Tired of losing motivation what am i doing wrong?

feeling depressed today I have done what I said I wouldn't do I have stopped watching what I am eating and I think I need a new scale cause when I went to the doctor it was wayyyyy of and I mean by like 10 pounds off ugh I am just tired of failing I don't know if I am just not starting out slow enough in or I don't freaking know I am getting married also in 2 years I really need to get my **** together. When I get the motivation kick I do great and I will for a month in a half and then something happens or I get tired from work and I fall slowly off but not just completely off the band wagon. :-( I think what really did it in is when I went to the Doctor and seen my weight was 10lbs more than my scale at home. I felt defeated like someone just popped my bubble ughhhh

Replies

  • dont get down and out about it pick up and move forward.....I too have been on the whirlwind of ups and owns but I am determined to do it big this time....I want to feel good about myself again make my husband fall in love with me again and not feel ashamed of the way I look. We can motivate each other if you like. I am gong to add you as a friend and we will work on this thing together OK so lets do it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE ARE GREAT WOMEN AND DESERVE THE LIFE WE WANT!!!!!!!!!!!
  • mamafriderich
    mamafriderich Posts: 17 Member
    Hi there Sweet Gamer I saw your title and read your emotions. I understand where your coming from. I too have days where I think of exercising, or doing it. With your eating you need to start small and then as you do a day by day basis, think of what you want for your future. Set a goal. Again Start Small. Whether it be to be healthy, or able to walk fast pace, or fit into the old clothes, whatever it may be. Hold on to that "moment" or "pic" that you have for yourself and that it your motivation. Post sayings on the fridge, in your car, on the mirror, wherever you can turn and look at and remind yourself :"you can do it!!!" For me I sometimes put on music in my car --loud-- or at home but loud to get me hyped and I feel great afterwards. I hope this helps a bit.
  • Brige2269
    Brige2269 Posts: 354 Member
    That was me yesterday. It does get to you. I eat wrong things without thinking, then kick myself after. We just need to remind ourselves over and over that WE are in charge of what we eat, not our tummies, or our hunger. It's a day to day struggle and I hate it. But we have to do it, we can do it. Chin up and good luck to you.
  • minizebu
    minizebu Posts: 2,716 Member
    You have to take things one step at a time.

    The first step should be logging your food in your food diary faithfully.

    Just do that, nothing else. You don't have to worry about "dieting". Just get it all recorded. You will find that the "observer" effect may kick in. (The thing that is being observed is changed by the very act of observing it.) That's a good thing.

    Once you've got recording all your meals as a regular habit then you can start to tailor your diet so that you are achieving a caloric deficit every day. Once you are in a deficit the weight will start to come off.

    Take it one step at a time.
  • deksgrl
    deksgrl Posts: 7,237 Member
    Don't stress about the scale. Your weight can vary +/- 7 pounds in the same day in water weight, and since it is a different scale, it probably is just a normal variance . Just keep going by your own scale and charting your progress with that. Don't let this derail you. Keep going. Keep making that decision every day to stay on track, no matter what the scale says.
  • thomakg
    thomakg Posts: 69 Member
    Sounds like we have the same scale - mine changes depending on where you place it on the bathroom floor - have to put it RIGHT there between those lines in the tile - yeah - that's the spot....seriously though, please don't get discouraged by the numbers. Make sure you don't set your goals too low and set yourself up to fail. Slow and steady girl!
  • beachlover317
    beachlover317 Posts: 2,848 Member
    "When YOU are ready to lose the weight, you will do it."

    A very wise person told me this several years ago. I thought she was NUTS. I was still in the place of seeking a quick fix, not putting in the work, wanting to find some magic pill and giving up too easily. I had all the excuses.

    15 months ago, I realized exactly what she meant. It means when you want something bad enough - you are willing to keep going until you get it. It's about not giving up. Never quitting. Accepting that you are not perfect, but that you're willing to keep trying and keep going.

