What's the key to success here?

paulbennett2015 · August 2016

What's the key to maintaining eating the right foods? How do you maintain consistency ?
I'm new to this have failed in the past but committed to making it work this time.

agzram · August 2016

For me I think it's finally sunk in that there will be days that don't go as planned and not to self sabotage if I have an off meal. As long as the good days are greater than the bad in the end the one F-up isn't going to cause me to gain. Plus I found my love/joy in working out everyday so that off sets those bad days and makes them less significant in the long run.

BodyzLanguage · August 2016

I can tell you from experience. So long as your mindset is geared towards the right foods and the wrong foods, you'll falter. It's about balance and moderation as well as how you feel after you eat. I'm not saying stuff yourself with donuts but rather eat a donut if you feel like it or pass it up if you don't feel like it.

oolou · August 2016

For consistency, I'll prelog my day ahead. Then I adjust it as I go along for accuracy. Sometimes I'll plan out several days at a time. When I go shopping I take a list with me of the food I need and stick to it.

SteveT59 · August 2016

BodyzLanguage wrote: »

I can tell you from experience. So long as your mindset is geared towards the right foods and the wrong foods, you'll falter. It's about balance and moderation as well as how you feel after you eat. I'm not saying stuff yourself with donuts but rather eat a donut if you feel like it or pass it up if you don't feel like it.

I have to agree with this, I have days when I can eat like a bird, other days I could consume the contents of a large superstore.

The trick is not to be too regimented, but don't make excuses for treats either, this can be a slippery slope.

Be aware of what you are eating and if you feel like a pig out day, get some exercise done first to compensate for those extra calories.

Bottom line is that the journey you are now on you should be on for the rest of your life, it's not a sprint, more of an elongated marathon.

My target loss if I recall is about 90lbs, I plan on doing this over 2 years, little baby steps but the benefits are huge. I've only lost about 17lbs so far but that bothers me not, as I know these are early days and if after 2 years I still haven't lost that 90, so what? I just carry on until I do; commitment and durability.

Machka9 · August 2016

Basically ... stick to it.

Enter your info into MFP, choose sedentary as your activity level, and MFP will give you the number of calories you should be consuming.

Meticulously weigh and log everything for the next month.

Exercise can be as simple as going for a 30 minute walk ... or as much as you want. Log your exercise, estimate your calories burned a little on the low side, and eat half your calories back. Do that for the next month too.

Give it your best shot for a month.

Reassess where you are and what you want to do next at the end of the month.

I just kept going one month at a time.

CaliforniaAJ · August 2016

oolou wrote: »

For consistency, I'll prelog my day ahead. Then I adjust it as I go along for accuracy. Sometimes I'll plan out several days at a time. When I go shopping I take a list with me of the food I need and stick to it.

^^This!!

At the end of the day, you are the one in control and making the decisions.

Be consistent! If your calories & activity levels jump all over the place, it's hard for your body to know when it's OK to 'give up' those energy stores (fat).

Be aware! Pay attention to everything you do and ask yourself if you are serving your food and fitness goals by doing it. Analyze what you are eating, plan what is GOOD for you to eat and eat that. Put the work in ahead of time, rather than making poor food choices due to time constraints or circumstances.

Don't make excuses! If you 'cheat', the only person you are cheating is yourself and you are worth more than that.

Listen to your body! How does your food make you feel? Do you feel like you just ate good fuel for your body? Doe your tummy thank you? Is your exercise challenging you just enough to make you ache a little?

Be thankful! Every day on your journey is one day closer to better health.

Ask for help! Everyone on here has a goal and we are all working towards that in our own way. There isn't a 'one size fits all' answer, but you may be able to take pieces from what other people do and make it work for you.

snowflake930 · August 2016

Total commitment.

krokus99 · August 2016

I found a quote on Instagram, something like: it became much easier, when I said I do not want to eat it, not I am not allowed to eat it.
When I have cravings I say it to myself. It helps

mikebooker1 · August 2016

All great answers and I would like to add determination as well. I've been on this seesaw for well over 10 years with more downs than ups. Almost a year ago I said enough and promised to myself to do better. Do I live everyday like I'm a world class bodybuilder and nutritional expert? Hell no but I don't live the way the way used to anymore either. I don't let a bad day or back week for that matter run me off track. I just suck it up and continue on.

rankinsect · August 2016

paulbennett2015 wrote: »

What's the key to maintaining eating the right foods? How do you maintain consistency ?
I'm new to this have failed in the past but committed to making it work this time.

My "secrets" - although I guess they aren't secret if I write about them on the internet:

1. There aren't "right foods" and "wrong foods" - only foods. Nothing is forbidden, but some things may require trade-offs. I can spend 480 calories on a big donut if I want to, but there are a lot of other things I could spend 480 calories on that would fill me up more.

2. I plan and log each day in advance. Can't stress how important that is to me - it was basically my one big game changer. Every day I not only know that I'll succeed, I know exactly how. More than willpower, more than determination, I succeed by organization and planning.

3. I don't ever let my diet get in the way of living and enjoying life. If that means celebrating a birthday and going way over on calories - so be it! There aren't that many special occasions in the year, I have all the other 350+ days to eat within my limits.

4. Remember we eat for many reasons, not just to stop hunger. Make sure your food is meeting your mental as well as physical needs, including simply the need for a pleasurable meal or snack. That's why sometimes the 480 calorie donut is exactly the right choice to make.

In the end, it's about making informed decisions as part of a plan. Sometimes the plan includes a lot of indulgence, but when it does, that's a choice I thought about and decided was the right thing to do. Other times my daily snack is an oatmeal bar or a fiber bar.

HazyEyes93 · August 2016

For me, it's having a routine. I am definitely a creature of habit. I'm the kind of person that likes to rotate through the same cycle of four or five different meals and that's it. A routine for busy days and a routine for slow days. Once I find that routine, I am good to go. It's very likely that others would find the food and exercise too repetitive and boring, but I thrive in comfort and familiarity. Also, planning ahead is essential for me. If it's already written down in black and white, and it takes a lot more effort for me to change my mind than to just do what I had already decided. lol

12Sarah2015 · August 2016

I eat similar lunches and breakfasts. Snacks and dinner is different.

elisa123gal · August 2016

All I know is when i log in here, my weight slowly goes down. When i stop logging in for stretches .. it goes right back up and then some. So, just log in.. try… and you'll see results. How hard you try will impact how great your results will be.

What's the key to success here?

Replies

Categories