The dreaded WALL!

hrod0215
hrod0215 Posts: 13 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Every time I get close to my goal, I don't know, something just happens and I get all stressed out, start getting dodgy with workouts and food. Then find myself jumping back on the wagon to lose the 5-10 lbs I gained back. And I jump back on with ease! I get mad at myself because I feel that it's 2-3 months that I could have been working on building strength and adding muscle. I want to kick myself every time!

Anyone experience this? Any tips to stay the course once I get close to goal? Why am I like this?! 😩

Replies

  • Xellercin
    Xellercin Posts: 924 Member
    I'll share what I do, and who knows, maybe it will help.

    I typically never have specific weight goals. My goal has always been to live the healthiest lifestyle I can and just accept the body that comes from being healthy.

    Now, I have a specific weight goal right now because I gained weight from some medications not long ago, and would like that specific weight gone, which I trust will go away with my healthy lifestyle, butbi want it gone by my 40th, so I've allowed one exception to my "no weight goals" rule.

    So, perhaps consider a lifestyle and wellness goal instead of a weight goal? Aim for a way that your body feels and what it can do, rather than its weight.

    Perhaps even consider giving up weighing yourself? I did that for years and always maintained in the same 5lb range by paying close attention to how I was taking care of myself.

    I only bought a new scale when the meds started packing on the pounds rapidly and I felt the need to stay on top of the gain, which is why I only gained 20 instead of the 60-80 that a lot of people report.

    But once I hit my new target range, I'll probably throw out the scale again. I know how to eat and exercise to get my best body, and I just need to focus on doing that.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,986 Member
    Could it be the way you're eating when restricting? Do you deny yourself treats? Restricting too much? Eat a way that you don't enjoy as much? Losing weight is ideally also about learning how to nourish your body with food you enjoy in amounts that work for you. If you skip this chance while losing weight then you might fall into this pattern of just wanting to get over with it and catching up with all the things you missed.
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 12,102 Member
    When you get close to your goal, consider expanding your goal into a range rather than a single number. For example, when you start losing weight with the idea of losing 25, 50 or more pounds, have a single target number. But when you get within five pounds or so of that number, then expand your expectations to "120 +/- 5" or whatever your goal happens to be. Fluctuations are to be expected, from water weight, monthly hormone changes, stress in life or holiday meals with family, etc. If you will only be happy with a single number, you are setting yourself up for perpetual disappointment, but if you can accept any number within a given range, you will stress less. When you find yourself creeping up to the high end of your range, tighten back down a little bit, but otherwise keep relegating weight control to a PART of your life, not the FOCUS of your life.
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,522 Member
    I go up and down. I get to the "everything's great!" weight, then relax a bit, and find myself back at the "ack!" weight.

    The thing that helps for me is training for some sort of event, triathlon, run, something non-weight related that benefits greatly from staying in shape. All that stuff is ending for the season, which is what makes fall so hard for me. This year, I'm hoping to do more winter sports, such as snow biking, skiing, and winter hiking.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,333 Member
    I do this..and have done this.. and I wondered if I like the excitement of weight loss. It is an achievable goal and gives purpose to life..there is transformation.
    Once I reach my goal... then it is a different reality. Steady forever work to just stay the same.
  • Fitforevermore
    Fitforevermore Posts: 399 Member
    I do this too. Apparently mindset helps, some people focus on 'to date ' thinking (self congratulations for what has been achieved) as opposed to 'to go' thinking (focusing on the final distance to the goal.
  • Semele0
    Semele0 Posts: 114 Member
    I've done something similar in the past! I started restricting and losing, but it lasted few weeks or months and then I went back to my old habits and weight... I think the problem was in my main motivation and in my mentality: my motivan was purely to improve my appearance, and it was not enought to get me going the distance. When I added the desire to improve my climbing (my favourite sport) suddently it was much easier! My mentality also was importan: at the start I expected too much from myself, and it backfired often since I found myself really beaten down on every lapse from my "diet". I started doing much better once I started to be more compassionate and to take it really slow and without pressure.
    I don't know if you are in the same situation, but stop thinking "why am I like this?". It is only normal to feel the pressure of the restricrion and sacrifices we make when losing, it is normal to lapse, it is ok to feel down. You are not to blame if you can't always be at your best, think about your successes and not your failure. Start ver, if you want, but be compassionate to yourself, you are not doing something easy! Good luck to you!

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