Maybe Tomorrow

Believeinme35
Believeinme35 Posts: 24 Member
in Motivation and Support
Howdy... I’m a new mom to an 8 week old. A few days ago I thought I had this fitness thing under control. After years of struggling I now know that it all boils down to your mindset.... if I can stop beating myself up this wouldn’t feel so weird... a hundred pounds seems impossible most days. Maybe tomorrow😕

Replies

  • Emerald_Warrior
    Emerald_Warrior Posts: 238 Member
    For me, one thing that helps is instead of looking at the big picture: 'I still have HOW much to lose?!' I break that down into small goals along the way. I know it doesn't work for everyone, but it makes me feel like I'm accomplishing more and not quite so overwhelmed that way.
    Kudos to you for starting your journey so early on into motherhood! It took me years to figure out how to make time and take care of myself again. You can do this <3
  • jdubois5351
    jdubois5351 Posts: 460 Member
    Yeah, I also wouldn't look at "OMG, I gotta lose 100 lbs!!!". I'd ask myself, if I can lose 20 pounds ... and then another 20 ... and another. That way, the goals are much more managable and you have all these victories along the road. Keep the end goal in sight, but only in the back of your mind. For now, it's just 20 lbs. Anyone can surely do that!
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,343 Member
    "A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step."
  • 88olds
    88olds Posts: 4,532 Member
    I’ve lost 100 lbs. I never thought I could until I did.

    Be prepared to reinvent your program and yourself, 3 or 4 times to get to goal. Calculate a moderate calorie deficit, start a food diary and start planning each day a week at a time.

    Keep your food diary no matter what. Over your number, even wildly over, keep your diary. If your plan doesn’t work out for a given situation or a day, or even a whole week, make the next plan better. Weight loss is about problem solving. It’s a skill set.

    Calorie counting has a pretty long learning curve. Give yourself plenary of time to learn the process. Weight loss requires patience. 100 lbs requires a lot of patience. Never quit. This is doable and you can do it.
  • stewarm01
    stewarm01 Posts: 331 Member
    Yes mindset is the key, well at least for me it was. Once you truly decide to do it, the rest is easier.
  • hippysprout
    hippysprout Posts: 1,446 Member
    I used to be the same exact way. The end goal seemed so daunting, even breaking it down into "I can lose 10 pounds ten times" seemed daunting, because ten times is such a huge task. Do you know how long that takes? I'll never reach the end! And then one day I realized that there IS no end. There's no finish line where suddenly I'm happy, suddenly I love myself more, or I no longer have to be vigilant about my calorie consumption. The moment I put an end on my health, I'll be right back where I started.

    There's no end, no timer ticking away, no wagon to fall off of - it's just my life now, and I take it one day of choices at a time. Seems like that strategy is working, because I've lost 60 pounds so far and I'm sure the right choices will see me healthier and healthier every day.
  • countcurt
    countcurt Posts: 593 Member
    Well, leave it to me to be the contrarian...

    You are a new mother. You're eight weeks in. If your parenting experience is anything like typical, you're highly stressed, fatigued and juggling multiple roles/balls/obligations right now. You need to consider just how much energy you can expend right now to weight management. That is, in the short term, is weight loss enough of a priority that you can focus on it in a way that you can actually accomplish your eating goals? Because if it's not (and, yes, it's reasonably possible weight loss is just not in your 'top 10' to do's right now), you may wish to consider letting yourself off the hook for a few weeks and then reassessing.

    Letting yourself off the hook doesn't mean eating with reckless abandon. It could just as easily mean trying to make better choices but not focusing on all the actual tasks of weight loss- measuring, counting, tracking, limiting, food intake. And then not beating yourself up over what the scale says.

    Finally, you don't indicate if you're nursing your baby, but this is an important consideration as well because nursing mothers are making food and nutrition choices for two people. And, as many women can attest, nursing can have some interesting [short term] impacts on food management and weight. If you are nursing and looking at calorie restricted diets, you should most definitely be discussing with your baby's physician or a dietitian or a lactation specialist.


    Congrats on the kiddo, by the way.
    *
  • cheryldumais
    cheryldumais Posts: 1,907 Member
    First of all there are several of us on here who have lost 100 pounds or more. So it isn't impossible. My strategy was to set a higher goal to begin with and to take my time losing. Once I hit that higher goal I was encouraged and went on to lose another 30 pounds. It ended up that the changes I made while my calories were relatively low were totally livable. I never felt really deprived so although it took me two years to get to my goal I made it there and have maintained since.

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