How do you stay on track/motivated?? (Having a hard time)

lablamires
lablamires Posts: 83 Member
in Motivation and Support
So, I was doing really good for about 10 days... Counting my calories, exercising... I lost 7lbs in 10 days! Then, life got busy, my bike broke, and I haven't done anything for almost a week and have gained back 5lbs. Now I'm feeling discouraged and unmotivated... But I'm so sick of feeling terrible about myself. What can I do to stay on track/motivated and not get so down on myself?

Replies

  • jillmarie125
    jillmarie125 Posts: 418 Member
    how many calories a day were you eating in those 10 days?
  • kill3rtofu
    kill3rtofu Posts: 169 Member
    eat naked in front of the mirror
  • fitfan11
    fitfan11 Posts: 544 Member
    Think back on how you felt at the lowest point in your life.......then say to yourself, "I never want to go back there again"
  • rlmassman84
    rlmassman84 Posts: 91 Member
    I give myself small non-food rewards. Part of this was to retrain myself to not reward myself with special food treats. So I will let myself buy or do something periodically like a massage or buy a new shirt to keep myself motivated. I do not want to replace my wardrobe until I am at my goal, but being able to go buy a shirt or pants and buy it in a smaller size is a great motivator for me.
  • jade18550
    jade18550 Posts: 5
    Think about how awesome you felt when you lost those lbs and I am sure you will do what motivated you to do that in the 1st place. You are beautiful and every day is the opportunity for a fresh start. You can do it! Someone once told me that and that really helped me not gain weight when I was pregnant. Now I am not pregnant but I need to lose the extra weight I already had before getting pregnant and I wish that person was in my daily life to tell me YOU CAN DO IT, when someone believes in yourself, you believe in yourself too! Best of luck! We got this!!
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    Realize that you're not always going to feel motivated...that there will always be obstacles to your goal. Determination to keep going no matter what is the only thing that will get you through.
  • Boogage
    Boogage Posts: 739 Member
    Don't panic. Most of what you lost in the first week was water so the 5lbs you've 'gained' is only really water not fat. You're still hopefully 2lbs of fat down so smile and jump up and down (for 10-15 minutes lol) with joy and look forward to losing more fat this week :)
  • lablamires
    lablamires Posts: 83 Member
    how many calories a day were you eating in those 10 days?

    1600-1800.

    My calorie limit is set for Sedentary, so it's like, 1340... But I'm a breastfeeding mom and I figured that 1340 was way too low, and breastfeeding can burn up to 500 calories, so I eat between 1600-1800, though I try to stick to the lower part of that range.

    I also try to burn about 300 calories a day with exercise.
  • Sarah4fitness
    Sarah4fitness Posts: 437 Member
    The drastic drop in the first two weeks can be attributed mostly to water weight. It gains back quickly if habits change. Don't be discouraged, keep working at it. Consistency is key.
  • rsclause
    rsclause Posts: 3,103 Member
    When you stop counting and stop exercising you stop caring what you eat and how much of it. Stay focused and commit to it being a lifestyle change, not a diet. Give it time too because we are talking months here not weeks. Then when you reach your goal you must maintain and that means years. Every day I see people eating like I use to and think "I can't believe I use to do that" Hang in there you can do it.
  • lablamires
    lablamires Posts: 83 Member
    Think about how awesome you felt when you lost those lbs and I am sure you will do what motivated you to do that in the 1st place. You are beautiful and every day is the opportunity for a fresh start. You can do it! Someone once told me that and that really helped me not gain weight when I was pregnant. Now I am not pregnant but I need to lose the extra weight I already had before getting pregnant and I wish that person was in my daily life to tell me YOU CAN DO IT, when someone believes in yourself, you believe in yourself too! Best of luck! We got this!!

    Thanks :)
  • lablamires
    lablamires Posts: 83 Member
    Don't panic. Most of what you lost in the first week was water so the 5lbs you've 'gained' is only really water not fat. You're still hopefully 2lbs of fat down so smile and jump up and down (for 10-15 minutes lol) with joy and look forward to losing more fat this week :)

    Thanks :)
  • lizzardsm
    lizzardsm Posts: 271 Member
    One of my awesome MFP friends helped me reframe my thinking. Everything you do is a reflection of your priorities. Start thinking that way. Whenever you don't feel like going to the gym you are implicitly saying - Sitting around is a higher priority than my health today. When you decide to eat within your calorie goals you are really saying - Today, my weight loss goals/health is a higher priority than eating X-foods.

    Thinking this way really helped motivate me to exercise regularly and log accurately. It became really hard to think - watching this TV show is a higher priority than going to the gym. BUT sometimes it helped me not feel guilty when I needed a break. After going through a completely hellish week I decided that skipping the gym one day and taking a "mental health" night was a higher priority than going to the gym.

    Hope this helps!!
  • jillmarie125
    jillmarie125 Posts: 418 Member
    how many calories a day were you eating in those 10 days?

    1600-1800.

