Those who have lost a significant amount of weight, how did you stay motivated for the long haul?

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Replies

  • kq1981
    kq1981 Posts: 1,098 Member
    Love this thread. 14.5kg lost so far. For me it's laziness not lack of motivation. Motivation is fleeting I get lazy. I have had a few weeks recently where I've not been honest logging and that's ok. I won't put on all those kg lost. No way. I've worked to hard. I no I can do it, I'm committed to doing it and all the small things are so worth the journey. Painting my toenails and shaving my legs with ease, seeing collar bones, having the towel actually wrap around me! I chose not to be lazy any more. It's about choices for me too. I chose not to be fat anymore and do something about it. Good luck :)
  • LAWoman72
    LAWoman72 Posts: 2,846 Member
    60 lbs. down here and I am taking a diet break (maintenance) because yes, my motivation is dwindling. We need to remind our psyches and our bodies that life is not all looooong march of months and months of eating below maintenance. Just a suggestion.
  • hale03071
    hale03071 Posts: 63 Member
    Its not motivation at all, its a lifestyle and habit change. Its not easy, but once you retrain your brain that eating a certain is "normal", it becomes much easier.
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    edited November 2017
    breefoshee wrote: »
    So what were the things that helped you to keep going? How did you set your short-term goals?

    I don't manage weight to hit a number - I hit a weight number so I can do something I otherwise wouldn't.

    IE - weight loss isn't the goal - weight loss is what I need to do to reach the *actual* goal.
  • mgotto1997
    mgotto1997 Posts: 10 Member
    This was a great feed to read. Thank you for all who shared. I’m 51 down and the support and MGP friends I have met. Wonderful network of folks here! ❤️
  • firef1y72
    firef1y72 Posts: 1,579 Member
    This time around I've been working on getting healthy for just over 2 years, losing just under half of my bodyweight (142lb) and gaining a lot more. When I started the numbers were just so high that I was over awed, so I set myself lots of little targets. And by resetting those little targets as I hit them along with not demonising any food and ensuring I only had a moderate deficit (I've very rarely dropped below 2000 Calories) I've managed to stay motivated.

    Right now I'm coming to the end of a maintenance break and most of my targets are fitness/strength based, but in the new year I'm going to work on losing the last 12lb or so to get in to "normal" BMI. This 4 month break from actually losing weight has been brilliant, not only to help motivate me in my goals both now and for the new year but also to help me learn to eat at maintenance (I'm extremely active so I get to eat a lot).
  • 93pear93
    93pear93 Posts: 48 Member
    It's lifestyle I would say, not motivation.
    Once you work out on your habits, diet, workouts just keep going, why would you stop ? :)
  • Maxxitt
    Maxxitt Posts: 1,281 Member
    *small interim goals
    *go-to routine for many meals
    *planned breaks where I eat to current maintenance for a few days
    *lifting routine (feeling strong is a great motivator for me for eating well)
    *good nutrition (so, good energy)
    *becoming friends with "I am a little hungry"
  • Jancandoit7
    Jancandoit7 Posts: 356 Member
    I think it's both motivation and self-discipline. Lots of things keep me motivated; when that feeling ebbs it's discipline that keeps me going. But...I'm constantly looking for motivators as it keeps things interesting for me-the 5 pound mini-goals, the pants I want to fit into, the healthier blood work, the special splurge meal I'll have with friends, being able to walk that extra mile, etc. These are motivators- that I purposely create for myself so I don't go insane; when all else fails I rely on the tedium of self-discipline- (just till I'm re-motivated :p )
  • brdnw
    brdnw Posts: 565 Member
    i lost 95lbs going from 285 to 190. I just focused on small goals, each 5lbs would be a new goal. I think it's easier if you break it down into something much more tangible.
  • theyoginurse
    theyoginurse Posts: 82 Member
    I really love this thread and everybody’s contributions. I can only say that while I have a way to go, what’s motivating me not to give up is I do not want to ever have my weight be a topic of conversation ever again. The fat comments just were enough. I do not want hear it anymore! I do not want my weight to be an excuse anymore. I have no clothes to wear.

