I feel lost...

Sadie is right...it is completely a mental process. You have to build that internal discipline to keep going no matter what happens. I just finished a few weeks of no motivation. I'm back to logging food & exercising each day. You also need to find a support system to push / pull you through the tough times.

First of all, congratulations for losing 50 lbs! Doesn't matter too much if you gained most of it back, the point is that you were able to lose the weight, so you know that you are capable of doing it again. Honestly, I feel like this happens to a lot of us the first time around. I went from 168 to 143, but a few months later, I went back up to 160. I felt pretty bummed for a few months, but eventually I gained the courage to get back at it again. Tell your friends about your weight loss goals. This has definitely helped me. I talk to my friends about my healthier diet choices, and a couple of times a week we go play tennis.....things like that help a lot.

Been there done that. I put back on 40lbs and spent the last 4 months taking it back off. Feels so much better to be back. What pushed me was the fact that I couldn't fit into some clothes I enjoyed wearing. It hit me. I went back to the gym and made a schedule that I could keep. Now I'm back into the swing of things. I'll add you on my friends list... constantly posting motivating things. Anyone can add me also.

tldr: figure out what stresses you out in life and triggers bad decisions or helps contribute to laziness/lack of motivation and find alternate ways to deal with these situations, people, or events.

I've been up and down a few times myself in terms of my weight, and I've found that I can't really rely on anything external to motivate me to get back on track. It just has to click, kind of like when I decided to start getting fit in the first place, and after once it clicks sticking to my goals is no problem, until something comes along and I let that derail me. So one thing that I can do to help myself to keep from getting derailed by the next big stressful life event, and which may be helpful for you in regaining focus, is simply identifying and developing coping strategies for triggers; what events, people, habits, activities, etc, are factors that contribute to you making poor choices about eating, or exercise? When these stressors inevitably happen (because it's life, and *kitten* happens), how will you handle them in a way that won't let you get off target?

For example, I know that if I drink too often or too much, I can expect to fall off the fitness wagon for a few weeks or longer, so I have to be fairly mindful of my alcohol intake and not drink heavily for more than a night or two in a row. I know that when my parents visit, I tend to eat and drink way too much and that these eating and drinking habits will continue for several weeks after they've gone home, so I have to have strategies in place for when they visit to keep this from happening. Ditto for when I go on vacation - I need to have a plan in place for when I get home so I don't stay in "vacation mentality mode" when it comes to eating or exercise. I know that if I slack on my exercise routine for more than a few days my eating habits will also start to suffer because I tend to get hung up on all-or-nothing thinking; if I'm not exercising, why bother eating well. I know that if I get stuck at work for a couple extra hours I feel exhausted when I get off work and I'm starving and I tend to grab whatever is convenient, whether it fits my goals or not, so I have to pre-log my meals and snacks so that I'm making good decisions in the morning, when I am in a rational, logical, goal-oriented frame of mind and not making poor choices when I'm tired, hungry, and overcome by decision-fatigue.

For me, it really just comes down to knowing yourself and being familiar with your own habits and tendencies and putting strategies in place ahead of time so that when you're feeling low on motivation, when you're tired, hungry, stressed, depressed, etc, you don't have to make decisions about your exercise or your eating in that moment, because in moments like those we tend to make stupid and self-destructive decisions.

You did it before and you can do it again! Find that determination/aha moment and get back to work. Take your time so that it's sustainable and keep reminding yourself of all the reasons you want to lose the weight! Good luck!

I hit my first goal back in February of this year, then spent the next six months putting almost 40 pounds back on. The thought of having to pull out my old jeans, because I could no longer fit in the smaller ones, motivated me. It took a few weeks of the old routine "I'll start on Monday" followed by a binge weekend as though I were on death row and being served my last meal. One Wednesday I finally said enough---I'm starting tomorrow. Four weeks later and I'm still at it. It's a decision I make every morning. Eat within my calorie goals and exercise (so I can eat more).

Just decide.