Accountability buddy

CareyAnn876 wrote: »

healthytink wrote: »

Hi everyone! Looks like we are all after the same thing (daily accountability & encouragement). A little bit about me... I just turned 46 and have been a yoyo dieter forever. This time I began my weight loss journey on 12/3 and used the new app "Noom". It worked great, and I lost 33 lbs. However, I still have 18 lbs to lose and wanted to try something different, so I joined My Fitness Pal. I'm really hoping this group will post daily, so we can help each other through our struggles. This journey is NOT easy but with support I know we can all succeed. I would love to know more about all of you. Let's get this thing started!

Hey, Tink!!
I did Noom successfully for nearly 2 years! I would love to be your buddy, if you're interested! ☺️ I'm almost 44 and disabled. I lost 55 lbs with Noom, but I gained 5 back. (Thank you, stress eating! 🤦🏼‍♀️) I'm not able to exercise much, so no telling how much I could've lost. Either way, I'm not ready to give up, bc I still have another 50-75 to lose before I'm comfortable with myself. Also, I need to find low-impact ways to tone, bc I have a lot of flab goin' on. 😳 So, that's me! 😇

I’m currently on Noom and I am also doing well! Almost 15 pounds down. I’ve been on mfp for YEARS!! I’ve always come back to MFP because it is like home for me. I love everything about it- it seems to me I needed the psychology portion to help me fully understand the what and why I was eating what I was. Please feel free to add me for accountability. Id like to loose at least 50 pounds more

Welcome @jennipooh82 and @DeniseSalsera!

Congratulations on your success @jennipooh82! 🎉 It’s important to get at the root of the problem so we aren’t endlessly dealing with the symptoms. If you feel comfortable sharing what you learned, it would be interesting to hear more about the elements of psychology that developed your understanding of the problem so you could approach it more productively. Do you have some short term goals you’re working on to lose the final 50 pounds?

@DeniseSalsera - I ‘ebb and flow’ with my interaction in the ‘friends’ section of MFP because it’s set up for quick messages or ‘likes’ and I tend to be too wordy 😬🗣 🙊 but I try to be supportive. For me, this thread is a place to stay accountable by reporting my progress, reflecting on what I learned in the past week, and making adjustments to improve my good habits … while reducing the bad ones. We encourage each other and help provide ‘perspective’ when someone asks for suggestions, etc. Feel free to post some weekly goals and bookmark ⭐️ the thread if you want … or see if anyone has similar interests, goals or experiences if you prefer to make a direct friend request.

I’m grudgingly approaching some tasks I need to get done today. I’m behind schedule with a few work projects and really want to make progress on some household chores. In case anyone is feeling a similar sense of dread, I’m posting so you know you’re not alone. Let’s crawl forward together!

Sometimes it feels as though we’re running or walking along the path, and other times we crawl or help each other gain momentum, but I appreciate this space as a place to process the emotions. I’ll leave them here and move on!

How is everyone else doing this weekend?

In the USA, we have a holiday on Monday, so I’m hoping the extra day makes up for my slow start. I hope others enjoy the weekend. The weather is beautiful outside so I’ll open the windows wide and let the fresh air in to energize me! Best wishes, Accountability buddies!

Hey all!

I've just spent 5 days off grid in the woods with a group of friends. Lots of laughs, too much alcohol, some getting back to nature and just breathing.....it really was the reset that I needed to be able to face up to Monday and starting out in the Real world again! I did do some workouts so didn't fall entirely off track, and have more determination and grit to find some extra effort going forwards! Sometimes....when life swallows you a bit...you just gotta go hang out in the woods and forget it all

Hope everyone is doing okay!

Hi Erin3123 I have just come on here to explore whether anyone would be interested in becoming an accountability buddy too! What you have suggested sounds great, I would definitely be up for something like you have described. I am on the same time zone as you (Essex).
I have just turned 30 and am also into running & the gym. I used to be a bit of a fitness freak and managed to lose 2 stone, I managed to maintain it for almost 2 years, but since the first lockdown last march and since having Covid I have managed to put it all back on which I am finding really depressing. I have ran a few half marathons in the past and have one coming up in 3 weeks, the problem is that I have completely lost my mojo with healthy eating and sticking to consistent exercise so it looks like I will be walking most of this one. I have tried to use MyFitnessPal again today but totally fallen off track again so was thinking it would be great to have a set up where someone can put me in my place and I can help them back.
Feel free to add me as a friend.

