Motivation, Success and Frustration Sharing!

I did my first weigh in this morning. I lost 5.8 pounds. Holy heck, what a way to kick off this journey.

Thank you for all the welcomes.

@Rachel0778 - you're totally right. I need to track food even when I'm not eating well so that I don't eat even worse! There's been some super stressful life stuff going on lately that's totally pulled me off track. It's easy to end up in a cycle where you eat crappy and don't exercise, then you don't want to start exercising because you don't feel good from all the crappy food. The good news (I hope) is that what's been a terrible personal situation for my husband and I might be finally coming to an end. That will bring with it new stress for us, but at least it's one chapter closed. I think if I restart some healthy living habits (and maybe get him onboard, too!), I might be able to manage the stress better. Here's hoping!

@janetay01 I hope your day goes well. I don't know if this will help you get your motivation back, but what are your whys? Why did you start this journey? Why do you want to be a healthier you? What are the benefits? Also, reassess your goals that you are working on. Is it too big of a goal, does it need to be broken down, is it a goal you still want to reach, are there other goals you can work on that are shorter that will get you to your long term goal? Remember whatever your reason is, you are strong, beautiful and you can do it. One step at a time.

Good morning. @janetay01 - I have been in the same boat. Still here, but not motivated much. I finally set my weight on here back to where is actually is right now-a few pounds up. Maybe then if I start seeing a downward trend again it will help motivate me more. But at least like Rachel said, tracking makes me at least keep the numbers reasonable because I am aware of the numbers. Anyway, we finally closed on the house. We both sold the one we were working on and we purchased another one. So this weekend it is back to work on the next. This one we hope to get fixed up and back on the market quick! I have a long weekend this weekend, and I took a couple of days off next week. Two long weekends in a row, so we should be able to get a lot done! Now I am just keeping my fingers crossed that there wont be any surprise expenses that we come across. It should get my step count up! I have been lacking lately with the steps. Hope everyone has a great day!

hey guys - thank you for all your kind and supporting words . I think my 'blah' feeling is a wider malaise at the moment - I'm bored out of my wits at work and can't be bothered, which drives me to snack more - and hey, I lose track of my logging. Then I think - 'oh well, I've lost the day - try again tomorrow'. And so the cycle continues. So what are my 'why's'? Simple and compelling when I think about it - I have a husband and son who make my world complete and I want to be around the longest time in the best condition for them both. And on a more superficial note, I have lovely summer dresses that are just that bit too tight for me to get into right now - not that our current weather can be called summer in my view but hey!

So my plan - one day at a time. I'm going to log today as best I can (going out for pizza tonight for a stag/hen/pre wedding knees up do for my boss!) so it may not be fully accurate but I need to commit to logging again. Log all my steps (forgot my fitbit this morning - sigh!) and kick myself back into the habit of exercise. Oh - and stop devouring every piece of pudding that dares to smile seductively in my direction!!!

@jdelaroy - well done for the NSV yesterday and hope your SO's mum is ok. And going back through the posts, well done on your loss - that's an awesome way to kick off your journey

@danan01 - well done for closing on the house and for lining your next project up. My husband and I have always wanted to buy a place and do it up - maybe when the little one is a bit older we'll have a look at our options.

@Rachel0778 - hope the conference goes well and that you stay on plan - sounds like you've got the right approach to it. What a row of weekends you've had - I'd be exhausted by this point!

@mdog449 - you are right about the tracking even when eating badly - this is one of the areas where I fall down. I come off track and then wonder what the point is - when tracking and seeing the facts and figures would likely help me to get back on track. Hopefully the worst of the stress for you and your husband is over and you can start to focus on some of the good things in life.

@health_guard - well done on passing the exams - you rock girl and must be so pleased.

@FitEqualsSmile - so sorry to hear about the on-going shoulder issues, not surprised you are feeling down. I'm no expert but would agree with @bluepoppies777 that swimming/aqua therapy could be a good option - I have a friend who swears by such activity because it is supposed to be low stress.

So, at last Friday is here. Out tonight for pizza and singalong Sound of Music at the theatre (really not my thing at all but should be a good laugh!) then swimming and clothes shopping for my boy tomorrow. Visiting my aunt and uncle on Sunday (not sure they are bothered about seeing me - I'm just a vehicle for them to see Alistair ) and then it will be Monday again before I know it. Hope your Fridays treat you well

@janetay01 Those are wonderful whys and I am glad you are going to try counting your calories. Way to go on planning your calories ahead of time. It makes it so much easier to know what you are going to do and if you need to make changes. I am also bored at work and feel blah with it. Luckily, no one really brings in snack food. So I just have what I bring.

Love the Memes today.

Hello

My name is Kait and I'm a competitive bodybuilder and fat loser of -110lbs. I saw this thread and I'm pretty much in love with it and all of you folks. I'm from Canada (Happy Canada Day!!) and love to lift big things, eat the good food and stay active after transforming my whole life through nutrition and activity. I'd love to "hang out" with you guys - I love the positive vibe..!!!

