Feeling discouraged

ah summer ... it's been interesting to see the shift in routine as the kids are out of school. Sleeping in, spending some days at the pool or park, holidays and family parties. I do miss the routine of the school year. I always seem to do a bit better then than during the summer.

I don't know that your "maintain during the summer" mindset is bad. Maintenance is a challenge too. I tend to do that on a smaller scale now. Work hard during the weekdays when there is more of a routine, even in summer, then on weekends, I just TRY to at least break even with calories in/out ... I don't give up and go crazy, but I know that I generally can't get my usual eating/exercise in).

Have you had any NSV during the past five weeks? Clothes fitting any better, or just feeling fitter because of your exercise? Being able to do a distance you weren't able to before? Can you feel some muscles that you didn't know you had before?

I've been doing this for about 10 weeks now, it has been slow but steady. I have yet to hit a plateau ~ I'm not sure how I'll deal with it if(when) it happens. So I know people can say "Don't get discouraged" but until they have been there ... but I'm sure MANY people have been there. Looking at the forums it does seem different things tend to work for different people, so maybe if something was working, go back to that, or continue to play around and see if something else with exercise kicks in.

Good luck!

Eat better foods to supplement your workouts. Add more protein. Lean meats, chicken breast, turkey breast. You should bump your macros to something like 40-45carbs/30-35 protein/20-25 fats.

Well that didn't happen. I am at the same weight for the past 5 weeks. In my head I know I am not eating as well as I do when I am working. I am drinking more. Having more desserts and more calorie rich foods. But was hoping exercise would help.

Since I can't see your diaries, I have to ask the obvious question, especially with you saying "in my head......" Are you logging EVERYTHING? If not, you will be surprised how fast desserts and adult beverages add up. I'm not saying don't have them, but you have to work them into your calorie totals, just like the "healthy foods". I play men's golf league once a week, and I always fit 2-3 drinks into my daily total.

Calorie deficit is for weight loss.

Exercise is for health and to make sure you look good naked when you get done.

Exercise can stall your scale progress in two ways; it will result in water retention for muscle repair, and it increases appetite. You can counteract the first with patience (it's temporary) and the second with accurate logging/sticking to your calorie goal.

Are you logging accurately and sticking to your calorie goal? If not, that's your problem, not exercise.

In my personal opinion it's worth figuring out how to exercise while you are losing weight. By the time you get to your goal weight without at least some strength training you will have lost muscle, and it's very hard to get back, especially for women.

I know it's tough to stay on track with all the summer activities going on. Today we had Navy-sanctioned fun at the beach, complete with pulled pork sandwiches and delicious desserts. Two nights ago we had a girls night. Next week is the FRG picnic for our crew. It's hard to stick to your goal with all that going on, but it's worth it to figure out how to make it work for you, because if you can do that just think about what a rock star you'll be the rest of the year when there's less temptation.

You're going to go through rocky periods. It's just how it is. I hit one a few weeks ago, and I thought I was done for, but I rode it out, and I'm still on track (for the most part). Keep your eye on the prize, and think hard and often about the reasons you're doing this.