@lianatherunner - It sounds as though everything is on track with your nutrition and exercise. Do you have a ‘personal best’ that you try to improve with each half-marathon or do you schedule the runs as a way to motivate your regular training? I’ve done a few 10-mile races but never tried a half-marathon. I’m from Boston and the marathon there is a big event. So, I’ve thought about training to enter the race to see if I could finish it but I could never commit to the preparation. We sometimes host relatives and friends who come to visit Washington, DC to run the Marine Corp Marathon (since we live just across the river in Virginia). We cheer for them along the course but I usually stick to the occasional local road race to support the various causes. I hope your blister heals soon and thanks for the reminder that I also need a new pair of sneakers.

@highmaintnance - 😊 - Your comments really sparked some deep thoughts and emotions for me because I feel as though the ‘step back’ from the treadmill of life - due to pandemic stay at home orders - has only scratched the surface of the ‘new me’ … I’m in there somewhere but I have a lot of work to do!! My thoughts are quite random and disorganized but I’m capturing some things here so I can come back to sort through them eventually.

TL/DR Version - There is tension with growth and I have a lot to figure out, too.

Congratulations on joining the gym! Good idea to use your earbuds as a way to ‘center’ yourself at the gym. How’s it going? I like going later in the evening when it’s quieter at the gym. For a short time, I was using gym time as a place to watch Netflix, which motivated me to stay on the workout machines longer but it didn’t motivate me to get across the street to the gym. That’s right, we live just across the street from the local YMCA! I’m much better at showing up when I go with a friend or need to meet the personal trainer. So, I completely understand how it would be easier to meet up with your sisters!

If you like other options to supplement or replace the gym … A friend of mine used a ‘Meet Up’ group for hiking. She was married but she attracted attention from one of the other hikers and didn’t realize he was trying to date her. Maybe a hiking group could be a win-win for meeting new people … whether romantic prospects or just friends who enjoy hiking.

Milestone Birthdays - Age 25 was my most difficult birthday for some crazy reason. I think I had some ridiculous salary and career goals at the time. 🤑 Milestone birthdays can be tough! You might just need to give yourself a little time to grieve the loss of one plan so you can make space in your life for a new one. Arriving at our milestone birthday might actually help us feel free of the past and become the person we want to be. My birthday is coming up early next week — age 55 — and I am adjusting some expectations, too.

Difficult times can make the good times more enjoyable and satisfying With my soon-to-be 21 and 20 year old sons living most of the year at college, it’s been a year of reflection for me. Although I think I’ve been gradually encouraging my sons to be independent, I’m spending more time thinking about my own identity these days. On October 1, 2019, I started my own business when the government funding for my salaried position ended September 30, 2019. The new Executive Director took the organization in a ‘new direction,’ which meant he cut all positions except his high salary and one assist to help him. I’m so grateful I was able to secure some contracts and launch the projects in December 2019, just before COVID-19 spread to our area. It was a scary time with two college student and my husband retiring in February 2020. I imagine it’s more stressful for you with a young daughter depending on you and limited breaks from so much responsibility. For me, knowing we had health care through my husband’s retirement (though not cheap) made the ‘start up’ more manageable.

Change is hard - During the pandemic, the only area I could focus on (within my control … theoretically 😬) was health and wellness. So, that’s what I concentrated on throughout 2020. I was hoping to hit my goal weight by age 55, but I still have about 5 pounds to go. I’ve improved my strength and fitness so I’m happy with that progress.

Figuring out next steps - Now, I’m trying to declutter all the excess junk we’ve accumulated by the end of 2021. My husband is not very supportive about this - and I don’t mess with any of his items - but our (adult) kids like to pitch in and help. In some ways, I’m feeling tinged of ‘the grass is always greener …’ because of the tension some of the changes I’m making are causing in our relationship. To me, it feels better to inch into authenticity, instead of building resentment.

