Help: Keep losing motivation

LMYERS94
LMYERS94 Posts: 32 Member
in Motivation and Support
Hey, I have been trying all summer to lose some extra weight before heading off to college this fall and I can't seem to do this! I go through periods where I do amazing and actually lose some weight, but then something always happens where I'll just lose control/determination and gain all the weight back (sometimes more!)
My new goal is to at least lose 5-10lbs by the time I leave, towards the end of August (and keep it off).... So I'm just looking for some support; plus feel free to offer any advice! I'll take all that I can get, believe me. Feel free to friend me as well :)
Thanks!

Replies

  • sweetpea03b
    sweetpea03b Posts: 1,123 Member
    We all go through periods of time where we lose motivation to LOSE (in one now myself). However, what you CANNOT allow is to GAIN. So try this: even if you're not in a deficit today, resolve to MAINTAIN. Remember... you have to eat an extra 3600 calories to gain a lb. That's a lot. So... you're really hungry today and don't feel like working out. That's cool... allow yourself to eat up to maintainance but NOT above that. For instance, my goal with a 500cal/day deficit is 1400 (with a walk). So.. If I'm super hungry and don't really feel like exercising.. I allow myself to go up to 1800 which is my maintenance level according to fitbit and MFP with no exercise. Baby steps. Maintaining isn't helping you lose but it's better than gaining! Good luck!
  • jeffwright773981
    jeffwright773981 Posts: 5 Member
    One of the things that completely transformed my outlook on health was the idea of *creating health* in my life, instead of just dieting. It's a positive, goal-oriented thinking, rather than a negative, reactive, problem-solving orientation. When you frame your mind in such a way where you're reaching for a goal - long-term, optimal health - then you are setting yourself up for success.

    If you go into a diet focused on the negatives: "I'm too fat. I can't fit into my old clothes anymore. I hate my muffin top. My doctor says my cholesterol is too high." - then you may actually lose weight for a while, based solely on responding to these negative things. But the further you get away from those negatives, the less bad they seem...and your enthusiasm, drive and desire wane. You get to a point where you say - "It's not so bad. I'm not so fat anymore. I can almost fit back into my jeans. So I can have this sundae. I can eat this double cheeseburger. I can go out for wings this weekend." Next thing you know it, BAM you are back to where you were.

    Now, flip that on its head. Successful weight-losers (those that keep it off) say things more along the lines of "I want to create longterm health in my life. I want to be able to ride my bike around town again. I want to feel sexy and attractive again." Those are all positive things, and instead of being pushed away from negativity, they pull you toward them in a positive way.

    You can create your life in the same way an artist develops a work of art. When you begin to approach your life from that orientation, you transform your world. You become more directly involved in your own life building process, you create more of what you truly want, and you broaden the quality of your life experience.You can conceive of the life you want to bring into being as an artist conceives of a painting, take strategic actions to build such a life as the artist takes all the necessary actions to create the painting, and inhabit the life you want to create as the artist may hang the painting on the wall to experience it.

    Did Monet think like this: "I'm so tired of not seeing a painting on this canvas. I can't stand this empty frame anymore." No...instead he had a vision of what he wanted to create and took action to bring that vision into being.

    I lost 110 pounds last year, but more importantly, I've kept the weight off for over a year now. I've never been healthier, and I love my new life. I attribute much of that to the idea of trying to *create health* instead of trying to *lose weight*. I made permanent lifestyle changes and through repetition, turned them into habits of health that I now maintain...all with the grail of optimal health and the things I wanted to do in life as my guiding light. Hope this helps some.
  • sstermole
    sstermole Posts: 37 Member
    It can be tough to keep going. One thing I've noticed is that I need variety to keep me interested in exercise. If I do the same things over and over again, I get bored and I am more apt to skip a day. Then if I skip a day, it becomes easier to skip the next day, and so on and so on until I'm not exercising anymore.

    Support and accountability are key, too - someone who can kick your butt and say, "you need to just DO this. Just 30 minutes."
  • happyfunnysexy
    happyfunnysexy Posts: 8
    Hi, I just read what you wrote. Thanks! It's good advice. I too was losing my motivation even though I have already lost 53lbs in the last 7 months. For some reason, knowing that I still need to lose 34lbs more in the next 17 weeks has made me want to just go out and binge on some unhealthy high carb foods.

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