Motivation is Crashing Fast.... How to keep on?

Jsphine
Jsphine Posts: 96 Member
in Motivation and Support
Only two weeks ago, I was all ready to take on the weight loss challenge for the last time. I have been doing great with the diet, made appearances at the gym, and even lost about 5 pounds. All going in the right direction. But I'm now feeling 'bored' of counting calories and constantly thinking about dieting. Any tips on how to stay focused and keep the energy up?
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Replies

  • knra_grl
    knra_grl Posts: 1,566 Member
    Don't think about it all the time, just make it a habit to log in and record your food and exercise. It only takes a few minutes, then move on. As far as the exercise, if you are bored find something that you like (biking, sports, whatever). Or do a couple different things throughout the week so you don't get bored with your routine.

    Maybe sign up for a challenge with one of the groups or threads that people post.
  • WoodChuckNorris
    WoodChuckNorris Posts: 216
    Do you look towards anyone for inspiration?
  • Jsphine
    Jsphine Posts: 96 Member
    ^not really... should I?
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
    What is your daily calorie limit/deficit?

    There seems to be a correlation between adherence and a reasonable deficit.
  • qtgonewild
    qtgonewild Posts: 1,930 Member
    A) Stop thinking of it as a diet.
    B) Just do it.
  • Jsphine
    Jsphine Posts: 96 Member
    my daily goal is 1200 net calories .
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
    my daily goal is 1200 net calories .

    Have you tried a daily limit of more calories to see if you still make progress towards your goals? I don't know your details (such as height, weight, activity, etc.), but it's very possible that you might. Give it a try. You'll likely find that not only will you still make progress, but also you'll have more energy, won't dwell on when you get to eat next, and are able to stick with it.
  • jontv76
    jontv76 Posts: 8 Member
    n/a
  • sisterlilbunny
    sisterlilbunny Posts: 686 Member
    I'm lucky that the trainer that does my favorite programs is on Facebook and I follow her newsletter. It's nice because when I don't feel like doing stuff, I can look at the stuff she posts or writes and I can get inspiration to get up and move or keep on when I really just want that darned half a pizza. If you can find someone that inspires you, that may or may not help but it's worth a shot.

    I'm also at 1600 calories and try to do 20 minutes of circut training 5x a week. Yeah it will take me a bit longer to get to my goal but it's really helping to keep me satisfied in terms of hunger and not feeling depraved/bored. That copy meal thing helps a ton too. You can do it, don't give up hope!!!
  • belle_rn
    belle_rn Posts: 23 Member
    Self motivation plays an important part when you go through this journey. Not only do you have to have clear reasons why YOU want to lose weight, but in addition to friends and family encouraging you, find ways to reward yourself for reachings goals. FIRST, set small goals (for example...work out 4 times a week instead of 3) and SECOND reward yourself for completing/reaching the goal (for example...buy a rockin shirt to add to your workout outfits). I personally went to B&BW and got 6 bottles of my fav body wash and everytime i work out, i get use one of them....otherwise i am stuck with the bar soap that i hate. I recently set goals of 10lb increments and plan on rewarding myself with something for each one. Next 10lb goal will result in a shopping spree to Teavana (favorite place in the world!!! THE best tea!!) and it gives me something exciting to look forward to. When i hit my 40lb goal, it will be a girls weekend to the beach with no limits on what i can eat (or drink!) Basically, find what makes you want to do this for yourself and the encouragement from others will help pick you up when you reaching a weak point (cause we all have em) and MFP is a great place for it.

    Feel free to add me....i'll be glad to help ya out anytime!
  • SherryTeach
    SherryTeach Posts: 2,836 Member
    I definitely agree that making logging a habit and then getting on with your life is the way to go.

    Today is my 600th day in a row of logging all my food. All my frequent foods and recipes are readily available in my list or saved as recipes. It takes me less than 5 minutes a day to enter everything, partly first thing in the morning, making corrections before bed. The rest of the day is anything but boring, what with working, seeing friends, reading, exercising moderately. . you know, basically living my life.

