What is your strategy to stay motivated?

1. I log my entire day worth of meals in the morning. This lets me plan out my day better so I don't go over. If it isn't in my log for the day, I can't eat it.
2. Community. Find lots of active friends and participate with them. Motivate them and let them motivate you with encouraging words and accountability.
3. Allow yourself a cheat day or cheat meal on occasion. I have found that I can't cut out the rich foods I love entirely so I spend the entire week following my calorie goal religiously and working out but I don't eat my calories back. I keep a tally of my total calories burned and on the weekend I eat out and use up those calories. I am still lose 1+ pounds a week this way so it works for me.

I'm sending you a friend request. Good luck!

You cant be motivated all the time. No one can. It's forming habits. I log everything now out of habit. I run even on days I don't want to out of habit. Its putting in place systems that eventually form habits. try not to over complicate it keep it simple and the habits will form also remember there is nothing wrong with failure as long as you learn from it we all make mistakes have bad days but the habits should form so that you learn and carry on. You didn't get unhealthy in one meal or one day so one meal or one day wont destroy any progress.

Good luck and also remember the right way is the way that works for you

You cant be motivated all the time. No one can. It's forming habits. I log everything now out of habit. I run even on days I don't want to out of habit. Its putting in place systems that eventually form habits. try not to over complicate it keep it simple and the habits will form also remember there is nothing wrong with failure as long as you learn from it we all make mistakes have bad days but the habits should form so that you learn and carry on. You didn't get unhealthy in one meal or one day so one meal or one day wont destroy any progress.

Good luck and also remember the right way is the way that works for you

pretty much this. It's taken me a long time to create habits like weighing my food, going to the gym, etc. It's a slow process

I am in my 60's. So it has been harder to lose my weight.
I am now in Maintenance Mode after losing 43 pounds.

My Motivation is logging every morning my whole days worth of meals. That way I do no cheating.
Make sure I have my water intake and get my walk even if it is indoors.
Also stay connected to your MFP Friends they will give you a lot of support and motivation

my tips are not easy. but imo they are the keys to long term success.
motivation is fleeting you cannot put all your weight loss plan eggs in the motivation basket. imo, you need to get to the root cause on why you dont take care of yourself or what the weight is all about in the first place. when you strip it all down its going to probably be an emotion. for me its when im overwhelmed, anxious or stressed or some emotional need is not being met (this took me YEARS to figure out and im still practicing the awareness). so the key for me is to reduce and/or manage these things in a healthy way and when i do i find maintaining healthy food choices becomes VERY easy for me.

with that said i do have a few more anchors when the going gets tough. i think of my daughter and what i would want her to eat and do and i make those same choices. i also think about smaller goals like appearances. i also have self-talks like if i dont want to track my food, i remind myself that this is part of meeting my goals and i will be happy i did it when its done, etc.

write that stuff down so when you are feeling "weak" you have a few things to turn to

I joined MFP last July as part of my 2013 New Year's Resolution of trying/doing something new (& a little out of my comfort zone) every month. MFP and that resolution have really changed my approach to life.

One of the things I added was Aqua Zumba. Getting into a swimsuit for the first time in 5 years at 188.6 took some major courage! But I loved the class and continue taking it twice a week. When that instructor suggested MFP and her new Turbo Tabata (high intensity interval training in the pool) class, they sounded like good things to try for July and August.

Sometimes it's something pretty simple, like experimenting with a new vegetable. Sometimes it's something quite surprising, like friends inviting me to travel with them to Portugal for an international Buddhist festival?! Before that resolution I would have laughed and said "I can't do that." Now when something off the wall presents itself I laugh, shrug, and say "Okay!" Especially if it's something that's going to make me healthier, wiser, or help someone else. That makes it a win win in my book. (Okay, no one's been able to talk me into bungee jumping, wall climbing, or zip lining yet. but who knows?)

Consequently, I've lost 40 lbs. since this time last year. Haven't been this weight since 1979! (Yeah, I turn 62 in about a month).

And I intend to live this way for the rest of my life.

My new thing last month, a portrait sculpture class. This month I went with a friend to a bingo fundraiser for Special Olympics. Not only did I have a blast getting up during the DJ portion to join in the Cuban Shuffle (which I'd never done in public - just in Zumba Gold class), I won so many prizes playing bingo, I had to have help hauling it all to the car!

Next month, a Fun & Fitness cruise through the Panama Canal (zumba classes on board!). I'm having a blast using the weekly 49cent sale at the local Salvation Army thrift store to buy a new, formfitting size 12 wardrobe for the cruise!

