What is your motivation?

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KoiKitten101
KoiKitten101 Posts: 26 Member
I'm curious what is motivating you and helping you stick with MyFitnessPal, and do you have any suggestion/tips for any of your peers! Anything I find worthy, I may and will quote in this post.

For me personally, I think it feels good to workout. Its really rewarding. I feel so much better and We've just begun this a week ago. My greatest motivation right now, is actually knowing my Calories In, Vs. my Calories Out. I use Fitbit Flex to monitor my steps, which tells me how many calories I've burned today, and how much I've consumed. It also tells me how much my calories out deficit should be. I have my fitbit synced with myfitnesspal and it modifies how much i'm allowed to eat for today to still loose 2lbs per week. So I'm not feeling any bit deprived, and can help myself make good choices gradually without going all out. If I go all out to change a habit I end up binge eating which is a really bad thing.

This is from yesterday, comparing my completed journal and the results from fitbit's calories in/calories out. These results are just for one day, its not an average of a week. If I were to do this everyday with the same amount of activity that'd be great.. but my activity is not the same, nor my intake. So I try to balance it by basing what I eat on my activity amount. My goal is to have a 1k deficit per day. Yesterday I fell asleep early so my deficit was much higher.
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I personally loved the fitbit ultra because it has a display that shows your progress but I lost it. The flex does not have a display. You have to go online to check your steps and other information.
https://www.fitbit.com/flex
https://www.myfitnesspal.com/apps/show/30

Another thing that is motivating me is that I'm using Pact. Its an app that can also sync with MyFitnessPal. You can make a wager to say I'm going to record my food to MyfitnessPal for 5 days. If I don't, each day I miss I will pay $5(or more if you choose). You can also make Pacts to workout at a gym, or use your fitbit to walk 10k steps a day. It goes the say way, you can wager $5 or more. The only thing is, once you sign up, and put your information in, you have to be clear about the process because a lot of people misunderstand. This is not an app that you can uninstall and say i'm done with it. It has your pacts auto renew each week, and you can modify the next weeks pacts before it starts. So If you choose to discontinue this service you must delete your account to not be charged for the next week, and when I say delete you most physically click delete account. If you uninstall the app before deleting your account, you will be charged. However, I believe you must complete your pact for that week before its deleted to not be charged. Either way, I don't plan on deleting my account.. I just want anyone to be clear if they choose to use this as motivation.

Replies

  • CatyB0321
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    Well, my motivation is simple. I have two 8 year old boys and I need to be healthy and fit to keep up with them. I have recently had a few blood pressure issues in addition to trying to keep my rheumatoid arthritis under control. I know if I keep my weight in check...simply put...I feel better! It has been a LONG LONG winter in the midwest and I just let things get out of control. The time has come to get back into shape and drop these extra pounds.

    I also use the Fitbit Flex... I LOVE IT!!!! It's my very own personal daily trainer. I have recently bumped up my step goal for each day and it's what keeps my moving. I want to get to that number each day!

    The last thing that keeps my motivated is knowing how many super cute things are in my closet that I just cannot fit into. :( But soon I will!!!!
  • jesiann2014
    jesiann2014 Posts: 521 Member
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    Like all of us here in this group, I desire to be and look healthy. I want my asthma under control and I want to be stronger. I don't want to have to be on blood pressure or diabetic meds. Both of these maladies as well as obesity run in my family. I don't want my kids to have to take care of their mom simply because she refused to take care of herself when she was younger. I detest waking up with swollen fingers and an aching belly knowing it's because I put junk in my body the day before. On the flip side, how great it is to sleep thru the night and wake up refreshed, not sluggish and fuzzy-minded from lack of proper nutrients and excess of things our bodies weren't made to process to begin with.

    I have a Fitbit Zip and I LOVE it! I'm quite determined to see that 10,000 number everyday. I'm also very motivated by MFP and my sister, Jojo. We have been on this journey together for 3 months and it has been a great experience for us both. We have both benefitted in multiple ways and are looking forward to this being a way of life for us.

    This group is a great motivator too! I really love exercising and the challenges here keep my heart pumping, my lungs expanding and my body moving!!
  • tolkienite
    tolkienite Posts: 204 Member
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    I have a few different motivations.

    1. I have the fitbit one. It is amazing how motivating that little screen is to get you off the couch!

    2. I am a knitter and sewer. I really want to slim down because at my currently size buying yarn and fabric is prohibitively expensive. If I can get down to just a UK size 12 I can knock a lot of money off my hobbies.

    3. I am a type 1 (insulin-dependant) diabetic. I am trying to improve control of my blood sugar levels by reducing the sugar in my diet. It is tough, because sugar is almost everywhere you look, but it is doable, and I am finding it very rewarding simply because my overall health is improving so much. My latest discovery: if you use unsweentened almond milk in porridge, an entire bowl contains only 0.7g of sugar!
  • jojosboys
    jojosboys Posts: 20 Member
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    Theres alot for me to say here..... I have two of the most handsome nephews in the world who love their jojo and a sister who would lay down her life for me. Obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and many other ailments run rampant in our family. Im sick of being a statistic. Ive always said id give my life for my nephews (which I often call my own ;)) well now is the time to save my life for them!!!! Also my sis got me a fitbit zip and i love it. Its a great motivator! A BIG SHOUT OUT TO MY SISTER, JESI, I APPRECIATE YOU JES SO VERY MUCH FOR YOUR MOTIVATION!!!:wink:)
  • Rmarqur
    Rmarqur Posts: 8 Member
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    My motivation is that I don't want to become a diabetic. I found out a year and a half ago that my mother was diagnosed with Type II Diabetes, which makes her the 3rd generation in our family to be affected by Type II. I NEED to lose these extra lbs and get back in shape as my health depends on it. And maybe by seeing my example, my sister and my mom will get motivated to lose the extra lbs too.
    I want to be around to see my grandbabies with their babies. I also want to be able to run around with them.