What are the habits that helped you succeed?

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amandaross887
amandaross887 Posts: 229 Member
edited April 2023 in Getting Started
What are the habits that helped you succeed?

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  • chris_in_cal
    chris_in_cal Posts: 2,179 Member
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    amandaross887 wrote: »
    What are the habits that helped you succeed?

    This is a great question! I'm committed to a 16 week plan, and having discreet little things like this keeps me more focused.
  • Hiawassee88
    Hiawassee88 Posts: 35,754 Member
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    Your food is yours alone. The trap on our foot is optional. Our food choices are highly individual, and mostly forged in earlier life. A narrow way of eating can lead to a narrow aperture to see the world through. Too many perimeters constrain us, limit us and confine us to a self-induced food prison.

    That which restrains us, is a snare. Old habits are tethers to our old selves. We lay these self-defeating traps, to keep us from wandering out of the familiar. Perfection is a pipe dream. Continuous daily improvement is better than delayed perfection.

    Instead of all or nothing thinking of perfection, think of it as full engagement with your life. Failure is sitting in neutral, as your life passes you by. Put it in gear and go forward.
  • JaysFan82
    JaysFan82 Posts: 851 Member
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    Making everything into a routine
  • Mischante
    Mischante Posts: 36 Member
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    Making changes to my diet that I know I can stick to permanently. Also only eating out occasionally. Even when you think you made a healthy choice it ends up being loaded with extra calories. I would rather cook at home.
  • melissaaridgeway
    melissaaridgeway Posts: 275 Member
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    Track everything. If you're mindful about the calories something has and it is deducted from your daily balance, you'll know how much more you can eat to stay within your calorie range to maintain weight loss.
  • SafariGalNYC
    SafariGalNYC Posts: 907 Member
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    I only allow healthy food in the house. If I want a Twinkie..I’m going to have to make a special trip for it.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,958 Member
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    • Log food
    • Step on the body weight scale and record it somewhere
    • Take a walk or do some exercise daily
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,154 Member
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    Eating foods I enjoy and find filling that add up to a reasonable number of calories and adequate nutrition on average over a day or few.

    Doing active things(official exercise or otherwise) that I personally find fun (or at least very tolerable/practical).

    Thinking in terms of long-term sustainable overall patterns of typical eating and activity, rather "good" and "bad" individual foods or anything of that sort. Trying to find practices I could follow almost on autopilot, ideally forever, to stay at a healthy weight.

    Being realistic about my personal, idiosyncratic preferences, strengths, limitations, etc.; and working within those, rather than trying to motivate myself to the point of attempting a personality transplant. Personality transplants don't work.

    Not freaking out over the odd day or two here or there that differ from my healthy routine. (Guilt, shame, anxiety, etc., don't burn any extra calories, plus they feel icky. I try to avoid them.)

    Own my decisions, i.e., those rare days where I overdo pizza or whatever were decisions on my part, one way or another. If the exception was worth it, fine. If it wasn't, I need to revise my plans. I'm not powerless when it comes to what I put in my mouth, chew, and swallow. (Doesn't mean personal psychology is always easy, though.) If I say I want something (like healthy weight or fitness), but I don't do the work I know is needful to achieve it, I didn't really mean it when I said I wanted it.
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 7,457 Member
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    AnnPT77 wrote: »

    …..Being realistic about my personal, idiosyncratic preferences, strengths, limitations, etc.; and working within those, rather than trying to motivate myself to the point of attempting a personality transplant. Personality transplants don't work.

    ….Guilt, shame, anxiety, etc., don't burn any extra calories, plus they feel icky. I try to avoid them….

    ….. If it wasn't, I need to revise my plans. I'm not powerless when it comes to what I put in my mouth, chew, and swallow….

    … If I say I want something (like healthy weight or fitness), but I don't do the work I know is needful to achieve it, I didn't really mean it when I said I wanted it.

    This is why @AnnPT77 is the Yoda of MFP. Well said, Ann! 😘
  • JaysFan82
    JaysFan82 Posts: 851 Member
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    Log food

    Find an exercise you enjoy
  • Rockmama1111
    Rockmama1111 Posts: 262 Member
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    I made a commitment to log everything, even when it’s ugly. (151 days straight and counting!) The data I now have is very helpful. Logging each day of gluttony helps me put it to bed and move on without stewing in my guilt.

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