now to go back to gym heavier etc lol. im so ready but just gotta leap!