stress+depression= sitting and not wanting to move

I was just told I have high cholesterol and I'm on the edge of glucose so I have been telling myself to start walking, but I use every other excuse not to go. I am giving myself 3 weeks to lose the weight by walking and diet. I refuse to go on medication when I know its because I was lazy. Start slowly...1/2 a mile and then increase when you can. I promise, you will feel better sooner than later. The only way I have ever lost weight in the past is by walking. 4 years ago, while going through a divorce, I lost 30 lbs walking off the stress. You can do it. I will try and motivate you if you want. I start walking tonight.

Yeah, if you hate it, you're going to find every excuse not to go. If you are competitive, join one of the challenges on MFP, if you want to see if you can do a 5k, get Zombies, Run 5k or Couch 2 5k (C25K) that will help you amp up. If you have a gym see if you like lifting weights, even if it's just the handheld weights. If you like nature, go outside and just take a walk.
Getting diagnosed with diabetes is what gave me the push to start eating right, and exercising. You have to make the first move, and that's something you can do!

I get like that too. Whenever I'm overwhelmed with stress I get depressed and even if I love an exercise I just can't motivate myself to do it! What helps me is listing all the stressors in my life no matter how small or silly and then work through them one by one. Figure out how to change the ones you can and if you can't change it then change your outlook about it. Once my stress goes down I find my motivation comes back naturally. *hugs*

Unfortunately it can be a self-perpetuating cycle. (I don't feel good so I don't want to move, so I don't and then I feel worse.) Whenever I start getting into those funks, I found REALLY small goals help. Do something "active" (whatever floats your boat) for 5 consecutive minutes today. If it happens great, try something slightly bigger 1min more, 5 minute more or even repeat it for a week. If not get it done tomorrow no excuses. On the diet side of things, same concept - one more veggie or fruit or one less soda or candy or leave 3 more bites of food on the plate.

As you start doing more, you'll be able and wanting to do more and the couch will be less desirable.

I found that I do better with these mini goals if I get to record it somehow. place a sticker on the calendar, journal entry, drawing on the mirror. It's usually something pretty silly but it makes me smile a little bit.

something I heard about but haven't tried. Buy yourself a silly card or gag gift or something small (nail polish, socks, fancy looking pen , whatever) you like, mail it to yourself from somewhere other than home. now you have motivation to go check the mail and then you get to use your new gift and you get fun mail.

Letting things go is half the battle; now, consider what you can do. Take the time to reward yourself for your accomplishments with friends and family. Friend me, Anything is possible when people become passive rather than rigid.

Relax and FOCUS on getting the things you want. DREAM A LITTLE.

I had let myself go for many years and now that I'm trying to heal from a painful divorce on top of everything else going on, the motivation is zippo. I really appreciate all the suggestions here. I also believe that being here and reaching out is something to feel good about. Don't discredit the good you're doing. I have found that joining a gym and telling people when I'll be taking a class or whatever is really helping me. I figure if I'm paying for the membership and people are expecting me to be there I have no choice but to go.

bremyers wrote:

I've had so much going on lately that I pretty much left myself go.... and then found out I have diabetes!
Great! Trying to find the motivation to take care of myself but its hit after hit

:hugs: :flowerforyou:
Depression is such a horrid disease...
"You're fat! You're lazy! You're a loser! You're a slug. You can't do this. Give up."
You feel lousy, so you don't want to move and you don't have the energy even if you want to do something.
AmIright?

Make a _small_ goal, a _small_ change. Accomplish it. Then set a slightly bigger goal.
Walk to the end of your driveway & back today. Right now.
Tomorrow go to the neighbor's driveway. Keep adding.
Yes, it feels _really_ stupid at first, but you're doing something, building on it, being successful.
When you succeed at something small, you start to think that you can succeed at something more.

When I started being serious about exercise (JAN14), I did 5 min on the treadmill at something like 2 mph.
Took many times longer to get to/from the gym & take a shower than it did to exercise, but I did it anyway.
The next day, I did 6 minutes. Then 7.
Today (MAY15) I did 20 min of speed intervals (walk 3mph, jog 6mph), then 20 min of incline intervals. (Plus weightlifting.)
Some days I've done 90 min of incline intervals, or 60 min on the elliptical, or 90 minutes riding my bike.

For many people, losing excess weight will bring diabetes under control.
That could be a big motivator right there.

And there's no way to explain the difference so that you'll really understand it, but being active has helped me feel
*_SO_* much better, even as I've lost weight, even though I'm not yet at a healthy weight. I have more energy, I'm
not as down (most of the time). My self-esteem is improving, in large part because I've been successful at losing
weight... a long-term effort, something difficult I've accomplished little by little.

Start small.
Force yourself to walk to the end of the driveway today, even if you don't feel like it, even if your hair is a mess
(walk at night or put on a hat), even if you do it in your slippers & jammies.
Go do it now.
So you've accomplished something, no matter how silly you feel, no matter how little.
Build on that.
For a while, it will be entirely willpower that gets you through.
Eventually you'll feel better, you'll look back at your diary and see how you've been successful at developing a
pattern of exercising and that will make you feel better, and you'll want to keep doing that.
Then you'll start being successful at losing weight too.

And if you & your doctor decide to try an antidepressant for a few months, use it.
Do whatever you can to help yourself feel better, so you can move more, lose weight, stop the diabetes.

.