Anyway, change is hard! In the meantime, I have to figure out more about how my ‘empty nester identity’ shapes the future and make some bigger decisions — e.g., the best way to care for aging relatives while honoring their independence, shaping the direction of my work, determining whether my marriage/ husband will welcome (or at least adjust to/negotiate?) the changes, finding time to travel/ enjoy hobbies/ balance fun with meaningful (paid or volunteer) commitments, deciding where to live long term, etc.

Thank you! I’m glad we can process these changes in this safe and supportive space. Thanks so much for showing up, Accountably buddies! I appreciate you! Have a wonderful week!

@PatriceFitnessPal I feel like we are both going through many similar things. I could probably write a novel in response to your post, lol. Thanks for sharing the struggles as well as the victories! Have you read anything Brene Brown has written or listened to her podcasts? If not, I think you would love her. I went to a meditation class at least a couple of years ago and the leader read an excerpt from her book The Gifts of Imperfection and it hit me so hard, I had to read more. Love her.

So, I have decided that going to a new gym is very much like starting a new school. I was worried about what type of people would be there, are they judgmental, am I wearing nice enough clothes, where do I go, what do I do. It was comical how much anxiety I had......but I went inside anyway. The gym is one giant space and the path to walk back to the locker rooms is like walking a runway. I clutched my purse and tried not to look new. There were two college age women in the locker room so I went straight to a bathroom stall to avoid them completely, took some deep breaths and emerged when they left. I chose a treadmill in the corner of the giant space and chose an easy pace (as it was not a hair washing night so I didn't want to sweat too much). I spent the next 30 minutes literally watching everyone, figuring out what types of people were in the free weight area, or were cardio people, where the disinfectant spray bottles were located, what type of shows they had on the tvs, etc. After the 30 minutes I felt very assured that everyone was just like me, pretty ordinary. No one was really looking at others or gathering in groups to watch people workout. Basically, everyone was there to do their thing so they could go home. I chided myself for being so dramatic about the whole thing, wiped down my machine with the disinfectant that I newly learned the location of, and walked back down the runway like to the locker room like a super model. The mind can be the biggest roadblock, but of course I knew that because my mind tries to talk me out of, or into, many things that aren't positive.

Small personal victory! Does anyone else have any victories to share?

Hello all, I just spent some time reading the last couple of pages of this thread and I feel like this is the right forum for me. Like a lot of you I feel almost desperate, and angry, sad, hopeful. I keep looking at 25 year old me who had no trouble maintaining her weight but if I'm being completely honest a lot of my bad habits were already present I just managed them a bit better. Found out a couple of years ago when I gained a lot of weight very quickly that I have Hashimotos which certainly makes it harder to lose weight but I've been stable on meds for 2 years so I can't just keep blaming my body for the way I treat it.

Trying to come to that place where I love myself enough to actually love myself. By that I mean, when my nephew comes over I make him eat nutritious foods and we limit sugar, we plan outings and go on walks. I do this because I love him. So why can't I love myself the same way. The answer is I can. I just have to believe I'm worth it.

I invite anyone who wants/needs a friend to add me. I've been on this platform for years. In the military it kept me meeting weight so I know it works. Just need to get back to doing it everyday and I think we could help each other with that.

@highmaintnance I have several opportunities where I can increase my activity and I was doing really good for awhile, I just got lazy and made excuses for myself. My goal is to start walking my mile before work again. And then get up and walk at least 10 minutes 2 times per day at work. I'm only focusing on calories and making better choices right now with food. I get frustrated trying to watch macros and I give up. That will come later. While talking with my husband last night, we decided that the full meal planning does not need to fall on me. He does a lot of the cooking (he is a grill master!), but we are always in the same routine every night where we are trying to decide what we are going to eat. I need it planned out or I won't make good decisions. So this weekend we are making a list of meals we all like and each kid is going to pick one for the following week. This takes some of the pressure off me and I know I will be making something they like. And, I love my air fryer!! I haven't used it as much as I should lately, but it is getting dusted off too!

This weekend is going to be a lot of organizing, purging and planning, but I am ready!!