Losing motivation

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mdougherty23
mdougherty23 Posts: 3
in Motivation and Support
I admit that I haven't been doing this program consistently for a long time, maybe a few weeks. I went to the Dr. the other day and much to my dismay found out that their scale had me at 8 whole pounds heavier than I was at home, even at my annual check up with my general physician their scale was on point with mine. Is it possible to be 8 lbs heavier??? I am losing my motivation and need inspiration and success stories to make me a believer again. I want to lose 40 lbs and haven't seen any results sticking to my 1200 calorie a day diet in 2 weeks.... is this normal? When will results come and what foods can I cut out to make the process happen faster.

Please help!!

Replies

  • KareninCanada
    KareninCanada Posts: 808 Member
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    It sounds like your scale at home wasn't calibrated properly... it can happen. My digital scale went nuts on me once a few years ago and had me losing nearly a pound a day (I wasn't). I tossed it and haven't had a scale since.

    My personal, non-professional advice for you would be:
    - Get rid of your scale and just weigh in at the gym or doctor so it's not there glaring at you. Especially if it's not reading accurately.
    - Take a full set of measurements and write them down in a journal, then do that again once every 4-6 weeks.
    - Increase your calories just a bit and see if you can give your body a boost that way (myth or not, I always lose better at 1400-1500 than 1200)
    - Realize that for the first couple of weeks you might see dramatic results or you might see nothing at all. My trainer warned about that, saying especially if you've dieted off and on for years, your body might hold on a little bit to see if you really mean it.
    - The best foods you can cut out are refined sugar and white flour. Just those two things will make a dramatic difference. And ramp up your water & veggies... no one ever got fat on too many carrots. lol


    Hang in there!!!
  • chastityp22
    chastityp22 Posts: 5 Member
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    Don't lose hope. I find that sometimes the body is reacting to a change in your habits. If you are cutting down the caloric intake, it reacts by holding on to the weight because it thinks that something is going on. Sometimes, you just have to pull through until the plateau finishes. I find that if I mix up the types of foods I eat, it can help get you out of the plateau. Drinking water, high fiber foods, things like that. The body does fluctuate and it depends on the time of day that you weigh in. Also, different scales show different weights sometimes. I notice a difference from my regular scale and my Wii Fit.

    I just recently started using this site even though I signed up for it a while ago. I didn't know that it was like a facebook for fitness when I downloaded the app. When I switched phones I noticed the things that you can do with the site, from getting advice, motivation, and support. If you use this through an app, get the app to send you notifications to check in. I'm the type of person that is ruled by reminders and schedules, so it's easy enough to get my phone to remind me to drink water every couple of hours or add to my food diary.

    Someone once told me that it took time to gain the weight, so it will take the same time to lose it.

    Good luck, and just know it will happen :) !
  • LeilaFace
    LeilaFace Posts: 412 Member
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    Greetings,

    I'm in the same boat as you, trying to lose 40 pounds. What I've discovered - Scales Lie. Given the time or day and/or month my weight varies a good 5 pounds due to water retention, just having eaten, etc. What I've kind of tried to do is I take my weight at the same time, using the same scale. usually first thing in the morning, before my shower.

    I'm not an expert, this is just what I do. once you get used to your eating schedule and you're comfortable with it, you should add in exercise 3 days then 4, etc, diet is one part but exercise is a BIG part. And you'll find you don't have to stick to you calories as much if you spend an hour burning 300+ calories.

    Motivation is a beast I just try to fall back on how much better i feel and sleep when I'm eating better and sweating a little. Hope this helped.
  • hitslikeagirl
    hitslikeagirl Posts: 14 Member
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    For just a moment forget about the things that can be overwhelming when dieting...the eat more of this, don't eat that, exercise every day, blah, blah, blah. These things can lead to a feeling of failure if you try to make too many changes at once-no matter how motivated you are in the beginning. Most of us have a really hard time getting past the first two week point. TRY THINKING ABOUT WHERE YOU MIGHT HAVE BEEN IF YOU HADN'T DONE WHAT YOU DID OVER THE LAST 2 WEEKS.

    There's sooo many things that could be holding your body up from losing weight. Don't get too distracted in trying to figure it out right now. RIGHT THIS MOMENT BE PROUD OF YOURSELF for caring enough and working to make a change. And be EVEN PROUDER that you are keeping at it. Don't stop! I know you know: reduced calories and some exercise (can't skip that, if only because it's a metabolism stimululator when done at least 3X per wk for at least 20 minutes) is basically how you lose weight. Things like drinking water, watching sodium, sugar, fat, blah, blah, blah, are ways to tweak it, blast it, get healthier.

    Be proud of yourself for caring about YOU, taking action to improve yourself, and sending out the blog for support! You'll get there with time and self discipline. YOU GOT THIS!!!

    PS. I've got 45# to go. It's hard, but I just hope (and pray) that I can stick with it long term. I'm looking forward to looking FABULOUS by my next birthday on 7/1 and I know I won't if I quit now.
  • mdougherty23
    mdougherty23 Posts: 3
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    Thank you, your words are very motivational. I will use them as my mantra... just want to live a healthy life!!! Good luck to you too!!!
  • mdougherty23
    mdougherty23 Posts: 3
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    Thank you for your kind words.
  • ADMOCT
    ADMOCT Posts: 5
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    the scale definately lies. get rid of it and go by measurements and how you feel in your clothes. scales don't take into account muscle mass. you could be a size 6 but be made of muscle and weigh 140lbs while the next person who does not workout and have any muscle also be a size 6 but only 125lbs. eat a little bit at a time but often, this keeps your metabolism up and keeps your body burning calories throughout the day. and have fun. keep the focus on being healthy and living a good life not just about looking a certain way! all the best to you!!
  • JamnKenny
    JamnKenny Posts: 1
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    In my opinion the motivation should come from your desire to lose weight.

    Don't throw the scale away as it acts the personal trainer who gets in yoru face and says "Work Harder" or "Great Job!". You need to properly check your stats to see how you improve. Remember, don't expect instant results. If losing weight was easy then we would all ahve wonderful bodies. It's a challenge, but remember the challenge is for only one persosn benefit... yourself.

    Have you joined a gym? That's teh hard part of losing weight... exercising. At least I think. For months I dreaded it. I joined a gym and barely went for two months. Then enough was enough. I downloaded this app over two weeks ago and decided to go to the gym everyday. And now I am down over 10 lbs and feel great. You have to find a way to make it enjoyable and part of your routine. If eating healthy, counting calories, and working out is a burden then you will never enjoy it and will eventually give up.

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