WOW.... I've been on a MFP break for a little while and I can't believe this thread is up to 108 pages! That is SO AWESOME! Looking forward to reading thru the last few pages. I'll never get caught up from the last time I was on here.... I see a lot of new "faces"/names!

Back to the grind here in Canada - we had our celebrations and long weekend last weekend. I'm in active contest prep right now, so discipline is pretty high. Some people don't like dieting in the summer, but I prefer it. I like to eat and hibernate in the winter. Haha ..

I sent my daughter off to her dad's for the summer this weekend, that was sad. Thank goodness for technology.. Wishing you all a safe, healthy and happy 4th of July!!

Congrats on the license @magicpickles - here's to hoping for a re-loss on those pounds!

Made it through the crazy weekend. Only had one day that I went over my calories. Had a horrible nacho craving Sunday night that would not go away. Ended up giving in, and made a late night nacho run. So worth the overage on calories. Lost 1.8 pounds last week. Ready to get back to it.

@jdelaroy I hope your MIL is okay! Way to go on seeing a positive in a very negative situation

@janetay01 How was the pizza/singalong event? I love the idea of listing your why's to help snap out of a malaise

@danan01 Sounds like you have a great plan in place. I hope you're able to store some healthy options at your work fridge until you get one at home!

@Kait_Dee Welcome! Losing 110lbs is amazing, you rock!

@ChangeIsADecision Glad to have you back!

@health_guard Great job fitting activity in!

@magicpickles Congrats on your drivers license. Now you can really focus on your weight and health!

@ngolden3320 June was rough, glad July is here for a new start for us!

I am amazed at how well I ate at my 4 day nerd conference. We had a fridge in our hotel room and a Trader Joes nearby so I stocked up on their pre-made lunches and dinners and grabbed Quest bars, fresh fruit, veggies, greek yogurt, and cheese sticks to snack on. I don't normally buy Quest bars because they're $$$ but they really helped keep my sugar cravings to a minimum. I ended up eating less desserts than I do at home! Plus since our hotel was over a mile away from the event I got a ton of walking in back and forth. Plus every night we were out dancing until 3am so I think I burned a ton! I'm doing my official post-June craziness weigh in next week so we'll see what the real damage is.

I'd like to say that now the craziness is over but I forgot I promised my SO I would go to a baseball game with his firm tonight to meet his new coworkers. My social-meter is -10 from this weekend and I got woken up by fireworks last night so I am exhausted, crabby, and not in a good place to make a good first impression

@janetay01 I am glad to hear that you are feeling a little better each day. And great job on the cross stitching project. My grandma taught me how to do that when I was a kid, but never really enjoyed all that sewing stuff. My sister definitely got the sewing and baking gene. Give me something to build and I am all in. LOL

@janetay01 - Glad you are feeling better. Good luck on the alphabet blanket! That will be something he can hold onto forever! I wish I could get in to stuff like that.

@Rachel0778 - Hope the baseball game wasn't too bad last night. At least a baseball game is an event that there is enough going on that you don't have to sit and try to hold a conversation the whole time. I am horrible at trying to talk to people I have never met before. I am the quiet one sitting in the background.

Well, only 1/2 a day of work today and then its back to Florida for the real work! I have the rest of the week off, so we are going to try to get going on the house. We have already gotten quite a bit done, so its going well so far. Now, if I could just get my eating back on track... The scale is starting to creep up. But- I am still being aware of what I am eating, and watching the calories so I don't go crazy. I cant decide if I like the new Fitbit Alta that I got. I like it and some of the features it has, but I don't like that it is not waterproof. With a pool at my house, and going to the beach in Florida all the time I constantly have to take it off. There goes a whole bunch of steps that don't get counted. Especially at the beach when we do quite a bit of walking. And the battery life isn't quite as good as the flex. So-I splurged and bought myself a new flex and I am going to start using both of them. I will use the Alta for every day, but then the flex for when I will be in and out of the water. Hope everyone has a great day!

@janetay01 Sorry to hear you got hit with a bug Great job staying on point this weekend though

@ngolden3320 Jealous you got the building bug. I'm not handy at all! I can whip up quite a few awesome dishes in the kitchen though so at least I've got that going for me?

@danan01 I love the idea of splurging for the fitness gear you like best. What does the Alta do that the flex doesn't?

@jdelaroy Great job staying under your calorie count even with tax stress. I hate filing taxes so I feel your pain

The game got rained out after an hour so I actually got to sleep last night! I feel like a new person this morning, I even did my hair and makeup for work Still pissed I had to miss boxing for a stupid social event, but I got a workout DVD in in the morning so it wasn't a complete lost cause and now from Thursday onwards I can make all of my classes for the next few months. Can't wait to spend some quality time at home in my regular routine with my homemade food! (and to clean my poor house!)