I use MFP like a game. Using lots of bulky, healthy, low calorie food like most non-starchy veggies to fill my food and stomach without going over my calorie count - and I really try not to eat calories earned from exercise. Also, I recorded every place I could get a measuring tape around when I began. I record weight and measurements once a week. I discovered that the weeks the scale didn't move much, were the weeks my measurements were smaller! Just as motivating as the numbers on the scale.

And I still manage to eat just a little bit of very dark chocolate every day.

Good luck!

Feel free to friend me!

I incorporated logging food and exercising into my normal life - made them habits. I don't need to stay motivated because they are just what I do each day, along with showering, brushing my teeth, going to work, cooking dinner etc.

Additionally, I chose not to eliminate going out to eat (although that's never been a regular thing for me) or eating processed foods or eating any foods that I enjoy. I didn't see any reason to make it harder than it needed to be. I eat cheese and butter and pizza and pasta and chocolate and ice cream - just in appropriate portion sizes. My diet is very good and gives me all the nutrients I need, and also includes foods that I enjoy.

The key to success isn't feeling motivated 100% of the time, it's making it easy for you to carry on doing what you need to do, even when you don't feel motivated or inspired. So, make changes that you can see yourself living with permanently, even when things get boring or difficult. Don't make multiple, radical changes just because you think you should because you're "on a diet".

Other than that, you really just have to decide whether or not it's important enough to be a priority in your life. If you can't find the energy to pick up your phone at the end of the day and spend 5-10 minutes logging food, then maybe it's not important enough to you (yet). :flowerforyou:

bikini.....just...bikini

1. I log my entire day worth of meals in the morning. This lets me plan out my day better so I don't go over. If it isn't in my log for the day, I can't eat it.
2. Community. Find lots of active friends and participate with them. Motivate them and let them motivate you with encouraging words and accountability.
3. Allow yourself a cheat day or cheat meal on occasion. I have found that I can't cut out the rich foods I love entirely so I spend the entire week following my calorie goal religiously and working out but I don't eat my calories back. I keep a tally of my total calories burned and on the weekend I eat out and use up those calories. I am still lose 1+ pounds a week this way so it works for me.

I'm sending you a friend request. Good luck!

This! ^ I find logging my days foods early really helps as well, and lets me know ahead of time what I can eat that still keeps me on plan. That way you can play with the numbers too, maybe you really want that special treat, this allows you to incorporate it into your diet without compromising your numbers at the end of the day.

Another thing my coach always tells me when I start to lose my "oomph" is, to remember why I started. All these things you've listed are valid, obtainable and soooo important! Revisit them often, keep reminding yourself why you are doing this, and see yourself at the finish line! Remember, it's a marathon not a sprint, it won't happen overnight, but with time and dedication, you can do this!! )

20 g string bikinis

I think motivation gets you started, habits keep you going.

I started logging in, but also looking back during the weekly review to see when I tended to overeat, and it turned out to be after 3 p.m. After a few tries, I learned that I needed to increase the size of my breakfast and lunch, so I wasn't crazy hungry at 3 p.m. and thereafter.

There are lots of little steps like that that you can take, but for me, it was really examining when I was eating mindlessly and approaching that in baby steps.

Like yourself I have fallen off track repeatedly over the years and cannot find enough willpower to keep on track in order to reach my diet goal. But we are back on the programme again, which proves we do have the motivation to keep trying which has to be good!

For me what is important is to focus on:

1 Keep looking at the goals I set myself when I joined the programme. Look at these repeatedly and absorb their importance so they become more and more important and remain strongly in my mind

2 We are doing this work on ourselves because it is important for our happiness and well being and likely us achieving our goals is important to those we love / appreciate. Allow these thoughts to generate out thinking frequently

3 Think about the positives of our endeavour not the negatives so much to strengthen motivation to succeed by focusing on goals and visualising success !

Best wishes
Dave
Derbyshire, Uk

I gained 20 pounds over the winter and looking at myself motivates me and looking at old pictures when I was in shape motivates me as well. My "friend" also saw a picture of me when I weighed 20 pounds less and looked at me and said "what happened to you?" Well that made me angry and when we would go out shopping she would pull out dresses and say "when you lose weight you can buy this". Those comments make me feel really bad about myself. But she's pudgy and I don't understand why she's picking on me.

I have been eating a lot healthier. I completely cut out Starbucks drinks and eating at Chipotle. I also quit smoking and drinking. I am on Day 17 of Insanity and Day 3 of Hip Hop Abs.