    So when I feel tired, like absolutely throwing in the towel and eating everything in my path, I remind myself of how crummy it feels afterwards. I am sick and tired of being sick and tired. Whether it’s motivation or a Power that be so far it’s working.

    I am incorporating choices that I enjoy. Taking it one day at a time.
  • Roobyzooby
    Roobyzooby Posts: 189 Member
    As most have said eating the way I do now is how I will eat for the rest of my life. No food is off the menu, I just eat to my calorie allowance. Little things that keep me focused, motivated if you want to call it that...being able to move more, do more, feeling so much healthier, a whole new world of clothes for the slimmer me and NOT having to strategically position myself behind others when anyone insists on a group or family photo!!
  • estherdragonbat
    estherdragonbat Posts: 5,283 Member
    As of today, I'm down 93 lbs from a high of 254 (BMI 45). I want to drop another 31, but 21 will take me to the top of the healthy BMI range for me.

    In my case, I'd developed a permanent obesity-related condition (Chronic venous insufficiency; i.e. the veins in my legs collapsed from having to carry too much me. It also impacted my lymphatic system. The fluid didn't have enough room to flow and it had to go somewhere, so I ended up with lymphedema and a weeping wound on my leg that took about 2 1/2 months of daily nursing visits and multiple courses of antibiotics to fix). I'm now in compression stockings for the foreseeable future and my left lower leg is extremely prone to infection if I break the skin. Which means that I try to avoid taking antibiotics when it's "Well, we don't actually know if it's a virus or an infection, but we'll write you a prescription for antibiotics just in case." No. If I need the antibiotics, give them to me. If you aren't sure, I'd rather not risk building up a tolerance in case I scrape my knee and my leg swells up again.

    I just can't afford to fool around anymore.

    Also, I've just gotten through a medical scare. Turns out I have/had bladder cancer. Non-invasive, 98% survival rate, the surgery got all the lesions, though they could come back (I'm starting treatment in a few weeks to hopefully prevent that). Class 3 obesity? Added risk for going under general anesthetic. Might have also impacted the diagnosis, though that's speculation. (There are threads on these forums about people whose doctors missed serious medical issues, chalking them all up to the patient being obese. I don't know what my experience would have been a year ago, but I'm kind of glad I didn't have to find out.)

  • bellaesprita000
    bellaesprita000 Posts: 384 Member
    I'm on track to lose ~50 lbs by Summer 2018. I'm already over 50% to my goal. I was a "fit but fat" person most of my life and haven't suffered any of the unfortunate health scares as others have mentioned above. I had success losing ~40 lbs without calorie counting on my own a few years ago, but hit a plateau and decided to maintain and focus on fitness for a while. Honestly, re-discovering MFP, plugging in my stats, and giving it a try for a month is what did it for me. Realizing the simplicity of CICO and the desire to drop the fat in "fit but fat" is what motivates me today.

    Ditto mini, both scale and non-scale, goals. Fitness remains a priority for me, but is also a retreat for the scale isn't moving as fast as I want it to. Setting realistic goals, prelogging, tracking weight trends, and joining challenges on this site have been key to my success.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    The results are the motivation. In addition, I always like to set goals in multiple areas, not just the scale. Doing a new exercise, increasing weight on a lift, trying a new ingredient or new recipe, steps, progress pics, measurements, all are areas I set goals in. That way there are always some successes, even when the scale isn't what I was hoping for. I work so hard in my workouts to improve my fitness, I don't want to screw it up with poor eating habits.

    Also realize that success is based on establishing a routine and good habits. You won't "feel motivated" every day. In fact, I don't "feel motivated" on most days. I just follow my plan for nutrition and fitness. If I followed my plan only on the days I "felt motivated" I am quite sure I would still weigh 300 lbs and be barely able to get out of my chair. Instead 3 1/2 years after starting, I weigh 155 and can hike up a mountain at age 62.
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