    Logging is a good way to practice self-discipline. Lots of things we do are boring. I'm not a big fan of flossing my teach, going to the gas station, balancing my checkbook, or cleaning the bathroom, but I do them anyway.
  • Sunbrooke
    Sunbrooke Posts: 632 Member
    What works for me is setting my goals really attainable, but then if I want to do more, I can. I'm mostly referring to going to the gym. My only requirement of myself is that I do 25 mins of elliptical a day, but I usually wind up wanting to do more if I have time. If I don't have time, or don't feel like doing more, I leave. Then I go around all day knowing that Im on track. Also, keep in mind that as long as your calorie intake is lower than what you need to maintain, you will eventually lose weight. If you just consume 100 calories a day less than you need to maintain, you would lose 10 lbs at the end of the year. That can probably be achieve by just making a few substitutions, like switching to a low fat salad dressing or from chips to pretzels. That's not even taking your exercising into account. So if you are getting overwhelmed, you can slow down, but don't quit. Keep up the tracking though, it will help you to be sure you are actually doing what you think you are doing.
  • firelight4321
    firelight4321 Posts: 60 Member
    Yeah, don't think of it as a diet. You can eat whatever you want really, as long as you're under your calorie limit.

    Obviously you want to try to eat a balanced meal between veggies, carbs and protein, but if you want a burger, you can have one!
  • Jsphine
    Jsphine Posts: 96 Member
    Self motivation plays an important part when you go through this journey. Not only do you have to have clear reasons why YOU want to lose weight, but in addition to friends and family encouraging you, find ways to reward yourself for reachings goals. FIRST, set small goals (for example...work out 4 times a week instead of 3) and SECOND reward yourself for completing/reaching the goal (for example...buy a rockin shirt to add to your workout outfits). I personally went to B&BW and got 6 bottles of my fav body wash and everytime i work out, i get use one of them....otherwise i am stuck with the bar soap that i hate. I recently set goals of 10lb increments and plan on rewarding myself with something for each one. Next 10lb goal will result in a shopping spree to Teavana (favorite place in the world!!! THE best tea!!) and it gives me something exciting to look forward to. When i hit my 40lb goal, it will be a girls weekend to the beach with no limits on what i can eat (or drink!) Basically, find what makes you want to do this for yourself and the encouragement from others will help pick you up when you reaching a weak point (cause we all have em) and MFP is a great place for it.

    Feel free to add me....i'll be glad to help ya out anytime!

    Rewarding with treats from B&BW and Teavana??
    That's BRILLIANT! Small pleasures in life!
    Obviously you want to try to eat a balanced meal between veggies, carbs and protein, but if you want a burger, you can have one!

    :heart: :heart:

    Thanks, guys! I really appreciate all of your advices so far.
    I really hope to make it honest every single day this month- my 1st milestone. Please share more tips on keeping motivated~
  • ezloshead
    ezloshead Posts: 167 Member
    Look at pictures of yourself when you were smaller, or of outfits you want to fit into. Think about future you. It doesn't have to be years later at your goal weight, you can think about getting a pant size thinner a month from now, or the first time someone notices a change. Feel proud of your actions and know you're fortifying your body with GOOD stuff.

    And listen to the the people telling you to up your calories a day a bit. Not everyone can jump in like that. You gotta get used to the changes.
  • Jsphine
    Jsphine Posts: 96 Member
    So, today's the weigh-in wednesday! 2.8lbs lost since last wednesday~~~ I am very much excited about this, and it really helps to see the loss. But the days in between can get really slow and difficult as you saw last night... the motivation was hardly there... thanks for pulling me right back up.
  • Jsphine
    Jsphine Posts: 96 Member
    Even the excitement over the small weight loss didn't last long.... Back in the funk. Is it weather? Is it depression? Is it lack of food? Can't explain it... If anyone else has struggled with lack of motivation, I want to know how you keep it going. I now understand why I have failed at this so many times before... I am ready to give up.
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
    my daily goal is 1200 net calories .

    Have you tried a daily limit of more calories to see if you still make progress towards your goals? I don't know your details (such as height, weight, activity, etc.), but it's very possible that you might. Give it a try. You'll likely find that not only will you still make progress, but also you'll have more energy, won't dwell on when you get to eat next, and are able to stick with it.

    ^this
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    But I'm now feeling 'bored' of counting calories and constantly thinking about dieting. Any tips on how to stay focused and keep the energy up?

    If you don't want to do it, save yourself the grief and don't. :drinker:
  • RobinvdM
    RobinvdM Posts: 634 Member
    I got started thanks to feeling sorry for myself.

    I kept going thanks to turning my Facebook into an accountability partner that I owned up to my successes and failures publicly (friends and family loved it.)

