Will Power?

elliekay90 · October 2017

So I currently weigh 163.2 lbs (just under 5' 9") and am unhappy at this weight. I'm not in shape and am having trouble controlling my will power to stay away from bad foods.

It's not my first time at the rodeo - at my heaviest I was nearly 200 and at my lightest I was 138. I've done the weight loss thing before, but something about this time I can't seem to get in the swing of it.

For the past several months I have lost a couple lbs and then it comes back because I get out of the habit of eating right.

Any advice for regaining will power to exercise and eat right? I'm getting married October 2018 and I'd love to get down to around 145!

davidylin · October 2017

Start by walking? Start and hold healthier eating behaviors until they become habits? Stop eating table bread when you go out?

nickssweetheart · October 2017

I agree with the above poster, but I also had a thought...when you need a little extra motivation, what about going wedding dress shopping?

ninerbuff · October 2017

It's not the "bad foods" that's the problem. It's the over consumption of them. CICO works if you can stick with it's formula. There's nothing wrong with having "bad foods" in moderation, just make sure you account for the calories they use in your daily numbers.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

sjd421 · October 2017

What has helped me it to map out my days food, meals, snacks, drinks and all. It give me a roadmap for the day. Also, I started out by just walking for exercise and am recently adding back in body weight strength training, some weights and spinning. I am not yet at my goal weight but I feel this is more long term than anything I have tried before.

Saltine24 · October 2017

Write a letter to yourself, be honest as you are the only one who will see it. List what your goals are, what motivates your what you love and dislike about your body & why you want to change it. Put it in an envelope and tuck it away in a drawer or somewhere safe. Then when you get discouraged or lose motivation or just need a pick me up, you can look at this letter and reconfirm why you are on this journey.

kommodevaran · October 2017

If you call the food you like "bad food" and the food you hate "eating right", you're going to need way more willpower than anybody has. You'll figure it out.

brendanwhite84 · October 2017

ninerbuff wrote: »

It's not the "bad foods" that's the problem. It's the over consumption of them. CICO works if you can stick with it's formula. There's nothing wrong with having "bad foods" in moderation, just make sure you account for the calories they use in your daily numbers.

I cannot stress enough how important this mindset is. Quantitative correctness in eating is vastly more important than qualitative 'correctness' in terms of the average person's habitual diet.

jjpptt2 · October 2017

Do things that set yourself up for success... stack the odds in your favor. But that means you have to know what your weakness are, and what you're strengths are.

For me, I'm a pretty good shopper. I can be pretty well disciplined at the store, but once a food is in my house, discipline is virtually non-existent. So I try to not keep highly tempting foods in the house.

Similarly, if I've got cash in my pocket, I'm much more apt to get fast food on the way home or raid the vending machine... so I rarely have cash on me.

Those are a couple of things that work for me... but you'll have to figure out what helps you.

ladyhusker39 · October 2017

It's not really will power that you need. It's to decide that losing weight is more important than eating and that you want to exercise more than not. That's not worded very well, but you get what I mean.

Set a schedule and go do some kind of physical activity that you enjoy. Plan out your food in advance and stick with that plan. The decision and commitment to that decision is far more important to your success than the very abstract idea of will power.

It will help a lot to divorce yourself from ideas like good and bad food. Decide what you want to eat and make a plan it eat it within your calorie goals. Quit thinking about exercise and start thinking about physical activity you like to do and that won't seem like exercise which I get the impression you think of as a chore. I'm the same way so I get it, but it's holding you back so let it go.

EliseTK1 · October 2017

I have had this issue many, many times over the years. This time I seem to be doing very well. I think the biggest difference now is that I have a major goal (to run a marathon in January) and the desire to perform and feel well doing it has pushed me to make healthier choices in every area of my life, especially nutrition. I am not capable of adequately training and recovering on ice cream, candy, and fried stuff. Last time I worked out after eating sweets my blood sugar crashed and I nearly passed out.

