Need help!

elhrr77 · September 2019

I am brand new to the app and I really need help staying motivated to lose weight. I go through bouts of getting motivated but they only last about two weeks. It's discouraging and frustrating. I have to lose weight. My knees are in horrible shape and I'm worried about my health. I also want to be able to enjoy outdoor activities. Any help or encouragement is welcome.

j9izzypoo · September 2019

It’s all a mindset. You have to really focus on your goal and the person you want to be. It’s about a change of lifestyle and making better choices. It can’t just be change for a few days or weeks. It has to be about a lifestyle choice that is long term. Put your mind to it and stay focused. If you have a bad day and eat something that threw you over the edge then the next day decrease your calories to even things out.

Again it’s all in your mind. Gain power over you and be the best you possible.

jenncornelsen · September 2019

Agree with above. No one can motivate you to do this but you. Everyday wake up and remind yourself why your here. Listen to motivational podcasts, read books about it. Post notes about it. Do whatever you need to. The beginning is hard. All the best I just take it one day at a time

88olds · September 2019

Start a food diary and never stop. Log everything. Over your number? Log it. Wildly over? Log that too. Don’t know how many calories in that meal or dish? Make a good faith estimate and move on. Forget at some point? Go back and fill it in as best you can. No more quitting because you’ve gone over your number. No more starting over tomorrow that turns into next week or next month or three. When that voice in your head tells you its a waste of time, do it anyway. When the voice in your head tells you that you’ve messed up this time just like all the other times, just keep logging. The only way not to do it is a concious decision to quit. Don’t quit.

Use the MFP calculator to get a number to lose no more than 1 lb per week. You will soon find that you have a better chance of hitting your number if you have a plan. Plan each day and each week. Set up a once per week “official” weigh in. Same day, same time, same conditions. Make a long term chart of your progress. If you can’t stay off of the scale other times, that’s fine. But no more changing your plan every day based on today’s WI. Make plans and test them for no less that one month.

Give yourself plenty of time with the calorie counting learning curve. Weight loss is mostly about problem solving. Working with your food diary, identity your problem areas and fix them one at a time. Don’t kick yourself when you struggle. No one was born counting calories. It takes time to find the right path.

I was looking on Amazon books the other day. There are a lot of diet books that want to tell you “the secret” or “the answer.”
Well, “the secret” is in plain sight. It’s a calorie deficit. But there is no “the answer.” There’s just a whole lot of little answers about how to go around in the world and stay within your number. Going over your number isn’t failure. It’s a problem to solve. It takes a lot of persistence to lose a significant amount. But calorie counting works if you give it enough time. Good luck.

nighthawk584 · September 2019

I'm afraid you are on your own for motivation but maybe some of the success stories on here can inspire you? You have to get it in your mind, I CAN DO THIS and just do it! I've lost 70 plus lbs since April and am 54 years old. I was miserable and in a health crises condition. IF I can do it, most anyone can.

kimny72 · September 2019

Focus on building healthy habits, picking a plan that's easy for you in the first place, and making changes gradually. Nobody stays motivated, that's not how real life works

All you need is a calorie deficit, everything else is about making it workable for you personally.

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/818701/the-myth-of-motivation-and-what-you-need-instead/p1

Seachange_dogs · September 2019

Hey. Knees suck. Well not really, they're pretty dang important. I blew my ACL last year and am now super f-ing worried about it. Like it consumes me, 6+ months of rehab, lingering pain, weird skin/nerve issues? Hell naw, I'm not doing that again. But I probably will end up doing it again if I don't work on getting my weight down, building muscles up around my knee and having better fitness. That's what I'm focusing on, keeping my knees happy, if they're happy, I'm happy. If I look better, well that's just a fringe benefit of loosing the weight.

Honestly. I'm just trying to log and log every day. Get myself into a good habit. Get myself used to assigning calories to foods and keeping them at a daily quota. One day at a time. You can do it too. Or we can do it together, feel free to add me. I'll shoot you a message and check in regularly if that's something you are interested in.

Rachelle1489 · September 2019

I think one of the best things you can do is set small short term goals. If you are just looking at the big picture it's easy to get discouraged. For example, I honestly need to lose 50lbs if not more. But instead of looking at that big scary number every day, every week I plan out smaller goals. Like complete 3 workouts this week, take a 20 minute walk every day, get "X" amount of steps in this week, avoid eating _____. Accomplishing small goals makes me feel better and pushes me to keep accomplishing them which is a step in the right direction.

Having an accountability partner helps a lot too. Some one you can check in with regularly to share your success and your struggles.

Need help!

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