How to get started and stick to it

Glad u r now getting serious. I lost my weight and maintained for over a year and then stopped using MFP every day and slowly put back on 10 lbs. I actually re-committed by deleting my profile and starting over. It has been 8 days and today is a little hard. My new clothes are all tight as 10 lbs is apex. 10% of my body weight!!!

The things that keep me moving forward is logging in every day. I do weigh myself every day as this stops me from shoving things into my mouth. This is controversial as u have to be able to handle a 2-3 lb wt increase even if following your plan. Not weighing myself like this is one of the main reasons the weight crept back on. I log my food and exercise and read these post (many times a day) to stay motivated. It is not easy but that is my advice.

I try to keep the main focus on my fitness goals: eating well is just one of the steps to being able to do many marvelous things.

I eat a wide variety of foods and allow myself treats. On Wednesday nights, we go to board games at a local restaurant. My husband likes to get a milkshake, so we share the milkshake. I put it in my diary early in the day to make sure that I leave room for it. If he works late and we miss board game night, I just erase it and have a snack and let myself be under for that day. If I bake something, I figure out what a serving is and take that, rather than sitting down with the whole pan.

You have to want it bad another, there is no other way...

Hi,
my wau to stick to it is mainly to not freak over it. If I go over, I exercise more. If it is still over, well, I 'll do better tomorrow. I eat whatever I like as long as it is reasonable. If I feel I lack of energy, I eat at meaintenance for a day or two. I plan my meals over the week to balance the calories on the week so I can have meals that are more calorie-dense that I like very much. I am loosing. Slowly, but I don't feel I am doing very much for it, which is good as weight does go away. I started in being strict for the first month or so though, time to learn about portions and calorie.

The best advice I can give is to be diligent with your logging, and do your best to stay within your goals. Log food before you eat it (you can do it right before) so you know what your getting and you won't be surprised later. That can help you make choices, like if you are thinking about having another pint but want a snack, seeing the calories can be helpful.

I have been chunky since my 20's. My dad had died at 38, and I was approaching that age. I had two little boys, and I didn't want to put them through what the loss of a parent at an early age did to me and my sister. I had completed a 10 week extreme program that cost me $400. I never missed a workout or cheated on the diet, and I only lost 7 lbs. Very discouraging. Tried WeightWatchers, and it was so easy to make poor choices. So I gave up. The day after I hit the same age that my dad died, my friend told me about MFP. I thought, why not check it out. I had no expectations, and I didn't jump in with thinking I was making any changes whatsoever. Just curiosity. I logged that day to get an idea of what I was eating. Then I got up and popped in a workout DVD. I simply saw that by adding in activity, I could eat more. So I started working out a bit more and realized that I was enjoying it, and the weight was coming off faster than with the extreme program or WW, and it wasn't costing me a penny! I would plan for big meals out and just burn more calories before we went so I could splurge on a burger and fries. I quickly lost 20 lbs, and I couldn't believe how much I liked exercise! But I had found the workouts that made my smile, and I kept up with them. I had REAL LIFE accountability friends as well as the friends on here. I set mini goals with that friend to reward us for sticking with it. 30 days of logging, we went on a double date. First 10 lbs down, we went shopping. After 3 months of logging, we got makeovers. After a year, I eased up on the logging and gained 10 lbs of my 30 I lost, but I never gave up on exercise.

So long story short, extreme changes are too easy to give up on, and the simply formula of burn it to earn it was the ticket for me.

NM

The best advice I can give is to be diligent with your logging, and do your best to stay within your goals. Log food before you eat it (you can do it right before) so you know what your getting and you won't be surprised later. That can help you make choices, like if you are thinking about having another pint but want a snack, seeing the calories can be helpful.

This is how I am approaching it, I know there is no quick fix, and probably like over 90% of people on MFP I have at some time tried every diet going! I joined MFP a year ago but didnt have the motivation or the inclination to do anything till this January,.A few years ago I lost over 6stone but it crept back on, the idea was when I gained half a stone I would go back to my healthy eating plan and lose it but that didnt happen so here I am back again, last time I was at a heavier weight when started and didnt reach goal so I still have to lose just over 6 stone but then I will be at my goal weight and this time I AM going to do it, I find reading the success stories and the motivation I get from reading different posts really does help me, I log in everyday and intend to keep doing so, if anyone wants to add me please feel free I hope that friends can encourage each other, in October this nyear I will be 60 and when I think of all the years I have wasted, with my weight holding me back I could cry, however there is nothing I can do about the past, but the future well I can do something about that and I fully intend to.

You got to want it! It's all up to you! I don't avoid trips out with friends. I eat out just not as much. Moderation is key! Don't stop doing the things you enjoy that is why most people fail bc they believe you got to cut everything out and that's not true!