Have Motivation - Need Discipline

OhioViking79
OhioViking79 Posts: 76 Member
edited May 2019 in Motivation and Support
I have just recently come back to MFP, and need advice - i know MFP works, because i lost 85 pounds 8 years ago. I have gained it all back unfortunately, and then some, but I am more then ready to get back to it and do it again. I have motivation, but seriously lack discipline.
How do you stay disciplined enough to make each day a success? How do you draw on all that motivation and use it to keep yourself in line? i guess i am looking for a mindset or way of looking at things that will hold me accountable to myself. Can anyone help?

Replies

  • Katmary71
    Katmary71 Posts: 7,092 Member
    I finally got fed up and decided to count my calories here and work out each day for at least 30 minutes. Make small changes and go from there so you're not overwhelming yourself. I started out just counting calories, then I started working on protein with each meal, and now I'm trying to eat more vegetables. I have a big salad for lunch each day and that helps the veggie count and keeps me full. I've found it important to make eating healthier and working out habits. I don't always feel like working out but once I'm in exercise clothes with my headphones on I can push myself to do it. Find something you like to do. I just started resistance training at the gym and going to a gym was outside my comfort zone. I'm doing my best to challenge myself.

    Good luck, you can do this!
  • Kimmotion5783
    Kimmotion5783 Posts: 417 Member
    edited May 2019
    Terytha wrote: »
    I don't need discipline if there's nothing in my house I can use to be undisciplined.

    That aside, I make bargains with myself that are lies. I did this with my depression and it works for weight loss and fitness too. "Yep, logging is annoying. Do it today and you can quit tomorrow." "Yep, you're tired. Five more squats and you can stop."

    I do the same thing during my workouts when I feel like I can't make it through. I go "okay, just five more minutes. You can do this." Next thing I know five minutes passes, I get my second wind and keep going. It does work!

    Another thing I do for discipline is visualization of a goal- for me, it was envisioning myself in much smaller jeans in the dressing room at Avenue. For some folks, it might be going on vacation, wearing smaller clothes, flying on a plane without the weight issue holding them back... whatever "it" is, envision yourself already achieving that goal.
  • RelCanonical
    RelCanonical Posts: 3,882 Member
    I made a mental switch (easier said than done, it takes practice) to make my success based on my habits rather than what the scale says. So I get a daily success rather than just one step towards the success (weight). Weight then becomes more of a bonus. I know that I feel better just from my habits being good, so it's enough to keep me going, and on the bad days, I almost want to do those things more because I want a success out of my day, and I also want something normal, which is my habit. Something that stays static because it's more in my control than the evil people at work.
  • OhioViking79
    OhioViking79 Posts: 76 Member
    [/quote]
    Another thing I do for discipline is visualization of a goal- for me, it was envisioning myself in much smaller jeans in the dressing room at Avenue. For some folks, it might be going on vacation, wearing smaller clothes, flying on a plane without the weight issue holding them back... whatever "it" is, envision yourself already achieving that goal. [/quote]

    This might work for me. i have a pair of size 16 jeans i used to love to wear, so i might try to find a picture of me in them. Great idea!
  • 88olds
    88olds Posts: 4,534 Member
    Can you make your plan into a set of things to do? Discipline can wear out when overused. Folks trying to run mostly on discipline seem to be trying to suffer through a lot of stuff.

    If your plan is to log everything no matter what, eat two pieces of fruit, three servings of green veggies and walk 30 min., those are things to do that should be in fairly easy reach. The only way not to do them is to talk yourself out of it.

    If you take a proactive approach it cuts down on using your energy staring down that box of cookies.
  • Lunaripyros
    Lunaripyros Posts: 22 Member
    Honestly I have always found the act of logging things in and of itself changes my behavior. So for me I will just log my food for this week, not even making changes. I will find over the course of the week I will make a change, and I will make that small change my goal for the next week because it obviously bugs me. This has worked for me on the past and I am hoping it will work for me a bit this time.

    I definitely use the little lies to myself to motivate myself to some extra activity. Probably not going to worry overly much about activity this month though. That will start to bug me when my diet gets fairly healthy and tweaking it more will be less enjoyable, at that point I will start making trades... Like "If you go for a 20 minute walk every day you can have brownies this weekend." But yeah I think I have lied to myself through entire days of my life.... " if you get out of bed and still feel like crap 5 minutes from now then you can go back to bed." "Just get dressed and cleaned up, if your head still hurts after that you can call and cancel your appointments." These little white lies to yourself can take the place of both motivation and discipline if you are feeling short for a time.
  • OhioViking79
    OhioViking79 Posts: 76 Member
    Thank you guys for taking the time to respond. I really appreciate your view points and i think i can apply a lot of this advice to help me out! Time for a proactive, slight dishonest, logging a head of time me that does not obsess over the scales!

    Wish me luck! :smiley:



  • jrh_this_better_work
    jrh_this_better_work Posts: 92 Member
    This is a big one for me. I may not be MOTIVATED to log food and exercise, but I am DETERMINED to do it anyway. It is Determination and not Motivation that will keep me going.
  • jan110144
    jan110144 Posts: 1,281 Member
    I recently ran across this link re developing self discipline. I think it is very good and applicable to any aspect of one's life where lack of self discipline interferes with achievement of goals. Not a terribly long read but more than a sound byte.

    https://blog.iqmatrix.com/self-discipline
  • mstarks01
    mstarks01 Posts: 109 Member
    Find healthy habits that you enjoy. Eat healthy foods that you enjoy. Don't try to boil the ocean. Take it one small step at a time and before you know it, you'll be feeling great!
  • OhioViking79
    OhioViking79 Posts: 76 Member
    @jrh_this_better_work - Well said. Determination is an amazing driving force.
    @Jan110144 - Great read. Worth reading twice I think.
    @Mstarks01 - thank you for the encouragement. I like your attitude and you are right, smalls steps to start with!
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    Think small. Thinking about the big picture can be overwhelming. For instance, if I tell myself that I'll never be able to fit (insert desired food here) into my calorie deficit, then I'm setting myself up to fail. But if I remind myself that it doesn't fit today, but I can still have occasionally when it does fit, then I can live with that.
  • phred_52
    phred_52 Posts: 189 Member
    jrh_this_better_work wrote: »
    This is a big one for me. I may not be MOTIVATED to log food and exercise, but I am DETERMINED to do it anyway. It is Determination and not Motivation that will keep me going.
    Yep, determination is my key. I've also heard some refer to this being rude, but I use the Motto: Just Do It.

    Some days I say or feel no Gym today, but will force myself to go, put on headphones, and time just seems to fly by. It's like once I walk thru gym doors, my attitude/drive just climbs.

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