    When you find that - NO ONE and NOTHING will be able to stop you. Good luck.
  • Heavybetty
    Heavybetty Posts: 38 Member
    START OFF SLOW. Don't try to do it all at once. Find out what you need to work on first like your eating or exercise. If eating is your biggest problem then get that under control before you stick exercising in your schedule. I might get crap for saying don't exercise right away, but that is what has worked for me so far. I was like you I would jump in full force exercise, eat within my calorie goal and then BAMMMM I quit, it was just to much at once. I realized my biggest issue was overeating so I started tracking all my intake keeping it under my calorie goal. After two months of feeling like my eating was under control I added light exercise. After a couple months of that I will add more exercise. Keep giving it a go, find what will work for you long term, we are all different, but never stop trying!
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    I wouldn't stress too much about the change between your scale and the doctor's scale. I'm going to guess that you were weighed later in the day than normal, possibly after eating or drinking? You were also probably wearing shoes and clothes that are heavier than what you weigh in at home? Possibly with something heavy in your pockets (cell phone, keys)?

    Weight naturally fluctuates throughout the day. And scales can be calibrated differently. What matters is that you pick one scale and weigh yourself only under the same conditions. As long as the numbers go down on that one scale you can ignore the other numbers.

    As far as sticking to a diet, set yourself small attainable goals. Make changes along the way. Don't cut out anything you love. And look for small, non-food rewards along the way. Whether it's a star on the calendar every day that you meet your goals or that new scarf you've had your eye on at the end of the week, give yourself something to work towards that's not just a number on the scale.
  • Southern_Belle_LA
    Southern_Belle_LA Posts: 931 Member
    Stop focusing on motivation because it doesn't last. Change your focus to developing healthy habits and discipline. Remember a nail drives out another nail. Choose one habit you'd like to break and replace it don't just vow to stop it you have to replace it with something. For example, I used to eat out at lunch everyday. Not good for my wallet or waistline. Now I go to the gym every day at lunch at the same time. It took me about 6 weeks to get this routine.

    Everyone in my office knows, it's become such a habit now that the other day I couldn't go to the gym on my break but had to leave the office that I still took the elevator to the gym and got off on the wrong floor before I realized what I was doing.

    You can do this but you have to stay committed for the long haul, it looks like you've had great success already so just focus more on the habits now!
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    Motivation to exercise or eat right is kind of like inspiration to do something creative - paint, make music, write books. It's great when it happens, but you can't rely on it. What you need is structure and dedication to make it a habit.

    Schedule your exercise and plan your food diary, and stick to it like it's your job.
  • cdahl383
    cdahl383 Posts: 726 Member
    It sounds like you are using external motivators to keep you going vs internal. For example, focusing on the scale number to keep you going or others telling you you've lost weight, etc. I would shift to something internal, like I want to be healthier for myself, to get the body I've always wanted for me, to be healthy and live a long happy life together with my spouse, etc. If these are your motivators, then the scale number or what others say have no bearing on you. As long as you continue to work at it you'll get there in time.

    The scale should only be used occasionally to gauge how you're progressing. Even then, its better to gauge by measurements and how your clothes fit. If you lose a lot of fat around your waist and gains some muscle in your legs and arms then you might weigh the same or a little more, but your clothes will fit better and you're certainly healthier overall regardless of what the scale says. Don't fall trap to the scale, it does not dictate your success, you do.

    I've also noticed with using scales that if you place it in a different spot, or if it is warmer or colder than last time you weighed yourself, it can be off a little. Again, its a decent way to gauge your progress, but is not the be all end all way of doing that.

    I have lost weight successfully in the past and due to my own complacency and laziness gained it back. However, the key to it working each time was counting my calories, watching what I ate, and ensuring I was around a 20% deficit overall each week. This combined with exercising 3-4 times a week netted me around a 1-2lb weight loss per week. Once I got to a certain weight I would plateau and I'd have to work harder at it. As you get closer to your goal, it will become harder. But if you have internal motivators keeping you going, then you're all set.

    As another poster said, motivation should not be the only thing you use, the biggest help of all is habit. Once you do something long enough, it becomes a habit, and you just cruise on auto-pilot and make little adjustments now and then.
  • Barbell_Jules
    Barbell_Jules Posts: 358 Member
    "When YOU are ready to lose the weight, you will do it."

    A very wise person told me this several years ago. I thought she was NUTS. I was still in the place of seeking a quick fix, not putting in the work, wanting to find some magic pill and giving up too easily. I had all the excuses.

