where do you find will power?
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lculian
Posts: 313 Member
I was thinking about will power today. For me I don't know that my will power is the strongest. Hopefully you guys will have some ideas for me.
I find that I tend to follow rules well, but don't necessarily have great will power. For example no eatting after 8:30, no soda, and no candy from the candy drawer. I followed all of these rules for the first 2.5 months, and then when I hit 24 lbs lost I relaxed and only kept 2 rules. No soda, and no eatting after 8:30. So, needless to say I have hit the candy drawer at work pretty regularly. Today I re-instated the no candy drawer rule.
Besides rules what helps every one keep their focus?
I find that I tend to follow rules well, but don't necessarily have great will power. For example no eatting after 8:30, no soda, and no candy from the candy drawer. I followed all of these rules for the first 2.5 months, and then when I hit 24 lbs lost I relaxed and only kept 2 rules. No soda, and no eatting after 8:30. So, needless to say I have hit the candy drawer at work pretty regularly. Today I re-instated the no candy drawer rule.
Besides rules what helps every one keep their focus?
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Replies
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A few things keep me motivated.
1) Anytime I look in the mirror I'm reminded of where I am. Usually this is enough to stop me from overeating.
2) Anytime I see pictures of the people on here who've lost weight and/or are building muscle I am reminded where I want to be and I remember that I can't get there if I let myself be slack.
3) When I run I feel FANTASTIC - this motivates me to continue running...
4) When I feel overly restricted I let myself have a treat. Thinking I could NEVER have a treat again would completely bum me out, so I don't think that way... but I don't let that treat turn into a binge.
The KEY phrase that I live by is this:
The best way to resist temptation is to AVOID it.
I do NOT allow chips, ice cream, cookies, pop, etc. etc. etc into my home. If I have those things I HAVE to have them when I'm outside of the house and/or I only buy a small SMALL amount (like one chocolate bar in the cupboard or a small 280 cal bag of chips)... this provides a home where late in the evening when I feel like a snack all I can find in the cupboards is veggies or fruit... or other less calorie dense things.
It works for me MOST of the time.
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Yea, rules are easier. I find for me saying that I can't have any sweets at all is more effective than limiting the amount. Sugar is tricky because sometimes it's better to say 'NO' all together because once you give in, you just keep craving it. Keeping busy and out of the kitchen helps me not give in to cravings. Gum also helps a lot. You have to set realistic goals. It's okay to have candy every once in a while, but if your hand is always in the jar, then that's not good!0
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I was just reading in the book "love your brain, love your body" by Dr. Daniel Amen. He says that willpower is actually a pathway in the brain, we have to practice it to maintain that pathway. Once we lose the pathway we have to gain it back again.
The way I maintain willpower is by setting up myself for success--keeping treats away, planning my meals ahead of time.0 -
What keeps my focus? I can't look at myself in the mirror or in photos etc. Need to sort that out, and that's what I'm doing.
I find something quite liberating about being in control of what I eat and exercise. I am so encouraged by choices that I make. For example, I came in from work last week and wanted a nibble. I had a couple of oatcakes, no butter, measured portion of cheese and boy were they good. So good, I thought I'd have another two! But I inputted all 4 in to MFP before I'd eaten the next 2 and realised that a) it wasn't worth the calorie expenditure and b) 2 had been fine and I didn't need anymore. So I didn't have the extra 2. The second part of that is that I don't feel like I'm following a diet or denying myself things, it's just about making choices.
In terms of exercise, I find something quite frightening about the big zero that sits there until you do something....
And of course, when you start feeling better, looking better......why stop???0 -
The longer I stay away from chocolate the less I want it. Had my first bar in 2 months last week and really didn't enjoy it.
Poor old chocolate has lost it's wicked grasp on me :laugh:0 -
What keeps me going is the way that it makes me feel to eat healthier vs the junk. Also the way I feel after exercise. After I have been exercising for awhile I build that self confidence plus the bod looks hot and the hubby can't keep his hands off of me. I love that feeling. I guess that is why we have 7 children! :laugh:0
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What helps me most is having a plan, so I log everything into my food diary every morning before I eat it. That way, I don't have to think later about what "sounds" good and make a decision about whether to give into temptation or not. I include some dark chocolate at lunch and dinner as well as a glass of wine at dinner. This keeps me on track almost all of the time. If I find I am not satisfied and really want something I'm not getting, I'll edit my diary and figure out a way to work in what it is I want and what I have to give up to have it. Often that is enough to get me to stick to the original plan.I was thinking about will power today. For me I don't know that my will power is the strongest. Hopefully you guys will have some ideas for me.
I find that I tend to follow rules well, but don't necessarily have great will power. For example no eatting after 8:30, no soda, and no candy from the candy drawer. I followed all of these rules for the first 2.5 months, and then when I hit 24 lbs lost I relaxed and only kept 2 rules. No soda, and no eatting after 8:30. So, needless to say I have hit the candy drawer at work pretty regularly. Today I re-instated the no candy drawer rule.