    My calorie limit is set for Sedentary, so it's like, 1340... But I'm a breastfeeding mom and I figured that 1340 was way too low, and breastfeeding can burn up to 500 calories, so I eat between 1600-1800, though I try to stick to the lower part of that range.

    I also try to burn about 300 calories a day with exercise.

    ok- good. I was scared you were going to throw out a whacky low number like 900-1000 cals a day. Which would explain why it was hard to stick with that.

    If you are comfortable eating 1600-1800 then try to stick with it and eat foods you enjoy so you dont feel the need to binge after a few days of being too strict.

    As far as staying motivated...it can be hard. But just keep reminding yourself that if you start now, in 6 months you will be so happy that you did.
  • monstergirl14
    monstergirl14 Posts: 345 Member
    Be consistent! Eat filling foods, with fiber and protein. Drink lots of water! Compliment yourself every day, name one thing you find is awesome on your body (eyes, hair, nails, arms, legs, butt, etc) and be proud of it. Set small goals, maybe 5 pound increments? Then treat yourself to a massage, spa, nail salon, hair salon, shopping, etc. Just love every minute! This is your new life, embrace it!
  • lablamires
    lablamires Posts: 83 Member
    When you stop counting and stop exercising you stop caring what you eat and how much of it. Stay focused and commit to it being a lifestyle change, not a diet. Give it time too because we are talking months here not weeks. Then when you reach your goal you must maintain and that means years. Every day I see people eating like I use to and think "I can't believe I use to do that" Hang in there you can do it.

    Thanks :)
  • jade18550
    jade18550 Posts: 5
    you're welcome! :-)
  • DaniettaF
    DaniettaF Posts: 212 Member
    So, I was doing really good for about 10 days... Counting my calories, exercising... I lost 7lbs in 10 days! Then, life got busy, my bike broke, and I haven't done anything for almost a week and have gained back 5lbs. Now I'm feeling discouraged and unmotivated... But I'm so sick of feeling terrible about myself. What can I do to stay on track/motivated and not get so down on myself?

    Wow. I'd say don't worry in the slightest! You still lost 2lbs overall, which is a healthy loss over that time. Just think positively! They say that losing weight too quickly isn't healthy anyway.

    You're only 10 days in, don't give up.

    Think of losing weight and being healthy as a lifestyle change and not a race. I've had to learn to be patient. If you eat correctly and do exercise the weight will come off. It just won't come off in a month or maybe a year, but it will be coming off.

    Weight also fluctuates with water and all sorts. If the scales make you worry, maybe go for measurement goals rather than lbs?

    What motivates me is that if I do nothing, nothing will happen. So if you want something to change it requires you doing something about it.

    I hope this helps :)

    Feel free to add me if you want any motivation or support.
  • JackieRL55
    JackieRL55 Posts: 144 Member
    One of my awesome MFP friends helped me reframe my thinking. Everything you do is a reflection of your priorities. Start thinking that way. Whenever you don't feel like going to the gym you are implicitly saying - Sitting around is a higher priority than my health today. When you decide to eat within your calorie goals you are really saying - Today, my weight loss goals/health is a higher priority than eating X-foods.

    Thinking this way really helped motivate me to exercise regularly and log accurately. It became really hard to think - watching this TV show is a higher priority than going to the gym. BUT sometimes it helped me not feel guilty when I needed a break. After going through a completely hellish week I decided that skipping the gym one day and taking a "mental health" night was a higher priority than going to the gym.

    Hope this helps!!

    LOVE this, going to use it. "Everything you do is a reflection of your prioritites" SO TRUE!!!
  • MYhealthyjourney70
    MYhealthyjourney70 Posts: 276 Member
    just start fresh.. brush yourself off, hold your head high... i get off track regularly. nothing to be down about it happens to everyone.
    good luck on your journey
  • lablamires
    lablamires Posts: 83 Member
    Thanks everyone for the replies, the things that are being said make me feel better. I guess I'm really just expecting results to come way too fast. I'm just so sick of this extra weight but it took years for me to get this way, and it will at least take a few months if not longer to get the weight off.
  • daw0518
    daw0518 Posts: 459 Member
    For me it was all about making small changes. I had tried several times & failed, and each time I tried to recognize what it was that was causing me to fall off the wagon. One thing was putting too much pressure on myself to exercise a ton when it isn't something I enjoy that much or have the time for. Another was changing my diet too much & unnecessarily restricting foods. So this time around, I just ate the foods I normally do in moderation and didn't pressure myself to do extra exercise. As time went on, I kind of naturally started buying/trying lower calorie food options [PB2, egg whites, more veggies for snacks] because I wanted to be able to eat more than one or two meals a day. After successfully tracking for a month & a half, I rewarded myself with a Fitbit, which helped motivate me to get more exercise.