My advice would be to find an adventurous goal, something you can get into, something you can't easily renege on, preferably something that isn't just about weight. Train for a mud run, a mountain hike on your honeymoon, a diving expedition or a bike tour. Incorporate it into your lifestyle to make it a habit. Slowly the activity will become the reward, and fueling it right will become a higher priority than eating foods with sub-par nutrition and feeling cruddy about it after.

Good luck to you!

RunStart34 · November 2017

Will power is something you work at. How much do you want it. I had to start baby steps. Just like you, I've lost a lot of weight before but gain most of it except 10 lbs. The hardest thing is starting again. I took a different approach this time. I took my time and prepared. Meal prep worked big time for me. I eliminated one bad habit and added a good one. I kept small goals. If temptation comes from associating or going out I limited those outing at first until I knew I could control my food choices when I did go out. You have to test for yourself what you can do, or works for you. Also, Keep thinking how much do you want it that your willing to work at it.

Arizona_C · November 2017

kommodevaran wrote: »

If you call the food you like "bad food" and the food you hate "eating right", you're going to need way more willpower than anybody has. You'll figure it out.

This is soo well said it's worth being read once again...

eileen0515 · November 2017

First I would want to know if you prepare your food, or grabbing restaurant food. It’s amazing just how much food you can eat, and maintain a deficit, when you prepare your own food. Using sound nutrition guidelines, cooking for yourself, goes a long way, to solving the problem of will power. It will also leave room for treats here and there. Good luck.

NorthCascades · November 2017

Will power is a limited resource. Try to set things up so you don't have to rely on it. If you don't have junk food in your house, it will be laziness not will power that keeps you from eating it.

jgnatca · November 2017

I suggest setting small weekly goals that are well within your reach. You are within normal BMI either way so you might benefit more from fitness goals that will tighten up some of your flab.

Every week, evaluate how close you got to what you wanted. If your goal was over-ambitious, set a more realistic goal. If you sailed through, keep doing what you were doing or up your game a little bit.

It is hard to stay motivated for a twenty pound loss "some day", but deciding to stay within your calorie goals for the day, say, five days out of seven, is immediate and achievable.

rickiimarieee · November 2017

You can still eat 'bad food' just in moderation. You just can't have too many calories! If you restrict yourself from 'bad' food then you're more likely to give up the diet or binge a lot more often!

emilynelson58 · November 2017

I agree with the other posters. If you really want that food that you think is "bad", just consider if you want it more than your goal. If you really do and won't stop thinking about it then just go for a smaller portion. If your goal is more important at that time, then you also have your answer. (Just my thoughts)

crazykatlady820 · November 2017

I've made a simple word swap. Instead of will power I say self-discipline. It's so silly, but looking at it in that light helps me remember that self-discipline is up to me and I either do it or I don't... no waiting around on the ever elusive will power to show up.

JaydedMiss · November 2017

crazykatlady820 wrote: »

I've made a simple word swap. Instead of will power I say self-discipline. It's so silly, but looking at it in that light helps me remember that self-discipline is up to me and I either do it or I don't... no waiting around on the ever elusive will power to show up.

This is what i tell people. Will power/motivation is fleeting and more often thn not its used as an excuse. And it takes away both the responsibility and the reward. When people say wow you have such motivation i get internally offended. It hasnt been motivation that lost me 110 pounds, Thank you. Its been my determination. Its been me going for that walk even when "motivation' hasnt been there. Its been me doing it anyway and building the habits. If i relied on this "motivation thing" Id of failed long ago. Find the force in yourself, Dont look externally. People who succeed have worked to build the habits while motivated, And lean on their determination to keep things rolling on their new habits.

Taking the power away from some external non existent and therefore unreliable force and shifting it internally onto yourself isnt silly at all, Its empowering. Yes sometimes it sucks but sometimes its also wonderful- This way you get to pat yourself on the back for every good choice you make and learn from every bad choice vs just putting it off on motivation

_AshLynn · November 2017

Don't keep junk in the house is the easiest thing I could probably say, and there are a ton of healthier recipes for "junk foods" that you might be craving 1 - It will take effort to make the recipes which helps because sometimes I am craving junk, but don't feel like making a batch of healthy cookies or brownies...but 2- when I do I make them in smaller portions that I can control.

Will Power?

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