Besides rules what helps every one keep their focus?0 -
My motivation is that I quit smoking and drinking and don't want to gain more weight back from that, so it's all or nothin baby! lol Smoke free, booze free and junk food free, a whole new me lol Takes alot of willpower!
As far as rules go, I don't really set any for myself. My only rule is to stay near my calories for the day, that's it. A little over or under, no biggie. I'm easy on myself 0 -
I can't wait to have that kind of power!!! Way to go:bigsmile:The longer I stay away from chocolate the less I want it. Had my first bar in 2 months last week and really didn't enjoy it.
Poor old chocolate has lost it's wicked grasp on me :laugh:0 -
I myself just wrote a blog about my Dairy Queen obsession and it really turned out that I DON'T NEED IT! It was all wants!! The control Blizzards had on me was disgusting!! What an addiction.. Look at your candy drawer as a want and not a need and if that doesn't work get rid of the candy drawer.. Good luck!0
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My will power comes from wanting to live life to the fullest. Our life here on earth is way to short to drag our feet. I will live life to the fullest and in oder to do so I need my confidence back. God has a purpose for all of us and Im going to find my purpose and Im going to soar through my short life here on earth. I hope that my will power that keeps me going will help you find your motivation. 0
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I always used to find mine at the bottom of a bag of potato chips - you know, reach the bottom of the bag and think: right, that's IT, I'm changing NOW. Pity when it waned I had to get to the bottom of another bag of chips to find it again!
Thing with WILLpower is that it's a bit too future-focused, and lets one get away with the present - "I WILL exercise more" "I WILL not binge in the evenings" And we all know, tomorrow never comes.
I like DOpower. It's all about empowering yourself right now - "I DO exercise more" "I DO not binge in the evenings" - See, they're all about the now.
It really helps if you say it out loud, too! :flowerforyou:
(yes yes, i know what the 'will' in the term willpower actually means, but my interpretation is often quite relevant)0 -
For me it is fairly simple. I don't like the way I look and feel when I am overweight and not exercising and eating crappy food makes me overweight. I just remind myself that the big picture is what's important and sweets won't make me feel better in the long run. Being strong and healthy will.0
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It's not just willpower, but how much you care about yourself and the long term goals you want to accomplish. I used to think living by rules was simple, great and easy, but once you break one, you really feel like a cheater, failure, or out of control. Dang, that is just too much work! Now, I remember my long term goal to be healthy, to have a treat (one treat) when I really need it (I always want treats!) and to make up my own rules about how I want to live and that helps motivate my willpower in a positive way, which benefits me.
Keep up the hard, good work, you're worth it!!!0 -
I just told myself NO MORE EMPTY CALORIES!! I use to be a litre a day soda drinker and just gave it up in an instant once I made a true commitment to getting myself into shape. I have no desire to return to the dietary habits I once had......eating pizza 3 nights a week, pound bag of peanut m&m's....etc......thought i was invincible.......now I eat right, am dedicatied to working out at least 3 times a week if not more and watch my caloric intake. Will power ultimately comes from within. Very cliche but very true at least for me. Sure, a pizza and a few m&m's sound good from time to time but not part of my endgame. Good Luck0
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I don't know... I guess for me it's not willpower OR rules.... I made a lifestyle change. My new lifestyle doesn't require me to be perfect. It doesn't require me to say no to the things I love, to do things that I don't want to do or to eat things that I don't like.
I eat what I like... just appropriate portions. I do exercise that I enjoy. At first I forced my water - but now I drink it because I KNOW that I feel better when properly hydrated, I have bad meals and I've had bad days or bad weekends... but that's part of my lifestyle... I just make the choice to make today a better day.
What keeps me going on this lifestyle? I feel good. I'm looking better. And I'm really, really curious what I'll look like "at my best".0 -
I think for me, it's looking at myself in the mirror every day and hating all the jiggle, so when I go to eat empty calories I'm like ehh this isn't fueling your body with anything but sugar that's gonna end up back on your belly do you want that? NO. sounds weird but it works for me. I've also seen a lot of pics of people who started out weighing way more than I do and got down to the weight I want to get to and realize, hey if they did it I most def can do it! and I also don't want to 'look' like a mom. I want people to see me and be like wow, she had 2 kids?!0
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I was just reading in the book "love your brain, love your body" by Dr. Daniel Amen. He says that willpower is actually a pathway in the brain, we have to practice it to maintain that pathway. Once we lose the pathway we have to gain it back again.
The way I maintain willpower is by setting up myself for success--keeping treats away, planning my meals ahead of time.
That's a great book!!0 -
I may have to buy the book. I got it from the library after seeing him on PBS--it is very motivating and insightful. I definitely have brain envy! :laugh:0
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Thanks for the post..
"we have to practice it to maintain that pathway"0
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