Why is discouragement easier than motivation?

First feel free to add me as a friend, second keeping yourself motivated is never easy. I keep in my mind the end game, what will I look like? How will I feel? I have been fat for over half my life and I want to be thinner and healthier. I like you usually got in about a month maybe lost 20 lbs then went back to old habits. This time I stuck to it and have seen huge changes and they are now my driving force. What will change next? You can do it and please add me for an inspiring friend.

adding friends on MFP was the best thing I've ever done. It gives me something to look forward to and a reason to log on since it's not really a conversation I'm having with anyone in real life.

feel free to add me! :flowerforyou:

Discouragement is easier because it lets you do nothing instead of trying to do the hard things.

My friends and family just kind of ignore what's going on. I have a few coworkers who are somewhat discouraging - I ignore them. Everyone else kind of doesn't talk about it at all. So I have to be my own motivation. If I said (out loud) at the end of a work day that 'I'm TOO TIRED to work out (after sitting in my cubicle for 8 hours), my toe kind of hurts and I have a paper cut on my thumb and I'VE WORKED SO HARD :sad: " I would guarantee that most people in my life, including my husband, would be very supportive of me just laying on the couch for 3 hours before bed stuffing my face. I deserve it, right? NO - because I'm worth better health than that lifestyle will give me! What I deserve is to go the gym and actively work toward fitness! I deserve good, healthy food in the proper quantities for my body. When I start feeling like I can't/don't want to do it, I have to get in my own face. As in, "SUCK IT UP PRINCESS AND GET YOUR BUTT TO THE GYM". (I can get really hyper during my motivational speeches to myself :bigsmile: )

I believe I deserve to be as fit, healthy, and look as good as I possibly can. But that's something only I can do for me. Even if no one else around me is eating or living the way I am, I can choose to join them or not.

You've got to sit back and really figure out why you want to do this for yourself..and not things like, "to be a size 2." When you have a solid reason to do this, it makes it easier to stick to.

This is what I have struggled with yet again... I start out with a great plan (I am a planner) but then my follow through leaves something to be desired. I have decided that I have to make a choice to be committed rather merely interested in health for myself. Like any other "addiction" (food is for me in many ways), I have to choose to change for myself and not be concerned about eating healthy, exercising or looking better for someone else. (personal experience - :smokin: )

It's just easier to fall back into old habits I guess. I yo-yoed for years. Then I got a serious wake up call and that was all the motivation I needed.

Doctor told me to go to a different site for diet. I was there for about a year. Then from another "defector" I found MFP. So much better. I lost the rest of the weight in two years.

Happy to say have now been in maintenece for a year. Lost another couple of pounds. I was scared that the old habits would take over. With staying here and Learning new habits.....Moderation and portion control being the biggest two, I really believe I have it undercontrol.

As long as I stay in my calorie range I stay the same weight. MFPer for Life here!

I'm not around everyday but if you want to add me go for it. I live in Grand Rapids MI, I see you live in MI also. PM me if you want.

I keep pics of others who are around my size or bigger so everytime I feel discouaged I look at them and remember why I am doing this and also I get on here and read the success stories and the most important thing I always remeber if I give up now I will be so pissed at myself a year later and know that I could of been skinny if I just would of kept going! I also post on my blog everyday and look at the the tips and motivation tabs! one thing I say to myself is I WONT GIVE UP!!!!!! MY BLOG IS shelleylynn276.blogspot.com mabe it can help motivate u! Just remember U CAN DO THIS

i'm sorry you don't want it bad enough.

this is my go to for motivation: http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/08/31/is-it-really-worth-it/ make sure to watch the video at the end.

Life is hard. Improving yourself (and not just in fitness and/or health) is hard.

As a species we have the terrible habit of seeking the easy way. You have to make a decision, you need to define your goals and decide what you are willing to do to reach them (and make your goals measurable & realistic, vague goals are meaningless....eg I want to run a 5K in 6months vs I want to become a runner)

Newton's First Law: An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion.....get moving!:happy:

Recognize your patterns. This has been the single most important factor in my motivation. Your body has crazy, weird patterns. Well, at least mine does. I can go a month without any loss. Then (I weight myself every day) I'll lose weigh every day for several days. Then, I gain a pound or two. I used to quit at that stage. I'd throw my hands up in the air and say that I'd eaten the right amount of calories and still had gained. In reality, the fast loss wasn't as high as I thought it was. I have these little blips every month or so where my body goes backward. If I stay on track and within my calories, sure enough I'll eventually start losing again. I have some other weird patterns as well. Understand, if the scale isn't showing it today, it might just show it next week. You can't give up. When I look back on the last six months I've had decent progress. It isn't the 1.9 pounds a week I was hoping for. But, it is still decent progress.