1st day on plan (for the 30th time this month!)

You have to want it badly enough to stick with it... all the best ladies You CAN do it!

You are off to a good start. Taking the time to write everything down do help me feel accountable.

Same here. I keep starting and restarting. We need motivation I need to stay on here more than I was so it can keep me motivated. Good luck everyone.

Look at it this way. Do you need to stay "motivated" to go to work every day? Do you need to get "motivated" to pay your bills, fix your car, buy your groceries? Do you need to be motivated to take a shower or brush your teeth?

Unless you are suffering from depression, then no...you do these things because you have to . This is the same thing. In order to be healthy, you have to be a healthy weight and not over eat. You go to work whether you feel like it or not. Or you lose your job right?

Give this the same importance as your job and your hygiene and everything else you do as a functional adult.

Next thing is to make sure your calorie goals are realistic and that you are getting at LEAST the minimum, if not MORE of your daily protein, fat, fiber, and other nutrients. Doing so helps you feel more satisfied, trust me!!!

For many people, 1200 calories a day is NOT realistic and many people lose just fine when they eat 1300, 1400, and even 1500 calories a day. Choose a goal that is attainable and you will have an easier time staying on track.

wizzybeth wrote: »

Look at it this way. Do you need to stay "motivated" to go to work every day? Do you need to get "motivated" to pay your bills, fix your car, buy your groceries? Do you need to be motivated to take a shower or brush your teeth?

Unless you are suffering from depression, then no...you do these things because you have to . This is the same thing. In order to be healthy, you have to be a healthy weight and not over eat. You go to work whether you feel like it or not. Or you lose your job right?

Give this the same importance as your job and your hygiene and everything else you do as a functional adult.

Next thing is to make sure your calorie goals are realistic and that you are getting at LEAST the minimum, if not MORE of your daily protein, fat, fiber, and other nutrients. Doing so helps you feel more satisfied, trust me!!!

For many people, 1200 calories a day is NOT realistic and many people lose just fine when they eat 1300, 1400, and even 1500 calories a day. Choose a goal that is attainable and you will have an easier time staying on track.

Very well stated!

wizzybeth wrote: »

Look at it this way. Do you need to stay "motivated" to go to work every day? Do you need to get "motivated" to pay your bills, fix your car, buy your groceries? Do you need to be motivated to take a shower or brush your teeth?

Unless you are suffering from depression, then no...you do these things because you have to . This is the same thing. In order to be healthy, you have to be a healthy weight and not over eat. You go to work whether you feel like it or not. Or you lose your job right?

Give this the same importance as your job and your hygiene and everything else you do as a functional adult.

This is a great piece of advice. I am in recovery for substance abuse and your advice falls in line with something my sponsor said that I always repeat to myself. He would say, "Feelings follow action, not the other way around!" It truly is a brilliant sentiment.

OP - if you're reading this - I too struggle with instant gratification vs. long-term satisfaction and one of the main reasons is because I think about how I feel about what I need to do vs how I will feel in the future when I've accomplished my goal (or failed it for that matter.) It comes down to impulse control and refusing to think about the consequences in an honest manner. My favorite line is always "I'll eat this now and then tomorrow I'll make a better choice." We give our future selves too much credit!! I think it will be easier to make the hard choice to deny my cravings in the future when I know plenty well (from experience) that is FALSE.

What's been helping me this go-around with getting back on track is not allowing myself to follow that spiral thinking that begins with the craving. Whenever I start thinking about the food it seems like the longer I go back and forth in my head about eating it or not and the pros and cons of it I start to feel like I absolutely cannot deny the craving and if I don't do it I will be miserable. It's probably just because of the saying "whatever you put your attention on grows."

Good luck, you can do this! Tonight I'm going to remember that I am not alone in this struggle and that it is possible to make changes. And when cravings come up it's going to be a simple "No, you don't want to do that because it will take you out of the deficit and it will make the last 3 days of success pointless. Those treats will be available for the rest of my life and tonight I choose to abstain." And then get busy doing something else to take your mind off of food. Watching this TV show on YouTube last night called Secret Eaters helped me avoid late-night sugary eating.

Anyways, sorry for the novel. My last suggestion is something from a 12-step program. It's kind of silly but it actually can help. Say to yourself..."I'll have that chocolate tomorrow." And then by tomorrow either the craving has passed or you just say the saying again! Lol. You might try planning treats for yourself too to fit into your daily calorie goal.

You can do this. What's keeping me going is daily logging on mfp, support from mfp friends and all the great advice on the community forums. I think if so many other have/are suceeding then so can I.