What is the secret to success
Smallville127
Posts: 51 Member
A positive mind set, not giving up, letting go of guilt, knowing you will reach your goals, being happy with who you are period. This is what I have learned thus far. What about you?
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Forming habits and developing discipline, because motivation is fleeting and fickle.13
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1. Not giving up whatever happens. Need a two week break? Sure, so long as I get back after it.
2. Never stay hungry. If I'm genuinely hungry, I eat.
3. If I want to eat more - move more! Couch potato = no calories for desserts
4. No "all or nothing" thoughts or ideas. They are a sure recipe for failure.
5. No arbitrary food restrictions - eat whatever makes me feel happy while still making a deficit.
I've lost 30lbs and now I'm at the lower half of healthy bmi.9 -
Having a workable, effective plan and being consistent. I think that goes for most things in life too.3
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A plan I don’t actually follow is not a good plan. Fortunately, plans can be improved.
Things I do in furtherance of my goals are either helpful or not helpful. I’m not good or bad based on my weight or weight loss progress. Making my character an issue ups the ante in an unhelpful way.
My efforts are generally as good a my food diary.
Commit to logging no matter what. Going over my number is not reason to quit the entire process. Perfect is the enemy of the good.3 -
Forming habits.
This hits it on the head for me. Really, it comes down to forming new and sustainable habits. I was just thinking the other day that I don’t have to think about it like I used to; my logging, choosing to move more and being patient are becoming automatic. For a while there I had to take a leap of faith and trust the process.0 -
Knowing that your progress is not to be compared to others. Everyone has their own goals, and their body has it's own quirks.2
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Positive self talk, mindfulness, commitment, habits.1
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Patience.3
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Do not live to lose weight; lose weight to live.4
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Exercise is not to be a chore; it is a physical activity which I enjoy.1
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gebeziseva wrote: »
Very sharp! What I meant was what keeps the "motivation" (or whatever you want to call it) going until the habit is formed (3 weeks or so, roughly I think is the rule of thumb)? This would apply whether it's weight loss or anything, wouldn't it?
I don't disagree that long term it's all about habits and blind obedience to rules that have become ingrained, but what keeps you going for the first bit?0 -
mitchkelly2446 wrote: »gebeziseva wrote: »
Very sharp! What I meant was what keeps the "motivation" (or whatever you want to call it) going until the habit is formed (3 weeks or so, roughly I think is the rule of thumb)? This would apply whether it's weight loss or anything, wouldn't it?
I don't disagree that long term it's all about habits and blind obedience to rules that have become ingrained, but what keeps you going for the first bit?
In order to keep yourself going for the first bit, until things become ingrained, you need to be doing it for the right reason: YOURSELF. It is both rhat simple and that complicated. It can't be for anyone else or because you want to be like someone else or because you want people to like you etc.1 -
Look for little victory’s everyday. Sooner or later they start to stack up and make a difference. Don’t get discouraged and never give up0
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mitchkelly2446 wrote: »gebeziseva wrote: »
Very sharp! What I meant was what keeps the "motivation" (or whatever you want to call it) going until the habit is formed (3 weeks or so, roughly I think is the rule of thumb)? This would apply whether it's weight loss or anything, wouldn't it?
I don't disagree that long term it's all about habits and blind obedience to rules that have become ingrained, but what keeps you going for the first bit?
I guess it depends on the person. Exploring the subject of intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivation can be insightful - if you're extrinsically motivated, maybe having a supportive group of friends here that routinely check in with goal updates, or a trainer/workout partner or whatever could be helpful to get you over the hump. If you're intrinsically motivated, it comes down to getting in your own head, coming up with a 'why', focusing on your goals and riding the motivation long enough to get the habits established. And make no mistake, even once the habits are formed, there are still days you just aren't feeling it and need to gut up and push through. It never becomes a completely effortless glide - or at least it hasn't for me.
But either way, in the end it comes down to wanting it badly enough - either you do or you don't. There's no magic that can make somebody do something they really don't want to do. As the saying goes, "you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make them drink". If somebody just can't get going, can't adhere to their diet, and comes up with nothing but excuses why it can't be done, IMO they're just not ready yet. Maybe at some point down the road it will become enough of a priority for them to feel the need to do it - or maybe it never will. Ultimately we're all responsible for our own destinies.0 -
Recognising when I genuinely want something vs. when I'm reaching for it as a crutch. If I want chocolate, I'll go through a few little questions to myself:
1) Do you actually want chocolate or are you just generally hungry/thirsty?
I'll reach for a boiled egg or water and sit with it for a while.
2) Scale of 1-10, how much do you want it?
If it's a 10, that's a worry and there's no way I'll reach for it - no one should ever want a food so badly that it's the only thing they can think of. That's not a healthy way of interacting with food. If it's lower (anything <6), I'll consider it. And finally....
3) Why do you want the chocolate right now?
If the answer is "because chocolate tastes nice and I would like some right now", I'll have 3-4 squares. If the answer is "because I'm bored/ scared/ worried/ stressed/ avoiding something", that chocolate stays where it is. Instead, I'll force myself to face whatever it is that triggered that craving, or at least set a time to do so.
My reliance on food as emotional comfort is what got me here, I'll be damned if that's a habit I take with me moving forward.0 -
mitchkelly2446 wrote: »gebeziseva wrote: »
...what keeps the "motivation" (or whatever you want to call it) going until the habit is formed (3 weeks or so, roughly I think is the rule of thumb)? This would apply whether it's weight loss or anything, wouldn't it?
I don't disagree that long term it's all about habits and blind obedience to rules that have become ingrained, but what keeps you going for the first bit?
Daily reminders work for me. I like to use checklists, post-it notes, and apps in the beginning. Build on the habits that already work - add new habits into your existing routine (called “habit stacking”).
Lots of my better habits took much longer than three weeks to form. So it takes commitment to working at it for a while, even years. Somehow the long-term mindset helps me in the motivation department.0 -
Never giving up, no many how many times you screw up. Just keep trying, keep going, and you'll chip away to your goal.0
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