    15 months ago, I realized exactly what she meant. It means when you want something bad enough - you are willing to keep going until you get it. It's about not giving up. Never quitting. Accepting that you are not perfect, but that you're willing to keep trying and keep going.

    When you find that - NO ONE and NOTHING will be able to stop you. Good luck.
    Yes. This!!!
  • 4daluvof_candice
    4daluvof_candice Posts: 483 Member
    "When YOU are ready to lose the weight, you will do it."

    "I was still in the place of seeking a quick fix, not putting in the work, wanting to find some magic pill and giving up too easily."


    THIS^^^^^^^^^^^:flowerforyou:
  • 4daluvof_candice
    4daluvof_candice Posts: 483 Member
    "... and stick to it like it's your job."


    THIS AGAIN^^^^^^^^^^^^^^:wink:
  • SweetGamer17
    SweetGamer17 Posts: 16 Member
    i have been reading all yalls advice and want to say thank you
  • mreeves261
    mreeves261 Posts: 728 Member
    Not sure if anyone said any of this already, if it's a repeat i apologize.

    Here are a few things I've learned along the way that have help make losing weight A LOT easier.

    1 - STOP DIETING!!! This sounds strange I know but I'm not telling you to go out and eat everything you see. What I am saying is you should be looking at making healthy changes. For example, I replace my craving for ice cream with greek yogurt. You have to replace old habits with new ones, not just give something up because your diet calls for it. Replace white rice with brown. Try new vegetables, look up new recipes, I think you get the idea.

    2 - FIND EXERCISE YOU LIKE. Exercise isn't necessary to lose weight. It HELPS! It gives you a larger deficit thus more to eat. If it feels like a chore you probably won't stick with it very long. If it's fun and you get excited leading up to the exercise you will more than likely stick to it because you enjoy it mentally. My GO TO exercise is Softball. Sure I did it before I started changing my habits around. I just don't treat myself with a triple from Wendy's afterwards anymore simply because "I earned it."

    Everyone is going to have a bad day, sometimes week, sometimes month. The amount of times you fall is not the number that counts. The number that counts is the amount of times you pick yourself up, dust yourself off, wipe your tears and start plugging away again. At some point it will all click and when it does it will be like the heavens parted and angels are singing to you. Focus on being a healthier version of you and the weight will come off, I promise! You are welcome to friend me if you like.
  • megalin9
    megalin9 Posts: 771 Member
    Motivation to exercise or eat right is kind of like inspiration to do something creative - paint, make music, write books. It's great when it happens, but you can't rely on it. What you need is structure and dedication to make it a habit.

    Schedule your exercise and plan your food diary, and stick to it like it's your job.

    This is basically what I was going to say, except that I think before you can schedule exercise and plan a food diary, you have to make a decision. Literally. You have to be ready, and you have to say, "This is going to happen."

    You said you're getting married in two years. There was a point where you made a decision with your significant other that a wedding and a marriage were going to take place. It's the same concept. You have to make a decision, just like you would make the decision to accept a new job or get married or adopt a child or whatever. With making a decision comes a commitment to the decision.
  • blue_byrd
    blue_byrd Posts: 9 Member
    Thank you so much for the encouragement, everyone! It doesn't just help the poster, but it helps everyone reading it. I've fallen off over and over and over, but now- when I feel discouraged, I'm going to come read these posts. Thanks again!!
  • Southern_Belle_LA
    Southern_Belle_LA Posts: 931 Member
    “Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.”
    ― Jim Ryun

    Sums up what I was saying earlier!
  • SchroederNJ
    SchroederNJ Posts: 189 Member
    forget the doctor's scale --- if you use you home scale on the regular, that's what you should be using as your basis for success --- not the one that you step on once a year

    my doctor's scale is always at least 5 lbs heavier (or different because I get on it wearing clothes or at a different time that I weigh in)
  • musycnlyrics
    musycnlyrics Posts: 323 Member
    dont get down and out about it pick up and move forward.....I too have been on the whirlwind of ups and owns but I am determined to do it big this time....I want to feel good about myself again make my husband fall in love with me again and not feel ashamed of the way I look. We can motivate each other if you like. I am gong to add you as a friend and we will work on this thing together OK so lets do it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE ARE GREAT WOMEN AND DESERVE THE LIFE WE WANT!!!!!!!!!!!

    You sound like you are reading my mind!