    I stayed rolling thanks to being competitive. My community has a "weight loss" competition, where the folks who lose 10% of their body weight get an award, and the top winners in all 3 categories (male, female, team) get a sweet prize (valuable gift cards.)

    I never won top prize but have a lot of "top 10%" prizes :D

    Figure out what works for you and get going. Change it up when you need to, you know what it would take to keep you motivated. Just gotta decide you want to. Good luck :)
  • trouble007
    trouble007 Posts: 18 Member
    Don't try to be too logistical/analytical in the beginning if it feels like too much too soon. Start with trying to lose a half pound a week and just add in more activity (I do a lot of caffeinated cleaning and I speed walk through the grocery store using ridiculously indirect routes for multi-tasking efforts). I find that when I start with smaller goals and I stop trying to log everything (I still don't log all my food on my cheat days...which are once a calendar week) it becomes easier to ease into more vigorous training, like running. I did it that way once when recovering from an injury and again when recovering from cancer. I found that when I became a nazi about logging every stinking calorie burned or consumed I became miserable, even though I was losing weight. As the Taoists say, moderation in everything. I also keep a pic of me when I was leaner around to remind me that I can be that girl again. :)
  • Jsphine
    Jsphine Posts: 96 Member
    Have you tried a daily limit of more calories to see if you still make progress towards your goals? I don't know your details (such as height, weight, activity, etc.), but it's very possible that you might. Give it a try. You'll likely find that not only will you still make progress, but also you'll have more energy, won't dwell on when you get to eat next, and are able to stick with it.
    ^this

    Okay, I'll go up to 1400 calories and see if this works.
    ::fingers crossed::



    RobinvdM: you've lost 131 lbs? that's so admirable; i need to know how you stuck with the plan!
  • Pipsg1rl
    Pipsg1rl Posts: 1,414 Member
    I recently switched from the MFP 1200 + workout eat back to TDEE instead.

    The other thing is that it takes a while to SEE a difference. Your body is holding on to the old you. It's like a bad break up. So don't drunk dial that fool!!

    Just know that you are making the habits now :)
  • callyart
    callyart Posts: 209
    If I was you, I would up my calories up a bit. I was doing 1200 but found my meals quite boring at that limit.

    Think about why you are doing your weight loss in the first place, surely that is reason enough to carry on?

    Time will pass regardless, so why give up?

    Good luck, I hope you find some motivation!
  • mshippiequeen
    mshippiequeen Posts: 46 Member
    A) Stop thinking of it as a diet.
    B) Just do it.

    (swish)
  • leaner426
    leaner426 Posts: 89 Member
    Don't think of it as dieting. It helps me to focus on eating healthier and trying to match the macros for things like fiber and sugar. That way you have successes every day. The weight loss is a side benefit. Focus on how much stronger you feel for the workouts, how your muscles are changing. Before you choose the extra pizza slice or big slab of cake think about how much you will need to work out or how many days of eating good it will take to undo it and ask if the temporary satisfaction is worth it. All of this helps me think of it as a long term lifestyle choice and education and not a short term, deprivation diet.
  • broox80
    broox80 Posts: 1,195 Member
    My friends on here pump me up and motivate me. I have the ones that are just very supportive and cheer me on. I also have the ones who send me PM's and tell me to just quit whining and get it done!!! Those are my favorite. My real life friends and family are supportive, but they dont constantly want to hear about my weight and "diet" issues. So I rely on my fit fam here to encourage, support and also not blow smoke up my butt when I am doing crappy and feeling sorry for myself. Its the boost I need to keep going!! Its a long journey for many of us, and for me the journey is the most important part !!! So get off your butt and get moving ;)
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    You're not always going to feel motivated. The key is to keep up the right habits no matter how you feel.
  • TAsunder
    TAsunder Posts: 423 Member
    When I'm struggling with the pressure of the weight loss routine, I let the calorie counting fall and just focus on exercise. When I don't exercise, my entire mental state and physical state suffer greatly. I am sluggish, moody, and don't feel like doing anything (including exercise). When I'm back in a good place again, I start counting again.

    I don't know that I'd recommend this approach, except to say that exercise is really important for motivation for me. If I don't exercise enough, I never want to exercise and I start eating more too.
  • qtgonewild
    qtgonewild Posts: 1,930 Member
    A) Stop thinking of it as a diet.
    B) Just do it.

    (swish)


    :)

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