    My advice would be to start slow & don't be too hard on yourself. If you've never exercised regularly or counted calories, then switching to exercising every day of the week & eating at 1500 calories a day is going to be really, really hard. Maybe just start by eating at a small deficit and not doing exercise, or just walking for 10 minutes 3 days a week & working your way up to more. And when you fall off the wagon for a day, that's okay, you can always start again the next day with a clean slate!
  • MandyLion76
    MandyLion76 Posts: 45 Member
    I did something very similar. Twice. I would do really good for a bit and then as soon as I got busy with life, kids, school, husband...I'd stop tracking and stop working out. Then a week later I would feel horrible and talk myself into believing that it's okay to just be fat and I just needed to find a way to be comfortable with not being able to do all the things I love...then a month or two later I would still be miserable and fat, go figure.
    I started working out again a few months ago, I made myself a schedule that I kept on the fridge so I knew which days were workout days. I didn't change my eating though. So after about a month of consistently working out, even when I didn't want too I would haul my fat *kitten* upstairs and put on my workout clothes, I would come back down stairs and cuss at the tv and start moving, 5 minutes into it I always felt great and so proud of myself for doing it. Anyway, I pushed. I pushed so hard when I really didn't want to get up and do it. But like I said I didn't change my eating so I wasn't really losing anything but I was feeling better and lost a few inches. One day I figured, dang, I'm working so hard and kicking so much *kitten* I really should start logging and tracking food, I only hit my 25th consecutive day today but I have lost 10lbs and I eat! I freakin' love to eat! I make some better decisions than I used to, but for some reason it makes me feel really good to make those decisions and take control and responsibility for my body and I swear the food tastes better when you take your control over it and make it a choice that you will either be happy with because it's a rad choice or one that you will take responsibility for and workout those extra 20 minutes to MAKE it a rad choice.
    Keep pushing, keep making choices! Even on days you don't want to...you march your *kitten* to your room, you put on those workout clothes and you start moving! =)
  • lporter229
    lporter229 Posts: 4,907 Member
    Try to have realistic expectations. Think of it in terms of a marathon. If you go at it hard off the bat and give it all you got, you are more likely to fizzle out. If you find a pace that is comfortable and maintainable, you will get there eventually. Some days your pace may be slow, some days you may feel ultra motivated and make up some of that time. The most important thing is to keep moving in the right direction. Turning around and going backwards is the only thing that will keep you from reaching the finish line eventually.
  • lizzardsm
    lizzardsm Posts: 271 Member
    For me it was all about making small changes. I had tried several times & failed, and each time I tried to recognize what it was that was causing me to fall off the wagon. One thing was putting too much pressure on myself to exercise a ton when it isn't something I enjoy that much or have the time for. Another was changing my diet too much & unnecessarily restricting foods. So this time around, I just ate the foods I normally do in moderation and didn't pressure myself to do extra exercise. As time went on, I kind of naturally started buying/trying lower calorie food options [PB2, egg whites, more veggies for snacks] because I wanted to be able to eat more than one or two meals a day. After successfully tracking for a month & a half, I rewarded myself with a Fitbit, which helped motivate me to get more exercise.

    My advice would be to start slow & don't be too hard on yourself. If you've never exercised regularly or counted calories, then switching to exercising every day of the week & eating at 1500 calories a day is going to be really, really hard. Maybe just start by eating at a small deficit and not doing exercise, or just walking for 10 minutes 3 days a week & working your way up to more. And when you fall off the wagon for a day, that's okay, you can always start again the next day with a clean slate!

    DEFINITELY THIS!

    Small changes. Reasonable goals (none of this 1200cal or less and exercising 5-7 days/week nonsense).
  • Envirogurl
    Envirogurl Posts: 8
    I can only say that it happens to us all trying to lose the weight. That's one of my biggest thing. I am a great motivator for everyone except my self because I always have to things all by my self. Out local United way is hosting a "Biggest Loser " Contest and there are 60 people entered into it. It is week 6 and there are only 53 left. We have done really fun things so I am worried that after the contest what happens then??? I have found that doing things I LIKE and making up ideas on how to incorporate those things into making me move. My team was getting discouraged and so we pulled together and went for a weekend workout at the beach. (It helps if you live close to one) . We really did workout in the pools, walked several miles on the beach, went to the hotels gym, and went to a neighboring fishing village and walked their entire boardwalk. We were all exhausted when we returned home. We also cooked in the room instead of going out to expensive resturants, splitting the room 4 ways made it a lot more affordable. Also we got to work out with our local sport team. They love to help the local communitities. The hardest part is to stay motivated, have some friends over and have a cook of on who can create and prepare the healthiest plate. Anyway, Just a few ideas that may give you thought, Good luck and I hope you the best in your weight lost journey. Always remember you are a one of a kind special person and you deserve this !! Give your self a brake. Be as kind to your self as I am sure you are to others.
  • Iwishyouwell
    Iwishyouwell Posts: 1,888 Member
    Hating being fat every single day that I was fat eventually was motivation enough.

    I needed to loathe obesity more than I hated the work it takes to remedy it.

    Didn't happen overnight. But when you reach your breaking point, you're not really hurting for motivation.

Categories